Interview Thoughts

After interviewing for 4 consecutive days, here are some thoughts I would like to share.

Fact - A lot of companies start to give paper exams as the first filter in recruiting. Probably the companies found it more efficient than screening through the piles of resume and doing phone screens. But a pitfall is that students often need to go to more than one exams in a day, which adds to their already very busy daily life. And the questions on the tests? more or less the same. The same coding and algorithm questions. And I think since it is China sooner or later there will be tutoring classes targeting these kind of exams, and there will be "mock" exams, past papers...

Bad - Chinese students have very bad breath, and I wonder why. I suppose in this modern world everyone should have a tooth brush? Students shouldn't be smoking that much either. It's the worst when they sit right next to you and start talking...

Fun - I was told by one of the students Google is like 超女 selection. A student in Shanghai who failed the interviews came to Nanjing on train, hoping to take the paper exam again and get another slot for interview. This is like going to 南京赛区 after failing somewhere else. I don't think we will let that happen though, and this is probably something we never expect to happen at the first place.

Ridiculous - We had to keep the doors open when interviewing. I was told it is because an employee at another company got sue by a female student, accusing him of sexual harassment.

Bad - While the students are very good at fundamentals, they lack creativity and often cannot think outside of the model answer or what's given in book.

Learned - Some of the students are very nervous when they first come into the room. A small gesture such as a smile, handshake, and brief introduction is enough to help them loosen up and feel more comfortable.

Rewarding - One student gave me "feedbacks" towards the end of the interview. He told me that he learned a lot from the interviews we gave, how to approach a problem and solve it in steps, and the thinking process of keep on improving it, and he thanked us for giving him this opportunity. This made me feel that the entire week here is worth it, regardless of the hiring outcome.