
Technical Interviews
When interviewing for technical roles like software engineer, data scientist, quantitative researcher, or product manager, expect both technical assessments and behavioral interview questions. Technical questions could take the form of coding challenges, brain teasers, or product case scenarios. Check out the resources below to explore how to best prepare for your upcoming technical interviews.
General Tech/Software Engineering
- Read Cracking the Coding Interview
- Review Google Tech Dev Guide, Interview Prep
- Prep questions with Leetcode or HackerRank
- Take fundamental CS coursework at Harvard: CS 50, 120, 124 (a particular focus on data structures and algorithms is usually helpful)
- Sign up for the CodePath Technical Interview Prep Summer Course (fills fast)
- Participate in hackathons and coding challenges. https://www.codewars.com/
- Practice brain teasers. These types of challenging questions are often used to assess candidates’ analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Other recommended interview prep tools: Hackerearth, Interview Cake, Interviewing.io, Khan Academy Course Algorithms, Neetcode (please note: most have some free content, but you may have to pay a fee for more premium content)
Data Science/Analytics
- Read Ace the Data Science Interview. Preview some of the practice questions featured here.
- Join competitions and learn with free courses on Kaggle.com.
- Check out GitHub data science interview resources.
- View mock data science/analytics interview on Jay Feng’s Youtube Channel.
- Find more data science/analyst interview questions on these sites: Datasciencedojo, Forage, InterviewBit, Intellipaat Blog, Interview Query, Springboard.
Product Management
- Read Cracking the PM Interview. Another recommended book is Decode and Conquer.
- Review Exponent PM Interview Guide. For $12/month, you can also complete the PM Interview course.
- Review Meta’s Product Management Interview guide.
- Review Product HQ for a large database of PM interview questions.
- Check out this blog on The Aspiring Product Manager that features candidate insights into Lyft’s APM interview process. Other blogs feature Microsoft’s new grad PM program as well as Coinbase, LinkedIn, Uber & Google.
Quantitative Finance
- Read A Practical Guide to Quantitative Finance Interviews. (Also known as the green book.)
- Review the Quant, FM and Data Science Interview Compilation, by Aaron Cao of LSU
- Consult interview prep tools such as: QuantGuide, Quant Questions, PuzzledQuant
- Review Street of Walls, Finance Training Courses, for Quant Job Interviews Questions and Answers.
MCS Interview Prep Resources
- Prep with Big Interview—Review expert video lessons with AI-based virtual practice interview tools, record mock interviews with instant AI feedback.
- Schedule a mock interview with MCS Firsthand Advisors—Connect with Harvard alumni in the tech field for mock interviews and more.
- Review Harvard College Guide to Interviewing for in-depth instructions on how to ace your interview. See also a list of common interview questions.
- Consult the Vault Guides for industry-specific knowledge. Most guides include sample interview questions. Harvard FAS students can access the entire Vault Library via the MCS Firsthand Advisors platform. Once logged in, simply use the left-hand navigation to select “The Library.”