December 1, 2013 at 9:24 am
Hi All,
I am working in a small company having 2 years of experience .. But I am into Production Support..I am planning to move to other company and try for some SQL developer jobs..I have no idea what type of questions they ask..I tried googling, but all are direct SQL questions(like What are Indexes ? , What are the types of Joins? ) ..Could you please post some scenario based SQL developing questions ..It would be really helpful for me..
December 1, 2013 at 5:00 pm
Are you able to correctly answer and carry on a fairly decent conversation about those "direct" questions? If not, you might not survive the interview.
Shifting gears back to your request, the post at the following URL contains most of what I and many others expect an SQL Developer to be able to do and talk about in some good detail on top of all the "direct" questions. I say "most of what I'd expect" because I'd also expect a candidate to be able to talk about/demonstrate things like how to join 3 or more tables, being able to talk at some good length about the intricacies and dependencies of indexes, and to discuss various performance issues that they've solved in the past along with some new ones at the interview.
http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/FindPost1517650.aspx
Of course, if it's for a Junior position, then a lot of those Senior level requirements aren't appropriate.
As for scenarios that they might ask or test you on... they seem to vary greatly based somewhat on esoteric knowledge that you might need to adapt to but I would expect them to ask you to handwrite some code for joined SELECTs, joined UPDATEs, and the like. If you pass those, I'd expect them to put a computer under your nose, give you some requirements, and have you create the necessary tables, keys, and indexes in a third normal form as well as write a query or two to solve certain problems on the objects you just created.
If it's truly for a Senior SQL Developer position, I'd expect scenarios from every bullet on the list I posted the URL for and more.
I'd also expect them to ask some questions about the four letter words in SQL Server like SSRS, SSIS, SSAS, and maybe even SSSB. They might also harp on you a bit about PowerShell and SQLCLR. I don't personally consider those questions to be appropriate for any level of SQL Developer but it happens. Such knowledge is sometimes used as a "tie breaker" between two or more good candidates.
--Jeff Moden
Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
December 1, 2013 at 10:12 pm
Different companies will ask different questions. Hell, I used to ask different questions depending on my mood and the candidate's CV. There's no fixed set of questions.
You say all google finds are direct questions, well, would you be able to answer scenarios around those direct questions? If someone asked you to determine the best index for a specific query or what join type should be used in a particular query, would you be able to answer?
Relax, don't exaggerate your skills, don't make up answers.
Gail Shaw
Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server, MVP, M.Sc (Comp Sci)
SQL In The Wild: Discussions on DB performance with occasional diversions into recoverability
December 1, 2013 at 10:21 pm
For only just 2+, they will ask you basics questions only, And, in some cases, they will like you write down some basic queries (just to see practical queries.)
And, it all depends on Your CV and Their Requirement.
So , Keep UP yourself with the "BASICS", i hope u will do fine. 🙂
December 1, 2013 at 11:01 pm
Mr. Kapsicum (12/1/2013)
For only just 2+, they will ask you basics questions only, And, in some cases, they will like you write down some basic queries (just to see practical queries.)And, it all depends on Your CV and Their Requirement.
So , Keep UP yourself with the "BASICS", i hope u will do fine. 🙂
For front-end developers and companies that don't really know what they're asking for, I agree... the basics of SQL will normally get you by. But, if it's for a real "SQL Developer" job by a company that truly understands what the position is, be prepared to be ripped apart at the seams just so they can see what you're made of because the position of "SQL Developer" at any level is comparatively rare and competition for such jobs is high.
How do I know this? Because those are the only jobs I've sought for the last 12 years so I've been on plenty of those interviews and I'm currently conducting interviews for two companies that asked for help in finding good "SQL Developers". Even "experts" at the "basics" simply aren't good enough for those types of jobs. A really good "SQL Developer" can reach pay scales rivaling those of DBAs and people want to know what they're getting for their money.
--Jeff Moden
Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
December 2, 2013 at 3:51 am
I'm going to follow on what the others have said. You first have to demonstrate that you have the core knowledge of SQL Server before I start asking you other questions. If you don't know the difference between a clustered index and a non-clustered index, you are absolutely not going to do well with any of my database development questions.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
December 2, 2013 at 10:51 am
Jeff Moden (12/1/2013)
Even "experts" at the "basics" simply aren't good enough for those types of jobs.
A nickel's worth of free advice on this statement: If you "talk the talk" and rate yourself as an "expert" you'd better be prepared to "walk the walk" because you will be called out on it. You may get by the initial interview, but they'll eat you alive during the technical interview.
December 2, 2013 at 12:23 pm
Jeff Moden (12/1/2013)
...How do I know this? Because those are the only jobs I've sought for the last 12 years so I've been on plenty of those interviews and I'm currently conducting interviews for two companies that asked for help in finding good "SQL Developers". Even "experts" at the "basics" simply aren't good enough for those types of jobs. A really good "SQL Developer" can reach pay scales rivaling those of DBAs and people want to know what they're getting for their money.
So that explains why you asked where I was willing to work when I posted that I would be coming home to having to look for work.
Too bad they aren't willing to work with a remote worker, or so I assume.
December 2, 2013 at 2:24 pm
Lynn Pettis (12/2/2013)
Jeff Moden (12/1/2013)
...How do I know this? Because those are the only jobs I've sought for the last 12 years so I've been on plenty of those interviews and I'm currently conducting interviews for two companies that asked for help in finding good "SQL Developers". Even "experts" at the "basics" simply aren't good enough for those types of jobs. A really good "SQL Developer" can reach pay scales rivaling those of DBAs and people want to know what they're getting for their money.
So that explains why you asked where I was willing to work when I posted that I would be coming home to having to look for work.
Too bad they aren't willing to work with a remote worker, or so I assume.
Z'actly. On both points.
--Jeff Moden
Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
December 2, 2013 at 2:33 pm
Jeff Moden (12/2/2013)
Lynn Pettis (12/2/2013)
Jeff Moden (12/1/2013)
...How do I know this? Because those are the only jobs I've sought for the last 12 years so I've been on plenty of those interviews and I'm currently conducting interviews for two companies that asked for help in finding good "SQL Developers". Even "experts" at the "basics" simply aren't good enough for those types of jobs. A really good "SQL Developer" can reach pay scales rivaling those of DBAs and people want to know what they're getting for their money.
So that explains why you asked where I was willing to work when I posted that I would be coming home to having to look for work.
Too bad they aren't willing to work with a remote worker, or so I assume.
Z'actly. On both points.
Why are companies so eager to use new technologies to reach customers but unwilling to use these same technologies to enhance their work force. Oh, and then you have companies willing to off-shore this type of work but not willing to on-shore it to remote workers.
December 3, 2013 at 5:44 am
Lynn Pettis (12/2/2013)
Why are companies so eager to use new technologies to reach customers but unwilling to use these same technologies to enhance their work force. Oh, and then you have companies willing to off-shore this type of work but not willing to on-shore it to remote workers.
The "built-in chair" syndrome. Attendance is easy to measure and monitor I read a book called "Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It" by Cali Ressler and Jodi Thompson. It detailed how they spearheaded an effort at BestBuy Corporate to move to a "Results-Only Work Environment." Performance was monitored by results, not attendance. No schedules, no meetings, but no excuses either. You could work when you wanted, how you wanted, from where you wanted but there were no excuses for the work not getting done.
It caused a big stir 4 or 5 years ago and I'm not sure BestBuy still does it, but it is a fascinating read into the world of corporate culture and overcoming much of the societal inertia in the employment world.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled topic...
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Just my $0.02 from over here in the cheap seats of the peanut gallery - please adjust for inflation and/or your local currency.
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