It was April when I received an invitation for a software development boot camp at Unionbank. I was shocked, who wouldn’t be? It’s a great company! And because I never applied for it.
Even though it stated that it’s for those who graduated already, I still went on to the assessment exam. The assessment was a long one with multiple set of questions.
I remember one set of questions was something about finance/accounting because it had questions where you have to solve the compound interest and such. You will definitely have to use your scientific calculator to find the right answers. It was really difficult. The other set was logical reasoning puzzles that will surely make you puzzled.
Last set as I can remember was for personal information.
I finished the exam just for the sake of finishing it, because I already knew I wouldn’t pass it. I’m still on my 3rd year so I wouldn’t be qualified anyway.
However months later, while I was on the middle of my remote software development internship, i received another invitation from them. This time it’s an internship which I’m qualified to continue the application. I was really excited for the opportunity. So even when I’m still having my internship, I immediately replied that I am interested.
It took few days to receive a response from the hiring manager. But when I finally got an email, with excitement I read it. I was told to choose a schedule for my first interview, so I did.
I’m not new with interviews, be it online or not, because I always apply for jobs. For all the interviews I had, some of them I didn’t continue my application and some I was not qualified to continue. By that time, I already had two internship as a developer and some part-time jobs, so I wasn’t too nervous for the interview. Experiences helped me build my confidence.
How did I prepare for the interview? 📝
The first thing I prepared is an answer for ‘Tell me about yourself’ because this is always the first thing the interview would ask you to do.
I also prepared some answers for possible questions they would ask. And lastly I prepared my own questions to ask.
The day of the interview came, I wore presentable clothes and made sure I look decent. Logged in on my laptop and waited for the meeting to start. A blackout even happened minutes before, I panicked but managed to found a solution.
Note: If you already know the name of the interviewer, try searching for them on platforms like LinkedIn. That way, if you see how they look beforehand, you will feel a little less anxious. Well that truly helps in my case.
Did I pass? 💁♂️
After the meeting, I was told that my resume was impressive and that I somehow have an advantage. By those words, I expected that I would pass. But almost three weeks had passed, I was about to finish my latest project, and I haven’t received an update yet. So, I emailed the HR to ask for the status of my application. Then, just few hours I was again told to choose a schedule for another interview, but a technical one with on the spot coding assessment. I scheduled the coding assessment but I felt really nervous because I know it would be hard.
I remember one time I had a technical interview but I wasn’t informed that it would be one so I was not prepared. I was suddenly asked to open an IDE and answer a coding problem. I know I could do it, but the nervousness didn’t let me answer it.
Because if that experience, I wanted to prepare properly so I would get accepted.
The day of the coding assessment came, and suddenly a blackout happened again like the first interview. But i cant just use my phone, so I rescheduled.
That night, I prepared again that I almost didn’t sleep. And that was what I regret the most because I woke up exactly as the time of my technical interview. I know I wasted the opportunity, but I learned one important thing from that.
Sleep is important indeed. Preparation is nothing if you won’t get sleep.
I made a mistake, and lose a great opportunity. Though I would use this opportunity to focus on finishing my personal projects instead. Life happens. We make mistakes. We lose opportunities. But what’s always more important is our response to anything that happens.
I may not get the internship, but at least I would get a break for a while. Breaks are necessary too. We need them too.
learn more 📑…
📍 can’t work or code continuously because of slow laptop or pc? try these steps
📍 some acronyms and principles we as programmers should know
📍 loop programming exercises in java, c++, python and javascript —12
