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Data Engineer Interview Questions

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Data Engineer Interview Questions

Data engineers are IT professionals who are needed in almost every industry. Data engineers monitor data trends to determine best next steps for companies. A critical part of a data engineer job is to process raw data into usable data by creating data pipelines and building data systems.

Top Data Engineer Interview Questions & How To Answer

Question 1

Question #1: Can you describe in detail your level of expertise with programming languages?

How to answer
How to answer: Before the interview, review your resume and/or portfolio and make a list of the programs you are most proficient with. If you find that you are lacking the expertise in a program that the company predominately uses, describe yourself as a highly motivated self-starter who will work tirelessly to learn the program(s).
Question 2

Question #2: Explain data engineering in your own words.

How to answer
How to answer: Highlight your role in relation to the larger organization and other roles like data scientists to clearly define your contribution to the overall system of business. Clarify the difference between a database-centric engineer and a pipeline-centric engineer.
Question 3

Question #3: Can you describe your experience working with Apache Hadoop and cloud data management environments?

How to answer
How to answer: Research the company's software, data cloud products, and use of Apache Hadoop to be prepared for this inquiry. Data Engineers must be fluent in programming languages and data management systems used throughout the industry such as Apache Hadoop.

20,192 data engineer interview questions shared by candidates

The Data Architect Lead was condescending, disrespectful and overall made the entire experience awkward simply because I was unfamiliar with some particular areas, so he simply did not need to ask me technical questions any further. It's also quite inconsiderate to state, "What's so hard about that? Why was that even impressive to you?" when I am explaining my projects or background. His final question of, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" said sarcastically is not a professional question for a woman of color with 7+ years of experience. This was an uncomfortable conversation that was quite condescending. After that one encounter, I no longer wanted this role and I no longer wanted to work for Pie. Good luck to any women applying in engineering here.
avatar

Data Engineer

Interviewed at Pie Insurance

3.2★
Jan 20, 2021

The Data Architect Lead was condescending, disrespectful and overall made the entire experience awkward simply because I was unfamiliar with some particular areas, so he simply did not need to ask me technical questions any further. It's also quite inconsiderate to state, "What's so hard about that? Why was that even impressive to you?" when I am explaining my projects or background. His final question of, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" said sarcastically is not a professional question for a woman of color with 7+ years of experience. This was an uncomfortable conversation that was quite condescending. After that one encounter, I no longer wanted this role and I no longer wanted to work for Pie. Good luck to any women applying in engineering here.

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