Software Engineer Interview Practice for Hindi Speakers (US)
Practise the questions a software engineer interview commonly asks, and see where your English needs work before the real interview. Built for people who moved from India and are interviewing in the US.
What a software engineer interview asks
Employers often ask these questions. You can practise any of them out loud, with feedback.
- Walk me through a system or feature you built. What did you decide, and why?
- Tell me about a technical trade-off you made and what it cost you.
- Describe a bug that took you a long time to find. How did you find it?
- Tell me about a time you disagreed with a technical decision on your team.
- How do you explain a technical problem to somebody who is not technical?
What Hindi speakers commonly say in English
These are habits, not mistakes about intelligence — your first language works differently, and it shows through under interview pressure.
Article dropping
Often said: I am engineer.
Instead: I am an engineer.
'Only' / 'itself' for emphasis
Often said: I only worked on backend.
Instead: I worked only on backend.
'Revert back' / 'do the needful'
Often said: I will revert back to you.
Instead: I will get back to you.
'Doubt' for 'question'
Often said: I have a doubt.
Instead: I have a question.
Present continuous for habits
Often said: I am working here since 2020.
Instead: I have worked here since 2020.
How interviews run in the US
Talking about your own work
"Selling yourself" is expected. Confidence and enthusiasm are strengths.
What interviewers here tend to value
- Initiative
- Results-orientation
- Enthusiasm
- Leadership potential
- Cultural fit
What catches people out
- Being too modest
- Not sending thank-you email
- Not negotiating salary
- Underselling achievements
What is expected of your English
How much English a job needs depends on the role and the employer. Frontline adverts often ask for basic or working English, for example so you can follow safety instructions, and office roles often ask for more. The job advert is the best place to check. You do not need to sound like a local speaker.
An accent is normal. What helps most is making what you did, and the result, easy to hear in every answer.
Asked about local experience?
Many interviewers in the US ask if you have local work experience. Type the job you did in India. See job titles an interviewer here may use for it, three points for your CV, and a short answer you can practise. Explain your overseas experience (free tool)
Reading about it only takes you so far
Answer a few of these out loud. You will see where your English needs work, and what to fix first. A first look takes about a minute. The full check is 3-5 questions, about 12-20 minutes. Free, and you do not need a card.