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Having a solid and effective resume can greatly improve your chances of landing that dream job. That is beyond discussion. How does one make sure that his resume is top notch and bullet proof, however? There are several websites with tips around the web, but most bring just a handful of them. We wanted to put them all together in a single place, and that is what you will find below: 44 resume writing tips.

1. Know the purpose of your resume

Some people write a resume as if the purpose of the document was to land a job. As a result they end up with a really long and boring piece that makes them look like desperate job hunters. The objective of your resume is to land an interview, and the interview will land you the job (hopefully!).

2. Back up your qualities and strengths

Instead of creating a long (and boring) list with all your qualities (e.g., disciplined, creative, problem solver) try to connect them with real life and work experiences. In other words, you need to back these qualities and strengths up, else it will appear that you are just trying to inflate things.

3. Make sure to use the right keywords

Most companies (even smaller ones) are already using digital databases to search for candidates. This means that the HR department will run search queries based on specific keywords. Guess what, if your resume doesn’t have the keywords related to the job you are applying for, you will be out even before the game starts.

These keywords will usually be nouns. Check the job description and related job ads for a clue on what the employer might be looking for. You can read more about resume keywords on the article Tapping the Power of Keywords to Enhance Your Resume’s Effectiveness.

4. Use effective titles

Like it or not, employers will usually make a judgment about your resume in 5 seconds. Under this time frame the most important aspect will be the titles that you listed on the resume, so make sure they grab the attention. Try to be as descriptive as possible, giving the employer a good idea about the nature of your past work experiences. For example:

Bad title: Accounting
Good title: Management of A/R and A/P and Recordkeeping

5. Proofread it twice

It would be difficult to emphasize the importance of proofreading your resume. One small typo and your chances of getting hired could slip. Proofreading it once is not enough, so do it twice, three times or as many as necessary. If you don’t know how to proofread effectively, here are 8 tips that you can use.

6. Use bullet points

No employer will have the time (or patience) to read long paragraphs of text. Make sure, therefore, to use bullet points and short sentences to describe your experiences, educational background and professional objectives.

7. Where are you going?

Including professional goals can help you by giving employers an idea of where you are going, and how you want to arrive there. You don’t need to have a special section devoted to your professional objectives, but overall the resume must communicate it. The question of whether or not to highlight your career objectives on the resume is a polemic one among HR managers, so go with your feeling. If you decide to list them, make sure they are not generic.

8. Put the most important information first

This point is valid both to the overall order of your resume, as well as to the individual sections. Most of the times your previous work experience will be the most important part of the resume, so put it at the top. When describing your experiences or skills, list the most important ones first.

9. Attention to the typography

First of all make sure that your fonts are big enough. The smaller you should go is 11 points, but 12 is probably safer. Do not use capital letters all over the place, remember that your goal is to communicate a message as fast and as clearly as possible. Arial and Times are good choices.

10. Do not include “no kidding” information

There are many people that like to include statements like “Available for interview” or “References available upon request.” If you are sending a resume to a company, it should be a given that you are available for an interview and that you will provide references if requested. Just avoid items that will make the employer think “no kidding!”

11. Explain the benefits of your skills

Merely stating that you can do something will not catch the attention of the employer. If you manage to explain how it will benefit his company, and to connect it to tangible results, then you will greatly improve your chances.

12. Avoid negativity

Do not include information that might sound negative in the eyes of the employer. This is valid both to your resume and to interviews. You don’t need to include, for instance, things that you hated about your last company.

13. Achievements instead of responsibilities

Resumes that include a long list of “responsibilities included…” are plain boring, and not efficient in selling yourself. Instead of listing responsibilities, therefore, describe your professional achievements.

14. No pictures

Sure, we know that you are good looking, but unless you are applying for a job where the physical traits are very important (e.g., modeling, acting and so on), and unless the employer specifically requested it, you should avoid attaching your picture to the resume.

15. Use numbers

This tip is a complement to the 13th one. If you are going to describe your past professional achievements, it would be a good idea to make them as solid as possible. Numbers are your friends here. Don’t merely mention that you increased the annual revenues of your division, say that you increased them by $100,000, by 78%, and so on.

16. One resume for each employer

One of the most common mistakes that people make is to create a standard resume and send it to all the job openings that they can find. Sure it will save you time, but it will also greatly decrease the chances of landing an interview (so in reality it could even represent a waste of time). Tailor your resume for each employer. The same point applies to your cover letters.

17. Identify the problems of the employer

A good starting point to tailor your resume for a specific employer is to identify what possible problems he might have at hand. Try to understand the market of the company you are applying for a job, and identify what kind of difficulties they might be going through. After that illustrate on your resume how you and your skills would help to solve those problems.

18. Avoid age discrimination

It is illegal to discriminate people because of their age, but some employers do these considerations nonetheless. Why risk the trouble? Unless specifically requested, do not include your age on your resume.

19. You don’t need to list all your work experiences

If you have job experiences that you are not proud of, or that are not relevant to the current opportunity, you should just omit them. Mentioning that you used to sell hamburgers when you were 17 is probably not going to help you land that executive position.

20. Go with what you got

If you never had any real working experience, just include your summer jobs or volunteer work. If you don’t have a degree yet, mention the title and the estimated date for completion. As long as those points are relevant to the job in question, it does not matter if they are official or not.

21. Sell your fish

Remember that you are trying to sell yourself. As long as you don’t go over the edge, all the marketing efforts that you can put in your resume (in its content, design, delivery method and so on) will give you an advantage over the other candidates.

22. Don’t include irrelevant information

Irrelevant information such as political affiliation, religion and sexual preference will not help you. In fact it might even hurt your chances of landing an interview. Just skip it.

23. Use Mr. and Ms. if appropriate

If you have a gender neutral name like Alex or Ryan make sure to include the Mr. or Ms. prefix, so that employers will not get confused about your gender.

24. No lies, please

Seems like a no brainer, but you would be amused to discover the amount of people that lie in their resumes. Even small lies should be avoided. Apart from being wrong, most HR departments do background checks these days, and if you are buster it might ruin your credibility for good.

25. Keep the salary in mind

The image you will create with your resume must match the salary and responsibility level that you are aiming for.

26. Analyze job ads

You will find plenty of useful information on job ads. Analyze no only the ad that you will be applying for, but also those from companies on the same segment or offering related positions. You should be able to identify what profile they are looking for and how the information should be presented.

27. Get someone else to review your resume

Even if you think you resume is looking kinky, it would be a good idea to get a second and third opinion about it. We usually become blind to our own mistakes or way of reasoning, so another people will be in a good position to evaluate the overall quality of your resume and make appropriate suggestions.

28. One or two pages

The ideal length for a resume is a polemic subject. Most employers and recruiting specialists, however, say that it should contain one or two pages at maximum. Just keep in mind that, provided all the necessary information is there, the shorter your resume, the better.

29. Use action verbs

A very common advice to job seekers is to use action verbs. But what are they? Action verbs are basically verbs that will get noticed more easily, and that will clearly communicate what your experience or achievement were. Examples include managed, coached, enforced and planned. Here you can find a complete list of action verbs divided by skill category.

30. Use a good printer

If you are going to use a paper version of your resume, make sure to use a decent printer. Laser printers usually get the job done. Plain white paper is the preferred one as well.

31. No hobbies

Unless you are 100% sure that some of your hobbies will support you candidacy, avoid mentioning them. I know you are proud of your swimming team, but share it with your friends and not with potential employers.

32. Update your resume regularly

It is a good idea to update your resume on a regular basis. Add all the new information that you think is relevant, as well as courses, training programs and other academic qualifications that you might receive along the way. This is the best way to keep track of everything and to make sure that you will not end up sending an obsolete document to the employer.

33. Mention who you worked with

If you have reported or worked with someone that is well known in your industry, it could be a good idea to mention it on the resume. The same thing applies to presidents and CEOs. If you reported to or worked directly with highly ranked executives, add it to the resume.

34. No scattered information

Your resume must have a clear focus. If would cause a negative impression if you mentioned that one year you were studying drama, and the next you were working as an accountant. Make sure that all the information you will include will work towards a unified image. Employers like decided people.

35. Make the design flow with white space

Do not jam your resume with text. Sure we said that you should make your resume as short and concise as possible, but that refers to the overall amount of information and not to how much text you can pack in a single sheet of paper. White space between the words, lines and paragraphs can improve the legibility of your resume.

36. Lists all your positions

If you have worked a long time for the same company (over 10 years) it could be a good idea to list all the different positions and roles that you had during this time separately. You probably had different responsibilities and developed different skills on each role, so the employer will like to know it.

37. No jargon or slang

It should be common sense, but believe me, it is not. Slang should never be present in a resume. As for technical jargon, do not assume that the employer will know what you are talking about. Even if you are sending your resume to a company in the same segment, the person who will read it for the first time might not have any technical expertise.

38. Careful with sample resume templates

There are many websites that offer free resume templates. While they can help you to get an idea of what you are looking for, do not just copy and paste one of the most used ones. You certainly don’t want to look just like any other candidate, do you?

39. Create an email proof formatting

It is very likely that you will end up sending your resume via email to most companies. Apart from having a Word document ready to go as an attachment, you should also have a text version of your resume that does not look disfigured in the body of the email or in online forms. Attachments might get blocked by spam filters, and many people just prefer having the resume on the body of the email itself.

40. Remove your older work experiences

If you have been working for 20 years or more, there is no need to have 2 pages of your resume listing all your work experiences, starting with the job at the local coffee shop at the age of 17! Most experts agree that the last 15 years of your career are enough.

41. No fancy design details

Do not use a colored background, fancy fonts or images on your resume. Sure, you might think that the little flowers will cheer up the document, but other people might just throw it away at the sight.

42. No pronouns

You resume should not contain the pronouns “I” or “me.” That is how we normally structure sentences, but since your resume is a document about your person, using these pronouns is actually redundant.

43. Don’t forget the basics

The first thing on your resume should be your name. It should be bold and with a larger font than the rest of the text. Make sure that your contact details are clearly listed. Secondly, both the name and contact details should be included on all the pages of the resume (if you have more than one).

44. Consider getting professional help

If you are having a hard time to create your resume, or if you are receiving no response whatsoever from companies, you could consider hiring a professional resume writing service. There are both local and online options are available, and usually the investment will be worth the money.

1. Tell me about yourself?
I am down-to-earth, sweet, smart, creative, industrious, and thorough.

2. How has your experience prepared you for your career?
Coursework:
Aside from the discipline and engineering foundation learning that I have gained from my courses, I think the design projects, reports, and presentations have prepared me most for my career.
Work Experience:
Through internships, I have gained self-esteem, confidence, and problem-solving skills. I also refined my technical writing and learned to prepare professional documents for clients.
Student Organizations:
By working on multiple projects for different student organizations while keeping up my grades, I've built time management and efficiency skills. Additionally, I've developed leadership, communication, and teamwork abilities.
Life Experience:
In general, life has taught me determination and the importance of maintaining my ethical standards.

3. Describe the ideal job.
Ideally, I would like to work in a fun, warm environment with individuals working independently towards team goals or individual goals. I am not concerned about minor elements, such as dress codes, cubicles, and the level of formality. Most important to me is an atmosphere that fosters attention to quality, honesty, and integrity.

4. What type of supervisor have you found to be the best?
I have been fortunate enough to work under wonderful supervisors who have provided limited supervision, while answering thoughtful questions and guiding learning. In my experience, the best supervisors give positive feedback and tactful criticism.

5. What do you plan to be doing in five years' time?
Taking the PE exam and serving in supervisory/leadership roles both at work and in professional/community organization(s).

6. What contributions could you make in this organization that would help you to stand out from other applicants?
In previous internships, my industriousness and ability to teach myself have been valuable assets to the company. My self-teaching abilities will minimize overhead costs, and my industriousness at targeting needs without prompting will set me apart from others. Additionally, one thing that has always set me apart from my scientific/engineering peers are my broad interests and strong writing abilities. I am not your typical "left-brained" engineer, and with my broad talents, I am likely to provide diverse viewpoints.

7. What sort of criteria are you using to decide the organization you will work for?
Most importantly, I am looking for a company that values quality, ethics, and teamwork. I would like to work for a company that hires overachievers.

8. What made you choose your major?
My academic interests are broad, so I sought civil engineering to achieve a great balance of mathematics, chemistry, biology, physics, and writing.

9. Have your university and major met your expectations?
The College of Engineering at MSU has exceeded my expectations by providing group activities, career resources, individual attention, and professors with genuine interest in teaching.
My major has met my expectations by about 90%. I would have enjoyed more choices in environmental courses, and would have preferred more calculus-based learning.

10. What made you choose this college?
I chose this college for the following reasons: my budget limited me to in-state schools, I was seeking an area with dog-friendly apartments, the MSU web site impressed me, I saw active student groups, and the people were very friendly.

11. List 2-3 of your greatest achievements since you've been in college and why? Receiving the SWE Outstanding Member Award and College of Engineering Student Service Award
I got involved with student activities to overcome my debilitating shyness. Receiving these awards signified that I had accomplished a transition from dragging myself to participate to feeling energized by it.
Receiving the SWE Web Site Award
Without training in web design, I competed against not only the other student sections, but professional sections around the nation. Despite competing with more HTML-experienced people, I brought this award to my section. After getting so much from SWE, I was able to give something back.
Earning the highest grade in an organic chemistry class of ~200 people
I worked very hard for this grade and loved the subject, so it was a great feeling to see that the hard work paid off.

12. Which subjects have you enjoyed studying the most and why?
I have enjoyed hydrology, fluids, solid & hazardous waste management, water and wastewater treatment, and oceanography because I love water and environmental topics.
Calculus and linear algebra excite me because I love logic.
I enjoyed the writing and analysis in economic history.
Business law thrilled me because I have a strong interest in legal matters.

13. Which subjects did you dislike and why?
Introductory soil elicited little interest in me, most likely because the professor was inexperienced, the book was ineffective, and I had little spare time that semester to look into other resources.

14. Do you have plans to continue your education?
Yes, but not immediately. I plan to continue part time with either an MBA or an environmental engineering masters, depending on which will be more beneficial to my work.

15. How would a professor who knows you well describe you? One who does not know you well?
A professor who knows me well would likely describe my personal qualities: sweet, down-to-earth, smart, hard-working, and conscientious.
As specific examples of those who did not know me well, my soils professor and soils teaching assistant each considered me smart and respectful, and both thought that I must have enjoyed the class a lot, due to my performance.

16. Given the chance, how would you alter your education?
Knowing now what I like the most, I would have used my electives for extra math and psychology classes, since I tend to be well-rounded enough that a variety of classes are unnecessary; my personal reading is diverse enough. I have found that mathematics and psychology are helpful to all career and life paths.

17. Which part-time job did you enjoy the most and why?
Working for PM Environmental was most enjoyable to me, since I felt like I was significantly contributing to the company, and I enjoyed learning on my own.

18. Interests:
Some of my interests include dogs, hiking, snow-shoeing, water sports, writing, reading (especially Charles Dickens' novels), skiing, drawing, crafts, and computers.

19. What are your strengths?
My strongest strength is the ability to teach myself difficult material, regardless of the subject (with the exception of theater and drawing blood from dogs, which I have no talent for). Additionally, I have always excelled verbally and look forward to writing opportunities.

20. What are your weaknesses?
I tend to try to do too many things, leaving little time for myself. I have worked on balancing myself for the last several months. I am also working on improving my public speaking skills.

21. What sort of serious problems have you experienced, and how have you handled them?
My apartment building burned down at the end of January during one of my semesters at MSU. Before the fire got too bad, I was able to rescue my pets and the neighbor's dog, as well as my textbooks and backpack, but I lost most of my mementos and possessions. While the firemen were preparing their hoses, I drove to school (with the animals in the car) to meet my lab partners, who were waiting for me. I explained the situation, emailed my professors, and rushed back to the apartment.
Fortunately, I had renter's insurance. I missed about a week of school to deal with the insurance matters and find a new place to live. In order to salvage my grades and sanity, I dropped a course and honored my existing student group and research commitments. Staying active socially and keeping myself well-rounded were the best healing tools for me. Within a few weeks, I was caught up and had recovered reasonably from the loss of sentimental items.

22. Do you or have you in the past experimented with illegal drugs?
No. My only addictions are caffeine and sugar.

23. Would you be willing to take a drug test?
Of course.

24. Do you drink alcohol socially?
No, but I enjoy Shirley Temples quite a bit.

Human Resource Interview Tips

The interview is an opportunity for both, the interviewer and the candidate to market themselves. The employer is selling the organization to you, and you are marketing your skills, knowledge, and personality to the employer. Remember that interviews are varied and so they cannot therefore be easily categorized.
Following are some human resource interview tips:

Be prepared
Preparation increases confidence. Practice with your friends or relatives. Remember that everyone who is interviewing is not necessarily a good interviewer.
You may prepare by reviewing magazine and newspaper articles. You may check out their web site. Read your resume before your interview. It will keep your answers fresh.
Location and punctuality
Find out the location of organization. Make sure you have a map or directions as well as information of the nearest railway station.
Arrive 5-10 minutes early. Arriving early will give you the opportunity to read some information on the company in the reception area.
Be professional
Professional look always helps for good impression. Be careful about your dressing. Be aware of the company culture and ensure you dress to impress. Decide what you are going to wear the night before to avoid making the wrong choices.
Be polite
Don't interrupt to the interviewer. Listen very carefully. Poor listening skills are responsible for the bad impression.
If the interview is being conducted in a restaurant, mind your table manners. If the interviewers are serious and soft-spoken, then you should be same as interviewer. Avoid loud laughter during the interviewer.
Be positive
Keep in mind that there is only one chance to make a first impression. Every company wants employees who are goal-oriented, career-driven, enthusiastic and motivated. Be the employee as they want. End the interview on a positive note. The hiring official needs to know that you are interested, enthusiastic and excited about the position and the company.
Be practical
If you are experienced then the interviewer already knows your current salary and benefits package. When the topic of salary comes up state that you know they will make a fair offer.
If you are offered the position during the interviewing process and you want the job then accept it. If the offer is not acceptable for any reason, ask for time to consider the offer.
Human resource interview tips - Do's
- Have a firm handshake.
- Be sincere and direct.
- Introduce yourself in a courteous manner.
- Read company materials while you wait.
- You have to prepare for questions and listen carefully to the interviewer.
- Ask about the next step in the process.
- Thank the interviewer.
- Learn about the Human Resources Analyst Program and understand the different facets of human resources.
- You never know what the interviewer will ask you about, so be prepared to talk about anything you have included on your resume. You should be truthful about your experiences and skills.
Human resource interview tips - Don'ts
- Don't show depression or discouragement.
- Don't start the topics like salary, benefits or working hours.
- Don't look at your watch.
- Don't take extensive notes.
- Don't be too serious.
Follow up
Always write a thank you note immediately after the interview. If there are number of interviewers then send a copy of thank you letter to each person. Summarize your qualifications and how they meet the expectations of the position.

When you are facing a panel of interviewers, make your best moves.

Whether you are searching for jobs, looking for career avenues or climbing the corporate ladder, you can't escape team interviews these days. The problem is that such interviews don't have a pattern to them. They come in different forms. You could be facing your prospective team members. Or you could be up against the top brass—HR vice-president, the section head, the operations chief. Or you could also be sent to a recruitment assessment centre for multi-parametric evaluation (psychological tests for pressure-handling abilities, team-player skills and so on).
Try these ten tips for surviving, and scoring, in a team interview.

GIVE VARIETY TO YOUR ANSWERS

Remember you might be interviewed by different panels. Don't give a stock answer to all of them. They'll be comparing notes.
Repackage your skills so that they sound different. If you're showcasing project X as your major achievement in your present job before one team, talk about project B before another interview panel.
A technical team will tune in to techie talk; an HR team would rather hear about your interpersonal skills.

FINE-TUNE INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

Pull out the stops on your group management and group presentation skills.Interviewers are people after all. Look for the personality type underscoring each interviewer.Then try and connect with each one of them without getting personal. Usually the best way to make contact is to project values that you feel you can share with your interviewers.

DON'T QUAKE IN YOUR BOOTS

Interviewers are not ogres. They are looking for excuses to hire you, not spill your guts.
Don't be obsequious. That conveys low self-esteem.
If you face your interviewers with fear in your eyes, they won't like what they see. They are NOT sadists.

PREPARE FOR STRESS

You'll be up against a time crunch in a team interview.
In one-on-ones, the interviewer might be taking notes, allowing you little breathers. No such luck with four people firing questions at you. Use stress control techniques to soothe your nerves. You might even use the extra adrenaline to sharpen your responses.

SHOWCASE THE IMPORTANT THINGS

List seven important things that fit the job description of the advertised post. Prepare to present skills that fit such traits.
It helps to talk to friends familiar with the job description. You can even ask them to prepare tests that you can take from them.

REHEARSE WELL

Put together three family members or friends with diverse personality traits.
Recreate the formality of a team interview situation and ask them to fire nonstop questions at you. That will serve as a useful practice session.
Ask for serious feedback, especially about weak areas in your answers. Questions about qualifications and work experience are usually generic, so what your mock team asks you is bound to be pretty close to the real stuff.

CREATE A MENTAL PICTURE OF YOURSELF
Boost your self-confidence by seeing yourself as star performer who's a cut above. See yourself answering with elan the questions you expect. Then replay your answers and ask yourself these questions:

How interesting were your observations?
Did most of your responses begin the same way?
Did you use 'we' often, suggesting team-player attributes?
Are there traces of humour in your responses?

ASK GOOD QUESTIONS

Research is integral to a good interview performance. Find out as much about you can about the company concerned. Browse the Net, check company reports, put together news clips.
Armed with your background brief, ask relevant questions about the company.
If you think you have a bright idea about any ongoing activity, try this: "Did the company consider this option ..."

LOOK BEYOND THE OBVIOUS

Your interview team has some core queries about you. It's these they want you to address. Try and look beyond the upfront questions to decipher their exact intent. Then respond to fill in what the team is really looking for.
Flesh out your answers to focus on the team's concerns. If they ask you about your perception of the company's ESOP policy, they want you to present your expectation from a stock option plan.
Answer in sync with the general tenor of the interview. If your work involves individual research besides team work, don't go overboard about team-player abilities. Balance your answer. Mention how sometimes individual work is more productive though team work is needed to put into action ideas generated by individual research

Seven Commandments for Success in Campus Interviews :

Campus Interview … Hmm… is what one looks forward to with enthusiasm, fear and excitement towards the beginning of the final year .

For some it's a make or break, atleast that's the way it's looked at and for some it's a matter of pride. The constant thought in one's mind is - what shall make this click! What is it that the interviewer is looking in me!

Here's what we look for when we visit the various campuses. This by no means is an exhaustive list but is a good indication of the expectations and the mean s to meet these. Freshersworld.com present you the 7-Commandments.

1. Know Thyself

Not everyone is good in each and every field. Each one of us has our fortes and weaknesses too. But that's not a stumbling block! What we look for are people who know their area of specialization and are an expert in it. Therefore, it pays to be a master in some fields if not the jack of all.

The most common mistakes many make is to profess knowing a field of which they know little about. Remember that huge and bulky resumes are as tough to read as they are to make. So, identify your skill set, and keep your resumes simple and straight. Know your limits and polish on your strengths.

2. Testing What You Know and NOT What You Don't.

Many interviewers may ask the student the subjects that she/he wishes to be interviewed upon. Eureka !! Here's a golden opportunity. Answer this wisely! Never end up choosing a difficult subject that you know only little about, rather choose the one you are most confident of.

3. Rack Your Brain - Analyze

The interview is not just limited to testing your knowledge base, but we are also interested in knowing your ability to apply it. Often questions that need to be solved then and there are asked. Now keep in mind - the right answer is not the only thing being looked at. The focus area is also the way in which you attack the problem i.e. approach to problem solving is equally important.

So, remember to put your thinking caps on!

4. Ask for Help!

Murphy chooses to strike at the appropriate time! In spite of the fact that you may know something very well, it might just slip your mind. After all, heavy preparation does takes its toll. Who better to ask for help than the poser of the question (of course, don't try this too often!)!

Remember the interviewer is not there to grill the confidence out of you, but to bring forth the best in. Just in case you are stuck, ask for a hint. Things might just click. Also, stay alert for clues.

5. What are your biggest accomplishments

You may like to begin your reply with: "Although I feel my biggest achievements are still ahead of me, I am proud of my involvement with……I made my contribution as part of that team and learnt a lot in the process".

It will be a good idea to close your answer with also specifying what attributes and circumstances made you succeed.

6. Be Calm, have Clear Verbal and Sound Non-Verbal Communication

Calmness shows emotional maturity. True, being calm in a job interview is a difficult proposition, but then that is where it is required! Calmness does not imply being unenthusiastic or apathetic during the interview, but knowing that you are nervous and not letting it come in the way. A clear verbal communication implies clarity of the thought process.

One should also watch out for the impressions made in non-verbal communication. Body language and facial expressions can assist you in establishing a good rapport with the interviewer. Pauses, silences and gestures may all indicate what you mean, understand, or would like to emphasize.

7. Two-Way Exchange Process

The interview process is a two-way exchange of information. Make sure you also understand about the company, its activities, job requirements. The company is in need for good candidates and you need a good company to launch your career.

Interview is an opportunity to present yourself and your skills to your best advantage. Make sure you make the most out of it. And YOU are the best one to do it!!

Move through Question Papers

Facing the technical interview of a company is an uphill task. It all depends on the mood of the interviewer and to an extent on your appearance. If he is in a bad mood, the interview can be really tough. Otherwise you might have a slight consideration. Be prepared for any questions from every section of your skill set. If the interviewer goes to a part of your skill, which you are not comfortable with, try to divert his attention to some other part in which you are an expert. Try to explain things in a simple way and be precise in your answers. If you don't know an answer admit it. DO NOT try to make up and answer. That might lessen your chances of getting through.

Here are some of the FAQ's that can be asked in the technical interview

C- QUESTIONS	JAVA QUESTIONS	MICROPROCESSOR QUESTIONS
C++ QUESTIONS	Advanced JAVA questions	Operating System QUESTIONS
DATA STRUCTURE QUESTIONS	ELECTRONICS QUESTIONS

ELECTRONICS QUESTIONS

What is meant by D-FF?
What is the basic difference between Latches and Flip flops?
What is a multiplexer?
How can you convert an SR Flip-flop to a JK Flip-flop?
How can you convert an JK Flip-flop to a D Flip-flop?
What is Race-around problem? How can you rectify it?
Which semiconductor device is used as a voltage regulator and why?
What do you mean by an ideal voltage source?
What do you mean by zener breakdown and avalanche breakdown?
What are the different types of filters?
What is the need of filtering ideal response of filters and actual response of filters?
What is sampling theorem?
What is impulse response?
Explain the advantages and disadvantages of FIR filters compared to IIR counterparts.
What is CMRR? Explain briefly.
What do you mean by half-duplex and full-duplex communication? Explain briefly.
Which range of signals are used for terrestrial transmission?
What is the need for modulation?
Which type of modulation is used in TV transmission?
Why we use vestigial side band (VSB-C₃F) transmission for picture?
When transmitting digital signals is it necessary to transmit some harmonics in addition to fundamental frequency?
For asynchronous transmission, is it necessary to supply some synchronizing pulses additionally or to supply or to supply start and stop bit?
BPFSK is more efficient than BFSK in presence of noise. Why?
What is meant by pre-emphasis and de-emphasis?
What do you mean by 3 dB cutoff frequency? Why is it 3 dB, not 1 dB?
What do you mean by ASCII, EBCDIC?

DATA STRUCTURE QUESTIONS

What is a data structure?
What does abstract data type means?
Evaluate the following prefix expression " ++ 26 + - 1324" (Similar types can be asked)
Convert the following infix expression to post fix notation ((a+2)*(b+4)) -1 (Similar types can be asked)
How is it possible to insert different type of elements in stack?
Stack can be described as a pointer. Explain.
Write a Binary Search program
Write programs for Bubble Sort, Quick sort
Explain about the types of linked lists
How would you sort a linked list?
Write the programs for Linked List (Insertion and Deletion) operations
What data structure would you mostly likely see in a non recursive implementation of a recursive algorithm?
What do you mean by Base case, Recursive case, Binding Time, Run-Time Stack and Tail Recursion?
Explain quick sort and merge sort algorithms and derive the time-constraint relation for these.
Explain binary searching, Fibinocci search.
What is the maximum total number of nodes in a tree that has N levels? Note that the root is level (zero)
How many different binary trees and binary search trees can be made from three nodes that contain the key values 1, 2 & 3?
A list is ordered from smaller to largest when a sort is called. Which sort would take the longest time to execute?
A list is ordered from smaller to largest when a sort is called. Which sort would take the shortest time to execute?
When will you sort an array of pointers to list elements, rather than sorting the elements themselves?
The element being searched for is not found in an array of 100 elements. What is the average number of comparisons needed in a sequential search to determine that the element is not there, if the elements are completely unordered?
What is the average number of comparisons needed in a sequential search to determine the position of an element in an array of 100 elements, if the elements are ordered from largest to smallest?
Which sort show the best average behavior?
What is the average number of comparisons in a sequential search?
Which data structure is needed to convert infix notations to post fix notations?
What do you mean by:
- Syntax Error
- Logical Error
- Runtime Error
How can you correct these errors?
In which data structure, elements can be added or removed at either end, but not in the middle?
How will inorder, preorder and postorder traversals print the elements of a tree?
Parenthesis are never needed in prefix or postfix expressions. Why?
Which one is faster? A binary search of an orderd set of elements in an array or a sequential search of the elements.

Operating System Questions

What are the basic functions of an operating system?
Explain briefly about, processor, assembler, compiler, loader, linker and the functions executed by them.
What are the difference phases of software development? Explain briefly?
Differentiate between RAM and ROM?
What is DRAM? In which form does it store data?
What is cache memory?
What is hard disk and what is its purpose?
Differentiate between Complier and Interpreter?
What are the different tasks of Lexical analysis?
What are the different functions of Syntax phase, Sheduler?
What are the main difference between Micro-Controller and Micro- Processor?
Describe different job scheduling in operating systems.
What is a Real-Time System ?
What is the difference between Hard and Soft real-time systems ?
What is a mission critical system ?
What is the important aspect of a real-time system ?
If two processes which shares same system memory and system clock in a distributed system, What is it called?
What is the state of the processor, when a process is waiting for some event to occur?
What do you mean by deadlock?
Explain the difference between microkernel and macro kernel.
Give an example of microkernel.
When would you choose bottom up methodology?
When would you choose top down methodology?
Write a small dc shell script to find number of FF in the design.
Why paging is used ?
Which is the best page replacement algorithm and Why? How much time is spent usually in each phases and why?
Difference between Primary storage and secondary storage?
What is multi tasking, multi programming, multi threading?
Difference between multi threading and multi tasking?
What is software life cycle?
Demand paging, page faults, replacement algorithms, thrashing, etc.
Explain about paged segmentation and segment paging
While running DOS on a PC, which command would be used to duplicate the entire diskette?

Advanced JAVA questions

What is RMI?
Explain about RMI Architecture?
What are Servelets?
What is the use of servlets?
Explain RMI Architecture?
How will you pass values from htm page to the servlet?
How do you load an image in a Servelet?
What is purpose of applet programming?
How will you communicate between two applets?
What IS the difference between Servelets and Applets?
How do you communicate in between Applets and Servlets?
What is the difference between applet and application?
What is the difference between CGI and Servlet?
In the servlets, we are having a web page that is invoking servlets ,username and password? which is checks in database? Suppose the second page also if we want to verify the same information whether it will connect to the database or it will be used previous information?
What are the difference between RMI and Servelets?
How will you call an Applet using Java Script Function?
How can you push data from an Applet to a Servlet?
What are 4 drivers available in JDBC? At what situation are four of the drivers used?
If you are truncated using JDBC , how can you that how much data is truncated?
How will you perform truncation using JDBC?
What is the latest version of JDBC? What are the new features added in that?
What is the difference between RMI registry and OS Agent?
To a server method, the client wants to send a value 20, with this value exceeds to 20 a message should be sent to the client . What will you do for achieving this?
How do you invoke a Servelet? What is the difference between doPost method and doGet method?
What is difference between the HTTP Servelet and Generic Servelet? Explain about their methods and parameters?
Can we use threads in Servelets?
Write a program on RMI and JDBC using Stored Procedure?
How do you swing an applet?
How will you pass parameters in RMI? Why do you serialize?
In RMI ,server object is first loaded into memory and then the stub reference is sent to the client. true or false?
Suppose server object not loaded into the memory and the client request for it. What will happen?
What is the web server used for running the servelets?
What is Servlet API used for connecting database?
What is bean? Where can it be used?
What is the difference between java class and bean?
Can we sent objects using Sockets?
What is the RMI and Socket?
What is CORBA?
Can you modify an object in corba?
What is RMI and what are the services in RMI?
What are the difference between RMI and CORBA?
How will you initialize an Applet?
What is the order of method invocation in an Applet?
What is ODBC and JDBC? How do you connect the Database?
What do you mean by Socket Programming?
What is difference between Generic Servlet and HTTP Servelet?
What you mean by COM and DCOM?
what is e-commerce?

C++ QUESTIONS

What is a class?
What is an object?
What is the difference between an object and a class?
What is the difference between class and structure?
What is public, protected, private?
What are virtual functions?
What is friend function?
What is a scope resolution operator?
What do you mean by inheritance?
What is abstraction?
What is polymorphism? Explain with an example.
What is encapsulation?
What do you mean by binding of data and functions?
What is function overloading and operator overloading?
What is virtual class and friend class?
What do you mean by inline function?
What do you mean by public, private, protected and friendly?
When is an object created and what is its lifetime?
What do you mean by multiple inheritance and multilevel inheritance? Differentiate between them.
Difference between realloc() and free?
What is a template?
What are the main differences between procedure oriented languages and object oriented languages?
What is R T T I ?
What are generic functions and generic classes?
What is namespace?
What is the difference between pass by reference and pass by value?
Why do we use virtual functions?
What do you mean by pure virtual functions?
What are virtual classes?
Does c++ support multilevel and multiple inheritance?
What are the advantages of inheritance?
When is a memory allocated to a class?
What is the difference between declaration and definition?
What is virtual constructors/destructors?
In c++ there is only virtual destructors, no constructors. Why?
What is late bound function call and early bound function call? Differentiate.
How is exception handling carried out in c++?
When will a constructor executed?
What is Dynamic Polymorphism?
Write a macro for swapping integers.

MICROPROCESSOR QUESTIONS

Which type of architecture 8085 has?
How many memory locations can be addressed by a microprocessor with 14 address lines?
8085 is how many bit microprocessor?
Why is data bus bi-directional?
What is the function of accumulator?
What is flag, bus?
What are tri-state devices and why they are essential in a bus oriented system?
Why are program counter and stack pointer 16-bit registers?
What does it mean by embedded system?
What are the different addressing modes in 8085?
What is the difference between MOV and MVI?
What are the functions of RIM, SIM, IN?
What is the immediate addressing mode?
What are the different flags in 8085?
What happens during DMA transfer?
What do you mean by wait state? What is its need?
What is PSW?
What is ALE? Explain the functions of ALE in 8085.
What is a program counter? What is its use?
What is an interrupt?
Which line will be activated when an output device require attention from CPU?

JAVA QUESTIONS

What is the difference between an Abstract class and Interface?
What is user defined exception?
What do you know about the garbage collector?
What is the difference between java and c++?
In an htm form I have a button which makes us to open another page in 15 seconds. How will you do that?
What is the difference between process and threads?
What is update method called?
Have you ever used HashTable and Directory?
What are statements in Java?
What is a JAR file?
What is JNI?
What is the base class for all swing components?
What is JFC?
What is the difference between AWT and Swing?
Considering notepad/IE or any other thing as process, What will happen if you start notepad or IE 3 times ? Where three processes are started or three threads are started?
How does thread synchronization occur in a monitor?
Is there any tag in htm to upload and download files?
Why do you canvas?
How can you know about drivers and database information ?
What is serialization?
Can you load the server object dynamically? If so what are the 3 major steps involved in it?
What is the layout for toolbar?
What is the difference between Grid and Gridbaglayout?
How will you add panel to a frame?
Where are the card layouts used?
What is the corresponding layout for card in swing?
What is light weight component?
Can you run the product development on all operating systems?
What are the benefits if Swing over AWT?
How can two threads be made to communicate with each other?
What are the files generated after using IDL to java compiler?
What is the protocol used by server and client?
What is the functionability stubs and skeletons?
What is the mapping mechanism used by java to identify IDL language?
What is serializable interface?
What is the use of interface?
Why is java not fully objective oriented?
Why does java not support multiple inheritance?
What is the root class for all java classes?
What is polymorphism?
Suppose if we have a variable 'I' in run method, if I can create one or more thread each thread will occupy a separate copy or same variable will be shared?
What are virtual functions?
Write down how will you create a Binary tree?
What are the traverses in binary tree?
Write a program for recursive traverse?
What are session variable in servlets?
What is client server computing?
What is constructor and virtual function? Can we call a virtual function in a constructor?
Why do we use oops concepts? What is its advantage?
What is middleware? What is the functionality of web server?
Why is java not 100% pure oops?
When will you use an interface and abstract class?
What is the exact difference in between Unicast and Multicast object? Where will it be used?
What is the main functionality of the remote reference layer?
How do you download stubs from Remote place?
I want to store more than 10 objects in a remote server? Which methodology will follow?
What is the main functionality of Prepared Statement?
What is meant by Static query and Dynamic query?
What are Normalization Rules? Define Normalization?
What is meant by Servelet? What are the parameters of service method?
What is meant by Session? Explain something about HTTP Session Class?
In a container there are 5 components. I want to display all the component names, how will you do that?
Why there are some null interface in JAVA? What does it mean? Give some null interface in JAVA?
Tell some latest versions in JAVA related areas?
What is meant by class loader? How many types are there? When will we use them?
What is meant by flickering?
What is meant by distributed application? Why are we using that in our application?
What is the functionality of the stub?
Explain about version control?
Explain 2-tier and 3-tier architecture?
What is the role of Web Server?
How can we do validation of the fields in a project?
What is meant by cookies? Explain the main features?
Why java is considered as platform independent?
What are the advantages of java over C++?
How java can be connected to a database?
What is thread?
What is difference between Process and Thread?
Does java support multiple inheritance? if not, what is the solution?
What are abstract classes?
What is an interface?
What is the difference abstract class and interface?
What are adapter classes?
what is meant wrapper classes?
What are JVM.JRE, J2EE, JNI?
What are swing components?
What do you mean by light weight and heavy weight components?
What is meant by function overloading and function overriding?
Does java support function overloading, pointers, structures, unions or linked lists?
What do you mean by multithreading?
What are byte codes?
What are streams?
What is user defined exception?
In an htm page form I have one button which makes us to open a new page in 15 seconds. How will you do that?