{"id":8946,"date":"2020-03-01T09:44:17","date_gmt":"2020-03-01T17:44:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/?p=8946"},"modified":"2023-08-25T08:52:45","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T15:52:45","slug":"how-to-pass-the-springboard-technical-skills-survey-a-cheatsheet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/software-engineering\/how-to-pass-the-springboard-technical-skills-survey-a-cheatsheet\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Pass the Springboard Technical Skills Survey: A Cheatsheet"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re reading this, you\u2019re likely thinking of applying to join Springboard\u2019s Software Engineering Career Track, or maybe you\u2019re just curious how a programming challenge works. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For many of you, this might be the first time in your life that you do something like this &#8212; a programming challenge or technical skills survey that assesses your current programming skills. In order to become a professional software engineer, you\u2019re likely to encounter this situation.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tips to prepare for programming challenges and technical skills surveys:<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Familiarize yourself with the testing platform<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Practice common programming challenges<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Understand the basic syntax of the programming language<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stay calm and focus on the challenge&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n<style>.blog-cta-salsey-05 {\toverflow: hidden;\t}\t.blog-cta-salsey-05-img {\tmax-width: 160px !important;\t}\t@media (min-width: 768px) {\t.blog-cta-salsey-05-content {\tmax-width: calc(100% - 281px);\t}\t.blog-cta-salsey-05-img {\tposition: absolute;\tmax-width: 100% !important;\tright: -10px;\tbottom: -10px;\t}\t}<\/style><div class=\"blog-cta-salsey-05 bg-blue-50 p-3 my-5 position-relative\"><div class=\"d-block d-md-flex\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"212\" height=\"232\" src=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/sec-student.png\" alt=\"Software Engineering student\" class=\"blog-cta-salsey-05-img mb-3 mb-md-0\" \/><div class=\"blog-cta-salsey-05-content\"><div class=\"d-flex align-items-center mb-2\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"pe-2\" width=\"86\" height=\"71\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/job-guarantee-heading-badge.png\" alt=\"Job Guarantee\" style=\"mix-blend-mode: multiply\"><h4 class=\"fw-bold mb-0\">Become a Software Engineer. Land a Job or Your Money Back.<\/h4><\/div><p>Code in the industry's most widely used programming languages. Test your knowledge through job-ready projects. Work 1:1 with an industry mentor. Land a job \u2014 or your money back.<\/p><p class=\"mb-sm-0\"><a class=\"btn btn-primary btn-lg\" href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/courses\/software-engineering-career-track\/#job-guarantee\">Start coding<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><b>First, be aware of the testing platform.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> A lot of different platforms are used, but <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackerrank.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">HackerRank<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is standard, and it\u2019s the one Springboard uses for vetting candidates through the Software Engineering Career Track. Get used to doing programming challenges with its console. I recommend that you try a few easy to medium-level programming challenges to get a sense of how they work. The more familiar you are with your test environment, the better your results will be, and the faster you will get to the actual code rather than being stuck within the environment itself.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><strong>Related Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/software-engineering\/software-engineer-job-description\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"14696\">What Does A Software Engineer Do?<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><b>Second, practice with common programming challenges<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and interview questions, and think through different algorithms and approaches. Here are a few common programming algorithms and problems that you might encounter in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/software-engineering\/coding-programming-interview-questions\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/software-engineering\/coding-programming-interview-questions\/\">programming interview<\/a> or challenge:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/imranontech.com\/2007\/01\/24\/using-fizzbuzz-to-find-developers-who-grok-coding\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FizzBuzz challenges<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>:<\/strong> As the article linked explains, a frequent programming challenge that interviewers will ask people to do is to print out a series of numbers that fit the FizzBuzz game used to teach children division rules. The critical thing to consider here is that most programmers and developers will get to a solution eventually, but it\u2019ll take them a lot of time. It\u2019s best to practice with time and environmental constraints.<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/javarevisited.blogspot.com\/2015\/06\/top-20-array-interview-questions-and-answers.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Array questions<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>:<\/strong> A lot of programming challenges revolve around your understanding of foundational data structures and how they can be manipulated. Dive into this set of questions to confront algorithm questions around arrays (lists of variables) and show you know how to manipulate lists and create new ones, or how to slice them for particular bits of information. Array questions &#8212; from reversing an array, sorting it or trying to find an element in an array &#8212; tend to be questions hiring managers ask to test your knowledge of loops and data manipulation. Expect to see quite a few of those questions in any programming challenge.&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dev.to\/javinpaul\/50-data-structure-and-algorithms-problems-from-coding-interviews-4lh2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General programming and data structure problems<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>:<\/strong> Use this list of questions to practice a variety of programming challenge problems that often show up in interviews, from linked lists to working with strings. This is a bit more advanced than is required for a skills survey like Springboard\u2019s, but it can be good practice for coding interviews in general &#8212; and you can always scale down your practice to skills surveys (it never hurts to work with something more advanced to get the basics down).&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n<div class=\"bg-leaf-50 p-4 my-3\"><h4 class=\"fw-bold text-center\">Get To Know Other\tSoftware Engineering Students<\/h4><div class=\"row row-cols-1 row-cols-lg-3\"><div class=\"col\"><div class=\"card success-story-card h-100 d-flex justify-content-between mb-0\"><div class=\"flex-grow-1 text-center\"><a class=\"d-inline-block rounded-circle\" href=\"\/success\/tetyana-ilyichova\" style=\"width:125px;height:125px;overflow:hidden\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/springboard-images\/image\/upload\/v1659987993\/Student%20Success\/Tetyana_Ilyichova.jpg\" alt=\"Tetyana Ilyichova\" style=\"object-fit:contain;max-width:170px;height:125px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"fw-bold mb-0\">Tetyana Ilyichova<\/p><p class=\"text-muted lh-1\">Software Engineering Apprentice at Affirm<\/p><\/div><div class=\"w-100 d-block d-md-none mt-3\"><\/div><p class=\"mb-0 mx-auto text-center\"><a class=\"btn btn-primary mx-auto\" href=\"\/success\/tetyana-ilyichova\">Read Story<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/div><div class=\"col d-none d-md-block\"><div class=\"card success-story-card h-100 d-flex justify-content-between mb-0\"><div class=\"flex-grow-1 text-center\"><a class=\"d-inline-block rounded-circle\" href=\"\/success\/jason-mcginty\" style=\"width:125px;height:125px;overflow:hidden\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/springboard-images\/image\/upload\/v1689833464\/Jason_McGinty_1.jpg\" alt=\"Jason McGinty\" style=\"object-fit:contain;max-width:170px;height:125px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"fw-bold mb-0\">Jason McGinty<\/p><p class=\"text-muted lh-1\">Full-stack Systems Engineer at Technicity<\/p><\/div><p class=\"mb-0 mx-auto text-center\"><a class=\"btn btn-primary mx-auto\" href=\"\/success\/jason-mcginty\">Read Story<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/div><div class=\"col d-none d-md-block\"><div class=\"card success-story-card h-100 d-flex justify-content-between mb-0\"><div class=\"flex-grow-1 text-center\"><a class=\"d-inline-block rounded-circle\" href=\"\/success\/pritisha-kumar\" style=\"width:125px;height:125px;overflow:hidden\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/springboard-images\/image\/upload\/v1635255723\/Student%20Success\/Pritisha_Kumar_125x125.png\" alt=\"Pritisha Kumar\" style=\"object-fit:contain;max-width:170px;height:125px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"fw-bold mb-0\">Pritisha Kumar<\/p><p class=\"text-muted lh-1\">Software Engineer at Dialpad<\/p><\/div><p class=\"mb-0 mx-auto text-center\"><a class=\"btn btn-primary mx-auto\" href=\"\/success\/pritisha-kumar\">Read Story<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><b>Third, if you\u2019re not familiar with the programming language that\u2019s being tested, look up the basics of the syntax, and play around with it for a bit<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> so that you know the basics. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Springboard technical survey will test your knowledge of JavaScript ,for example. You can practice in HackerRank\u2019s environment with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackerrank.com\/domains\/tutorials\/10-days-of-javascript\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">their 10 Days of JavaScript challenge<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which will help you build your muscle towards a medium-level JavaScript programming challenge on the platform. You\u2019ll run from everything from basic console.log commands to print things, all the way to defining complex functions in JavaScript. Make sure you have a handle on the technology before you are tested on it.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The 10 Days of JavaScript resource might actually be the best to put your skills into practice, as opposed to the more theory-based questions above, and it can be a good resource to help you warm up with a platform like HackerRank.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you\u2019re taking a programming challenge or a technical skills survey like the one Springboard administers , it\u2019s also important to remember the following tips so you can optimize your chances of&nbsp; passing:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make sure you can dedicate your full focus to the programming challenge or skills survey. Choose a time slot where you will have minimal distractions.<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Settle into the best setup for you to do focused and productive, and start the challenge when you feel most ready.<\/span><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Don\u2019t get nervous &#8212; work through the problems that come up methodically and use the skills you\u2019ve practiced.&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With enough practice and the right mentality, you\u2019ll ace anything that comes your way &#8212; including the skills survey for Springboard\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/courses\/software-engineering-career-track\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/courses\/software-engineering-career-track\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Software Engineering Career Track<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"rm has-background\" style=\"background-color:#efeff6\"><strong>Since you&#8217;re here&#8230;<\/strong><br>Interested in a career in software engineering? Join our mentor-led <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/courses\/software-engineering-career-track\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Software Engineering Bootcamp<\/a> or our foundational <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/courses\/foundations-to-core-software-engineering\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Software Engineering Course<\/a> if you\u2019re just starting out. We help people make the switch every day (just peep <a href=\"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/reviews\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">our reviews<\/a>). You can do it, too!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re reading this, you\u2019re likely thinking of applying to join Springboard\u2019s Software Engineering Career Track, or maybe you\u2019re just curious how a programming challenge works. For many of you, this might be the first time in your life that you do something like this &#8212; a programming challenge or technical skills survey that assesses [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":9283,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","_eb_data_table":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[137],"tags":[],"marketing_tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-8946","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-software-engineering"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8946"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/85"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8946"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8946\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49394,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8946\/revisions\/49394"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8946"},{"taxonomy":"marketing_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/marketing_tags?post=8946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}