Uber’s hiring managers leverage a multi-stage interview process to assess applicants on critical fronts, including problem-solving skills, knowledge of computer science fundamentals, and more. The interview process starts with a phone call and concludes with skill assessments and a final on-site interview.
Here’s a breakdown of how the tech company vets candidates at each stage.
Phone screening
Approximate duration: 1 hour
Unlike your typical 30-minute phone screening, Uber’s phone interviews typically span a whole hour. During the phone call, an Uber hiring manager evaluates the applicants:
- Work experience
- Interest in the role
- Career ambitions
- Technical skills
Uber’s Engineering Blog encourages applicants to discuss their meaningful contributions in previous roles. Additionally, it advises candidates to be upfront about their career goals, because this helps Uber match applicants with the right role and position.
Technical phone interview
Approximate duration: 1 hour
The technical phone interview is broken down as follows:
Breakdown (engineering): 30-40 minute coding challenge, 5-10 minute discussion of work experience, 5-10 minutes for questions.
Additionally, non-engineers are either quizzed on their expertise or fast-tracked to Uber’s assessments. Now, let’s take a closer look at the coding assessment.
Coding assessment test
The coding exercise evaluates candidates on their programming and problem-solving skills, which may include data structures and algorithms, string manipulation, arrays, and more. The coding challenges are conducted using a collaborative tech assessment software like WeCP, so interviewers can objectively evaluate the applicant’s code.
Coding assessments are reliable for skill evaluation because they vet candidates using measurable metrics; the tech assessment platforms typically include objective scoring systems to grade each candidate.
Questions and other assessments
Uber prefers to test candidates on real-world problem-solving skills; thus, they conduct hands-on skill assessments even for non-engineering roles. While software engineering applicants face coding challenges, candidates applying for non-tech roles may have to submit creative writing assessments or other practical work.