Engineering Questions 5

[MartPigFace]

Can anyone come up with some decent questions to ask potential employees (to sort the wheat from the chaff!)
Doesn't have to be too complex, just need to check who's able to think!
This would be in the automotive field, in R&D with materials testing possibilities.

 

[ctopher]

"How many times have you failed your driving test".
With computers being a huge part of jobs now, maybe something to do with software?

Chris
Sr. Mechanical Designer, CAD
SolidWorks 05 SP1.1 / PDMWorks 05
ctopher's home site

 

[NormPeterson]

Eng-Tips has a whole section devoted to Automotive Engineering, divided into the following fora:

Automotive body engineering
Automotive electrical & sensor engineering
Automotive lubricant engineering
Automotive materials engineering
Automotive steering systems engineering
Automotive suspension engineering
Automotive tire/wheel engineering
Engine & fuel engineering
Transmission and Driveline engineering
Automotive Engineering other topics

Surely there exists material in the above for a few appropriate questions.

Norm

 

[MikeHalloran]

Q: If a car engine's oil pressure is 50 psi, and the projected area of a given engine bearing is 2 square inches, how is the bearing able to survive repeated application of forces measured in tons?

Q: If a carbureted car descends a hill, retarded by engine braking alone, and then climbs an identical hill, using engine power to attain a symmetrical speed profile, does it use more fuel descending, or ascending?

(hand the candidate an intact unshielded Conrad bearing)
Q: How do they get the balls in there?

(hand the candidate a coil spring and writing tools)
Q: Please generate a written description of this object, suitable for purchasing more of them.

(hand the candidate writing tools)
Q: Please write a program, in any language you choose, to display the word 'think' on a computer screen in a five by five array. The word itself must appear not more than once in the program.

Q: Say you have a machine part that's moved back and forth by a some kind of power device, say an electric motor. All it has to do is go back and forth, between position A and position B, all day long. You are designing the controller. How many switches does the controlling device need? How many binary digits are required to represent the state of the machine?



Mike Halloran
NOT speaking for
DeAngelo Marine Exhaust Inc.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

 

[Carburize]

Why are man-hole covers round?

 

[UcfSE]

Why does your nose run and your feet smell?

I'm still pretty young to be hiring people so I can't help much. When I've been asked questions during an interview they were always basic structural engineering principles and concepts. I suppose if the applicant is applying for a higher position the questions should get harder. A friend of mine told me about a little test the interviewer gave him while he was applying for a position there. It covered some basic concepts and design.

 

[MikeHalloran]

One of my employers ran candidates through a gauntlet, and required every interviewer to submit a list of the questions they usually asked, because ... at lots of outfits, everyone asks pretty much the same questions, and (stupidly) explains the answers, so candidates appear to get smarter as they move around.

Chatting about sports, or shampoo (actually happened to me) is a waste of time.

My personal guidelines for conducting a useful interview:

Ask questions. Sketch illustrations to go with them. Record the answers. Do not explain. Do not comment. Do not indicate if the given answers are correct or not. Customize a few questions to probe the candidate's claimed background.

[ Yes, it puts the candidate under a lot of stress. When you're working, you're under stress, and you don't have someone to explain the answers, or even the questions. You need peers who can survive in that environment, too. ]

As soon as the candidate departs, spend ten minutes writing down your impressions. File a polite, heavily edited version with HR. Be very cautious about making actionable statements.

Keep your record with sketches, answers, the date and the candidate's name. You may need it to defend yourself.

examples:

"Geez, why did you recommend we hire that girl as a receptionist; that's a sexist stereotype." "Granted, but she claimed to be a programmer, was interviewing for a programming position, and I couldn't induce her to pick up a pencil and write a simple program. She's not repulsive looking, doesn't smell bad, and speaks clearly. You put a question on the HR form asking what I'd hire her for if not for the putative position, and I answered it honestly. Remove the question from the form if you don't want it answered."

"Geez, why did you recommend that we not hire that girl?" "She claimed to be a nuclear engineer, so I asked her what a moderator does. She didn't have a clue. And she didn't do well on the general engineering questions I asked, either. Here are my notes.."

No, I don't have anything against women engineers; I know a couple whom I'd hire in a minute, for their brains. Those two were memorable because I was challenged about them, and they clearly had no qualifications beyond helping us meet some EEOC statistic.

Your mileage may vary.









Mike Halloran
NOT speaking for
DeAngelo Marine Exhaust Inc.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

 

[pennpoint]

MikeHalloran
I had to give you a star. There should be more like you out there.
So...How do they get those balls in those Conrad's? oops!

Regards

pennpoint

 

[MintJulep]

MikeHalloran,

You and I would get along I think.

The last interview I conducted, I handed the candidate one of these:

http://www.naganokeiki.co.jp/English/pressuregauges/eMM20.htm

and asked: "Tell me what this does?"

 

[quark]

Carburize,

I think I know the answer

 

[Carburize]

quark - I ask it of all new engineers - I don't realy care what answer they come up with as long as there is a degree of logic in the reply.

 

[GregLocock]

Is an acceptable reply : they aren't?

On at least two levels.


Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[JStephen]

Give some consideration to the experience you are expecting in that position. IE, do you expect interviewees to be fully knowledgeable in what you're doing? Or is this new grads that you're interviewing? Do you expect them to be familiar with software that you're using?

I've seen a few positions advertised where it was hard to imagine that anyone could fit the qualifications other than the previous job holder.

The 4-wheel-loads problem posted elsewhere might give some interesting discussion.

 

[Carburize]

greg - that would be fine provided the answer can be substantiated with reasonable evidence.

 

[Strider17]

I start with general questions about education,
experience, etc. I ask about their car; what
they like/don't like about it...what repairs/
maintenence/improvements they have done or
anticipate. (It never ceases to amaze me how
many can be weeded out by not knowing what a
torsion bar is, or how a turbocharger works.)

I give them a small box with a few nuts, bolts,
fittings, small mechanical parts (some broken...How?)
and ask them to tell me everthing they can about
the object; mat'l, thread size/type, plating,
strength class, uses, method of mfr, etc....
I use the same box
so comparisons are easier. I have some common
questions regarding a gear train, and driveshaft.
Do not answer any of your own questions....

Jr Engr/Recent grads applicants get a 10 min missing-view drafting exercise to check for visualization ability.

I've never used the man-hole cover question before;
I'd never even thought of the reason myself until asked
in one of my own interviews years ago....

The more you know, the more you
know you don't know....

 

[arto]

Do you have a Roark book? [ "what's that?" = bye-bye ]

what edition?

what condition is it in? [beat-up = hire 'em]

 

[unclesyd]

MintJulep,
I know exactly what it is, know where two are located, and have used one on numerous occasions. Did have quite a few diagrams (text book quality).
Do I get the job if I bring one to my interview?

I didn't get to interview that many new hires but my approach was to let them lead by starting with school subjects then asking about why their interest in our company and knowledge there of. If they knew our company, where would they like to fit in. Like arto I talked about tools of the trade and what they had to bring to the job. If they retained reference books a big plus. Like it has been stated the evaluation form really didn't have enough space for any comments to justify any statements or check marks. I don't remember but one or two persons that I thought very highly of being hired.

Like most interviews the HR department governed the hiring. One time they had given a job candidate an offer prior to his interviews with the various departments, myself included. It got to where it was make work job knowing very well your input to the process was not considered. The only part I liked being their escort and going out to lunch with someone the HR people really wanted to hire. The escort part at times was very revealing as I really liked the curious ones, you could glean a lot from the ones who would ask questions?

 

[MikeHalloran]

Pennpoint, not to put too sharp a, er, point on it, but your stars are invisible. ;-)

There are two correct answers to the manhole question. One is, "Because the _holes_ are round, Dummy!". The other is the converse of the reason why manhole _plugs_ are _not_ round.

I knew the company was in trouble when I noticed that HR only sent me people they didn't want to hire anyway. The ones who grew their own sharkskin suits, just showed up for work one day.








Mike Halloran
NOT speaking for
DeAngelo Marine Exhaust Inc.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

 

[MintJulep]

Unclesyd,

Not many people know what it is, and few still have ever used one. I have one as a desk ornament. Doubt I'll ever actually need to use one again, but you never know.

It's disappointing how few people can figure out what it does. It's a pretty simple mechanical device, and all of the working parts are exposed. The only person I've ever quizzed that actually worked it out was an electrical engineer. Every mechanical engineer I've ever asked has given up.

 

[mloew]

I have been asking candidates to solve a simple statics problem (although I don't tell them it is a statics problem) and a structural topology problem on a white board. You can tell if a candidate is not going to work out if he will not even come up to the white board!

The statics problem is an easy one: I ask the candidates to solve for the axle loads of a two axle vehicle knowing the mass, mass center location, and wheelbase. Some candidates go “I don’t know.” I always ask them to at least come up to the board and sketch out what they do know. Sometimes I ask them if they even know what kind of a problem it is (i.e. statics). Sometimes it is just an engineer being nervous and they get it and can do fine. I have has some candidates, however, even get through the problem when I added a third axle (statically indeterminate).

The structural design problem is a good one too. I like to see if engineers can visualize the stress patterns in a simple C-clamp like problem and know where the load paths need to go. One engineer who had Altair’s OptiStruct at home and was an expert user of the tool struggled a little but came up with a decent looking concept. He emailed me his result from OptiStruct after the interview. His result was the same as the one I guided him through during the interview. Hired him.

I am still looking for an engineering analyst with vehicle dynamics experience. I need a Greg Locock!


Best regards,

Matthew Ian Loew


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