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Web: www.thoughtworks.com | HQ: Chicago, IL

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Updated Mar 6, 2012 – Interview questions and reviews posted anonymously by interview candidates.

Difficulty Rating [?] Based on 9 ratings

3.3

“Average” Interview

Interview Experience [?] Based on 9 ratings

Positive	44%
Neutral	56%
Negative	0%

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4.0

Difficult Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Aug 2011 in Chennai (India) (took a day)

Round 1: Flowchart based Questions
Questions that require concentration, 10-11 Questions are given and you have 30 minutes. Easy to make a mistake here. The cut off is pretty high, around 90%

Round 2: Programming
One question and an extension. The code must be written efficiently for the extension to take place easily

Round 3: Group Interview 1 - Technical
One main designing question. A solution has to be designed for a particular scenario.
All fields of computer science will also be tested.

Round 4: Group Interview 2 - Technical + HR

Interview Questions

Design a snake and ladder game in C++.

Answer Question

How does a multi core CPU work?

Answer Question

Other Details

I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview and an IQ/Intelligence Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Feb 2012 in Chicago, IL (took 2 days)

Brief tour of the Chicago office, followed by a Q/A session for the position of junior consultant. Then we had a 12 minute IQ test and a 60 minute logic exam.

Interview Questions

Test was a logic diagram. 11 questions that showed whether you could follow a decently complex logic pathway.

Answer Question

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of an IQ/Intelligence Test and a Skills Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Jul 2011 in Pune (India) (took 2 days)

Initially we had an aptitude test which was different from the other aptitude tests that I had already given. It tested your logic. A flowchart like problem statement was given and it was checked whether your mind works the way a compiler or a computer would. Next was a technical interview in which all data structures based questions were asked. Later I was asked about a paper I had written.

Interview Questions

Airline Reservation System- How to find a route from a to b if it is not directly connected

Answer Question

Computer Networking- TCP/IP layer related question

Answer Question

Other Details

I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview, an IQ/Intelligence Test and a Skills Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

4.0

Difficult Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Mar 2011 in Chicago, IL (took 4+ weeks)

Had to take a Wonderlic and a Logic test.

Interview Questions

How open are you to travel

View Answers (1)

What are our company's 3 pillars and how do you fit in with them?

View Answers (1)

Other Details

I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview, an IQ/Intelligence Test, a Skills Test and a Personality Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Nov 2011 (took a day)

I met with some Thoughtworks reps at a conference. They called me in for a logic test which consisted of 11 flowcharts. Then I was called back the next day and two reps spoke to me in person and asked object oriented programing questions. (i.e how would you create a store that only sells jackets and pants?)

Interview Questions

What is composition?

Answer Question

Other Details

I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and an IQ/Intelligence Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Received and Declined Offer

Interviewed Aug 2011 (took 4+ weeks)

For the most part, the interview process was like most other companies, but with a lot more testing.

An initial email with a screener to make sure you are really interested in 80% travel, tell you a little about expectations, and to set up first phone interview.

A phone interview with a team member to check your personality and skills. This person will stay with you throughout the process.

A tech phone interview with a lead developer to check your personality and skills.

A coding exercise which you have 3 days to deliver. You pick from 3 exercises, and must include testing and auto-build. Someone reviews your code, and then you receive a date for the onsite interview.

An online personality test that you take prior to your onsite interview. They send this to you after your onsite interview is scheduled and you must complete prior to the onsite interview.

The onsite interview consists of more tests. You sit with another developer to go over your coding exercise, and you have 1:1 interviews.

The last step for me was a call from the Recruiter saying the position I fit into has a salary range well below my current salary. Since I am not willing to take less than my current salary, this ended my interview process.

Prior to applying, be sure you are really interested in 80% travel. I was asked this in every interview. I was told that in some situations the travel is 100%.

Make sure you read their website many times from beginning to end. You will get asked questions about what you found on the website.

Also, make sure you are well rested prior to your onsite interview.

During one of my interviews, I was asked if I knew that ThoughtWorks was against the US Military and did not support our troops. In my research of ThoughtWorks, I came across one mention of this.

Prior to your interviews, read their blogs. You are given the names of your interviewers prior to the interview. Mention something about what you read. They will respond happily to you and it helps ease the tension.

For all interview situations, make sure you ask questions when they ask you if you have any questions.

Interview Questions

Have you ever thought of a company that you would absolutely not work for?

Answer Question

Why did you pick the coding exercise that you picked?

Answer Question

Reason for Declining

The salary was well below my current salary, and I am not willing to take less. I was surprised at how low their salary ranges are as compared to the national standard.

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, a 1:1 Interview, a Skills Test and a Personality Test.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Positive Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed May 2011 in Beijing, Beijing (China) (took 3 days)

Several stages:
1. phone interview
2. IQ?test , not related to any technology
3. Homework - develop 1 of 3 tasks

Interview Questions

How do you know about company?

Answer Question

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview, an IQ/Intelligence Test and a Background Check.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

3.0

Average Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Received and Declined Offer

Interviewed Jan 2011 in Calgary, AB (Canada) (took a day)

Call with HR rep

Interview Questions

do you work on personal stuff

Answer Question

how do feel about traveling

Answer Question

Reason for Declining

not competitive salary

Other Details

I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a Phone Interview.

Helpful Interview?

Yes | No

Inappropriate?

4.0

Difficult Interview

Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Jun 2010 (took 5 days)

Thoughtworks is know for its extensive interview process.. i applied for the software developer / consultant role online, my profile was selected, got a call from hr, i was told that i would be receiving 3 problems and i need to solve one and send it across for code review. coding can be done in either java, .net / ruby. i managed to come up with the solution within the given timeframe.. unfortunately i dint make thru the next level .. the feedback that i received was no automated build script, no unit tests and long methods.. although i have not been doin hands on development for the past 3 yrs i am satisfied that i am still able to code and come up with the solution... overall i enjoyed solving the problem...