Topic hub
Technical Interviews
The patterns behind coding and system design rounds, with reusable templates you can apply under time pressure.
52 articles in this hub. Start coding practice.
How to Pass a LeetCode Interview in 2026: Patterns, Practice & Real-Time Help
The complete LeetCode interview prep guide — the 14 must-know patterns, spaced-repetition schedules, timed mock sessions, and how to use real-time AI help responsibly.
Updated Aug 31, 2026How to Use Aissence for System Design
Set up Aissence for system design interviews: capture the prompt, structure requirements, sketch the architecture, and get real-time hints on scaling tradeoffs.
Updated Aug 29, 2026System Design Fundamentals: Complete Guide
Learn scalable system design from scratch: load balancing, caching, databases, sharding, and message queues, plus the tradeoffs interviewers expect you to reason about.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Designing Scalable Databases for Interviews
Design databases that scale: indexing, replication, partitioning, and sharding strategies, with the tradeoffs you need to explain in a system design interview.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Microservices Architecture Explained
Understand microservices for interviews: service boundaries, API gateways, inter-service communication, data consistency, and when a monolith is the better choice.
Updated Aug 29, 2026API Design Best Practices for Interviews
Design robust APIs that scale with your users: resource modeling, versioning, pagination, error handling, and the tradeoffs interviewers expect you to explain.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Caching Strategies: Redis, Memcached & More
Master caching for system design: cache-aside, write-through, and write-back patterns, Redis vs Memcached, eviction policies, and how to avoid stale data.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Load Balancing Techniques for System Design
Distribute traffic reliably: round-robin, least-connections, and hashing algorithms, layer 4 vs layer 7 balancing, health checks, and failover for system design.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Message Queues in System Design
Implement asynchronous processing with queues: producers and consumers, delivery guarantees, dead-letter queues, and when to choose Kafka, RabbitMQ, or SQS.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Database Sharding: Horizontal Scaling Guide
Scale writes with sharding: range, hash, and directory-based partitioning, choosing a shard key, resharding, and handling cross-shard queries in interviews.
Updated Aug 29, 2026NoSQL vs SQL: When to Use Each
When to choose SQL vs NoSQL: consistency, schema flexibility, scaling, and query patterns, with document, key-value, and column stores mapped to real use cases.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Coding Interview Fundamentals
A repeatable method (UMPIRE) for attacking any coding problem: clarify the prompt, match the pattern, plan out loud, implement, test by hand, and state complexity clearly.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Array & String Algorithms
Five patterns—two pointers, sliding window, prefix sum, sort-and-scan, and hash frequency—that solve most array and string problems, with runnable code.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Linked Lists: Interview Problems & Solutions
Three tricks—fast/slow pointers, the dummy head, and in-place reversal—that crack most linked list problems, with code and the bugs to avoid.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Tree Algorithms: Complete Interview Guide
The four tree traversals and when to use each, plus a reusable recursive template, level-order BFS with a queue, and the tree problems worth memorizing.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Graph Algorithms for Interviews
Most graph interview problems are BFS or DFS in disguise. Learn adjacency lists, traversal code, topological sort, Dijkstra, and union-find with reusable templates.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Dynamic Programming: Complete Interview Guide
Go from naive recursion to DP with a five-step recipe, the five core patterns, and runnable memoization and tabulation examples for knapsack, LIS, and edit distance.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Sorting Algorithms: Time & Space Complexity
Know quicksort, merge sort, and counting sort, and why sorting quietly powers two pointers, binary search, and greedy sweeps in interviews, with complexity tradeoffs.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Binary Search Problems & Solutions
Binary search is about monotonic search spaces, not just sorted arrays. Master one template and five variations, including search-on-the-answer.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Recursion & Backtracking Guide
Choose, explore, un-choose: the backtracking template behind subsets, permutations, and N-Queens, plus how to prune dead branches early, with runnable code examples.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Whiteboard Interview Tips & Techniques
Excel at whiteboard coding: think aloud, clarify requirements, plan before you write, test with examples, and manage space so your solution stays readable.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Take-Home Assignment Guide
Ace take-home coding assignments: scope the work, write clean tested code, document your decisions, and know when polish matters more than adding extra features.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Tutorial: Use Coding Copilot During HackerRank Assessments
How to get real-time hints and solution approaches during online coding assessments with Aissence, within the rules of each assessment platform.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Advanced Screen Share Strategies
Share your screen safely in interviews: choose window vs full screen, hide notifications and tabs, and keep private tools off the shared view on any platform.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Cracking Coding Interviews: Ultimate Guide
An eight-week study roadmap that trades memorized solutions for transferable patterns—arrays through dynamic programming—plus how to practice so it sticks.
Updated Aug 29, 2026LeetCode AI Helper: Ace Your Coding Challenges in 2026
Using AI to practice and solve LeetCode problems — pattern recognition, real-time hints, and optimal solution strategies.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Live Coding Interview Help: AI-Powered Tips & Strategies
Strategies for using AI during live coding interviews — from understanding the problem to optimizing your solution in real time.
Updated Aug 29, 202625 SQL Interview Questions: Queries, Joins & Window Functions
SQL interview questions from basic SELECT to advanced window functions, CTEs, query optimization, and database design with runnable queries.
Updated Aug 29, 2026System Design Interview Cheat Sheet: 15 Patterns to Know
Essential system design patterns — URL shortener, chat system, news feed, rate limiter, search engine, and more with architecture diagrams.
Updated Aug 29, 2026API Rate Limiting System Design: Interview Deep Dive
Design a rate limiter from scratch — token bucket, sliding window, distributed rate limiting, and Redis-based implementation for interviews.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Design a URL Shortener: System Design Interview Guide
Complete system design walkthrough for URL shortener — hashing, database selection, caching, analytics, and scaling to billions of URLs.
Updated Aug 29, 2026Finance Interview Prep 2026: Technical Questions, Modeling & Valuation
Complete finance interview guide for IB, PE, hedge fund, and corporate finance roles — three-statement model linkages, DCF, LBO mental math, and stock pitches.
Updated Aug 28, 2026CodeSignal Assessment Practice: GCA Format Guide
Prepare for the CodeSignal General Coding Assessment with the current format, 200–600 scoring scale, certified-session rules, and a practice plan.
Updated Aug 22, 2026HackerRank Proctored Assessments: Rules and Setup
Prepare for a HackerRank proctored assessment with an official-rules checklist, system setup, practice plan, and steps for reporting technical problems.
Updated Aug 22, 2026How Long to Hear Back After a Technical Interview
Use the recruiter’s stated timeline, a clear follow-up schedule, and practical email templates while keeping the rest of your job search moving.
Updated Aug 22, 2026Describe a Challenging Technical Problem: STAR Answer Templates
STAR structure for technical challenge questions — two complete example answers with measurable results, covering debugging incidents and scaling architecture work.
Updated Jul 15, 2026Failed Technical Interview? Here's Your 30-Day Recovery Plan
Post-failure recovery framework — immediate steps, reflection template, 30-day improvement plan, and the mindset shift that turns rejection into data.
Updated Jul 5, 2026HackerRank SQL Assessment Tips 2026: From Basic to Advanced
SQL patterns for HackerRank — JOINs, window functions, CTEs, PARTITION BY — with 30 practice problems and a difficulty progression plan.
Updated Jul 1, 2026Codility Test Tips 2026: Score Higher on Algorithmic Assessments
Codility task types, scoring system, time strategy, and the top patterns tested — with a study plan to maximize your performance score.
Updated Jun 26, 2026How to Pass HireVue Coding Interview: 2026 Guide
HireVue coding format, proctoring mechanisms, and the exact strategy to pass their CodePair coding assessment with high scores.
Updated Jun 25, 2026CodeSignal & Codility AI Copilot: Pass Coding Assessments Without Panicking
How an AI copilot helps you pass CodeSignal, Codility, and other timed coding assessments — pattern recognition, edge-case generation, and complexity checks.
Updated May 20, 2026System Design Mock Interview With AI: Practice and Score Higher
Mock-interview your way through scalable systems with AI feedback on the six dimensions interviewers actually score — capacity, APIs, data, scaling, tradeoffs, and reliability.
Updated May 18, 2026LeetCode vs HackerRank vs Codility: Coding Interview Platforms Compared
Full comparison of the 6 major coding interview platforms — when to use each, which companies send which assessments, and the best free prep paths.
Updated May 5, 2026How to Pass Technical Interviews: The 6-Step Framework That Works
What technical interviewers actually evaluate (spoiler: it is not just correctness) — and the exact structure to follow for every coding problem.
Updated May 4, 2026LeetCode Interview Preparation Guide: The 14-Pattern Approach
Stop grinding 800 LeetCode problems. This 14-pattern, 8-week study plan covers 90% of interview questions at FAANG and top tech companies.
Updated May 3, 2026Best LeetCode Strategies with AI Tools (2026)
The 15-pattern, 150-problem plan that beats grinding 800 problems — and how AI hint-on-demand compresses prep from months to weeks.
Updated Apr 19, 2026Interview Copilot Live Coding Features Explained
How coding copilots work during live technical interviews — pattern hints, complexity analysis, edge case alerts, and platform compatibility.
Updated Mar 25, 2026LeetCode Review 2026: Is It Still Worth It?
Honest review of LeetCode in 2026 — pricing, problem quality, discussion forums, and how to use it effectively for interview preparation.
Updated Mar 5, 2026HackerRank Review 2026: Strengths & Limitations
Complete HackerRank review — problem quality, certification value, employer adoption, and best practices for assessment preparation.
Updated Mar 4, 2026Coding Interview AI Assistant: Real-Time Help for Technical Interviews
How AI coding assistants help you solve LeetCode, HackerRank, and live coding problems during actual interviews with real-time suggestions.
Updated Dec 31, 2025System Design Interview AI: Real-Time Architecture Guidance
How AI helps you tackle system design interviews — from requirement gathering to scalability discussions and trade-off analysis.
Updated Dec 27, 2025AI Coding Interview Helper: Real-Time Coding Assistance
How AI coding interview helpers work for LeetCode, HackerRank, and CodeSignal assessments: real-time hints, solution approaches, and code review during practice.
Updated Jun 9, 2025Put this into practice
Coding, algorithms, data structures, and system design guides that map to the rounds technical interviews actually test.