How do you answer....

[HFDSK]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I read interview feedback on SUNY Buffalo and they seem to love questions like: How many gas stations are there in the US? or how many people have lung cancer?

How do you go about answering such questions?
Do they want specific numbers or just checking our thinking process.

Any advice?

 

[txguy]

I read interview feedback on SUNY Buffalo and they seem to love questions like: How many gas stations are there in the US? or how many people have lung cancer?

How do you go about answering such questions?
Do they want specific numbers or just checking our thinking process.

Any advice?

You are judged more on the way you answer it rather than your actual answer--as long as you don't get flustered and show a logical train of thought you should be ok 👍 I saw that gas station question in the NYMC feedback as well 👎

I've also seen "how much water can a 747 hold?" 😕

-tx

 

[synapse lapse]

Oh boy, a philosophy major like myself could have loads of fun with such a question..Oh the metaphysical ramifications 🙂

 

[SFAJess]

Don't be too proud/afraid to say "I don't know." Doctors don't know everything and they will have to admit they don't know everything and refer some of their patients to the proper specialist.

 

[Swack]

I read interview feedback on SUNY Buffalo and they seem to love questions like: How many gas stations are there in the US? or how many people have lung cancer?

How do you go about answering such questions?
Do they want specific numbers or just checking our thinking process.

Any advice?

Say, "a lot." Then laugh it off and say you don't really know.

 

[CanIMakeIt]

I read interview feedback on SUNY Buffalo and they seem to love questions like: How many gas stations are there in the US? or how many people have lung cancer?

How do you go about answering such questions?
Do they want specific numbers or just checking our thinking process.

Any advice?

If I had to answer, I would say I don't know exact number but if I had approximate, then blah blah blah..........

they are just trying to see your thought process and analytical skills thats all

 

[liverotcod]

You could offer to make an estimate, and then look up the exact at earliest opportunity. You would show that you can do off-the-cuff estimation, and that you know how to use resources to find answers to questions.

 

[principessa]

I think these are Microsoft interview questions. They want to see you estimate the answer in a logical way. Start by thinking of something that is familiar to you - how many gas stations are there in my town? How many gas stations per stretch of highway? How many people in my town? Then scale up - How many people in the US? How many miles of highway in the US?

 

[constructor]

You could offer to make an estimate, and then look up the exact at earliest opportunity. You would show that you can do off-the-cuff estimation, and that you know how to use resources to find answers to questions.

someone has worked in industry before for many years and knows this game inside-out. 🙂

 

[indo]

Why are man holes round?

I was asked this one and I actually know why.

 

[Tim.P]

Why are man holes round?

I was asked this one and I actually know why.

And what is the answer?

 

[synapse lapse]

And what is the answer?

http://www.improvedconstructionmethods.com/why_are_manholes_round.htm

 

[Code Brown]

http://www.improvedconstructionmethods.com/why_are_manholes_round.htm

Brilliant. 👍 👍 👍

 

[Tim.P]

http://www.improvedconstructionmethods.com/why_are_manholes_round.htm

Thanks

 

[deuist]

Using the 747 question:

First, ask a bunch of clarifying questions. Are the passengers inside at the time the water is placed inside of the plane? What about the luggage? The chairs?

Then ask your interviewer if he knows the size of the Boeing 747. You can approximate the plane's shape as a cylinder.

Finally, say, "The 747 can hold 1 gallon of water. It can probably hold more; but with the information I've been given, I can say with certainty that it can hold 1 gallon."

 

[IndyZX]

that is typically called a "market sizing" question, and it is a very important skill to be had in consulting interviews.

for example, how many chicken sandwiches are sold per day in america? you have to consider rates, but you also have to work in peak sell times; its more about the questions you ask and the way you go about it than the actual answer.

 

[MEG@COOL]

Just ask them to stop asking ******ed question and cut to the chase.

 

[Fermata]

"Tell me about........your mother."