Draper is an independent, nonprofit research and development company headquartered in Cambridge, MA. Our multidisciplinary teams of over 1,800 engineers and scientists tackle important national challenges, ranging from military defense and space exploration to biomedical engineering. Draper fosters a collaborative environment designed to inspire true innovation.

As a Software Engineer at Draper, you’ll be developing high-performance solutions for resource-constrained targets across diverse domains including undersea, terrestrial, air, hypersonics, and space. Your work will encompass the full software development life cycle, from requirements evaluation and algorithm design to software development and testing. Key responsibilities include designing algorithms, developing embedded software, conducting system-level tests, and mentoring junior engineers.

This guide by Interview Query will help you understand Draper’s interview process, including typical interview questions and tips for success. Dive in to prepare for a fulfilling career at Draper!

Submitting Your Application

The first step is to submit a compelling application that reflects your technical skills and interest in joining Draper as a Software Engineer. Whether you were contacted by a Draper recruiter or have taken the initiative yourself, carefully review the job description and tailor your CV according to the prerequisites.

Tailoring your CV may include identifying specific keywords that the hiring manager might use to filter resumes and crafting a targeted cover letter. Furthermore, don’t forget to highlight relevant skills and mention your work experiences.

Recruiter/Hiring Manager Call Screening

If your CV happens to be among the shortlisted few, a recruiter from the Draper Talent Acquisition Team will make contact to verify key details like your experiences and skill level. Behavioral questions may also be part of the screening process.

Typically, the hiring manager for the software engineer position may attend the screening round to answer your questions about the role and the company. They may also indulge in surface-level technical and behavioral discussions.

The recruiter call should take about 30 minutes.

Technical Virtual Interview

Successfully navigating the recruiter round will present you with an invitation for the technical screening round. Technical screening for the Draper Software Engineer role is usually conducted through virtual means, including video conference and screen sharing. Questions in this 1-hour long interview stage may revolve around Draper’s embedded software systems, real-time systems, and programming skills in languages like C, C++, or Rust.

Be prepared to discuss OS coding techniques, IP protocols, and hardware subsystems. Your expertise with software configuration management tools, debugging techniques, and testing frameworks will likely be assessed as well. Depending on the seniority of the position, real-world problem-solving and algorithmic challenges may also be part of the interview.

Onsite Interview Rounds

After a second recruiter call outlining the next stage, you’ll be invited to attend the onsite interview loop. Multiple interview rounds, varying with the role, will be conducted during your day at the Draper office. Your technical prowess, including programming and system integration capabilities, will be evaluated against other candidates throughout these interviews.

You may also be required to present some previous projects or solutions you've worked on, discuss your design approaches, and demonstrate your problem-solving abilities.

Quick Tips For Draper Software Engineer Interviews

You should plan to brush up on any technical skills and try as many practice interview questions and mock interviews as possible. A few tips for acing your Draper interview include:

• Understand Embedded Systems: Draper heavily focuses on embedded systems for various applications, including defense, space, and biomedical engineering. Make sure you understand embedded software fundamentals and real-time system constraints.
• Be Familiar with Multiple Programming Languages: Proficiency in languages such as C, C++, and Rust is crucial. Be prepared to solve coding problems under time constraints.
• Show Problem-Solving Skills: Draper values innovative and practical solutions. Be ready to demonstrate how you solve complex problems, especially in resource-constrained environments.

Typically, interviews at Draper vary by role and team, but commonly Software Engineer interviews follow a fairly standardized process across these question topics.

• Identify all duplicate values in a list of integers. Given a list of integers, identify all the duplicate values in the list. Assume that the list can contain both positive and negative numbers, and the order of the list does not matter. A number is considered a duplicate if it appears more than once in the list. Return a list of the duplicate numbers.

• Select the five most expensive projects by budget to employee count ratio. Write a query to account for duplicate rows in the employee_projects table and select the top five most expensive projects by budget to employee count ratio.

• Create a subquery or common table expression to find the top 3 ads and return join results. Create a subquery or common table expression named top_ads containing the top 3 ads by popularity and return the number of rows resulting from different join operations with the ads table.

• Find employees who joined before their manager. Given two tables, employees and managers, find the names of all employees who joined before their manager.

• Write a function to rotate a matrix by 90 degrees clockwise. Given an array filled with random values, write a function rotate_matrix to rotate the array by 90 degrees in the clockwise direction.

• How do we select the best 10,000 customers for a pre-launch of a new show? You are working as a data scientist at Amazon Prime Video, and they want to test the launch of a new show on 10,000 customers first. How would you go about selecting the best 10,000 customers for the pre-launch?

• What is the process for pre-launching a TV show on Amazon Prime to measure performance? Describe the steps involved in pre-launching a TV show on Amazon Prime to measure its performance.

• How would you evaluate the success of an A/B test on free shipping increasing conversions? You work at an eCommerce startup and ran an A/B test on the checkout product page to see if surfacing free shipping increases conversions. The control group had no specification of free shipping, while the experiment group did. How would you evaluate the results and determine if the test was successful?

• How would you conduct an experiment to test displaying ETA as a range instead of a direct estimate? You work at Uber, and a PM suggests displaying ETA as a range (e.g., 3-7 minutes) instead of a direct estimate (e.g., 5 minutes). How would you conduct this experiment and determine if the results are significant?

• How would you decide whether Google should build a game feature for Google Home? You are tasked with pitching a new feature for Google Home, and a co-worker suggests building a game feature. How would you go about deciding whether Google should build it?

• How would you measure the effectiveness of extra pay for delivery drivers during peak hours? You work at a food delivery company and need to measure the effectiveness of giving extra pay to delivery drivers during peak hours to meet consumer demand. How would you measure this?

• What is the difference between Logistic and Linear Regression? When would you use one instead of the other? Explain the key differences between Logistic and Linear Regression. Describe scenarios where each method is more appropriate to use in practice.

• How would you explain what a p-value is to someone who is not technical? Explain the concept of a p-value in simple terms to someone without a technical background. Use analogies or everyday examples to make it understandable.

• What is the difference between Logistic and Linear Regression? When would you use one instead of the other in practice? Describe the key differences between Logistic and Linear Regression. Provide examples of scenarios where each method would be appropriately applied in practice.

What is the average salary for a Software Engineer at Draper?

Q: What is the company culture like at Draper? Draper fosters an innovative and collaborative environment where multidisciplinary teams of engineers and scientists work together. The company places a strong emphasis on work-life balance, supporting workplace flexibility, employee clubs, health and finance workshops, off-site social events, and discounts to local museums and cultural activities.

Q: What are the main responsibilities of a Software Engineer at Draper? A Software Engineer at Draper develops high-performance solutions for resource-constrained targets, designs algorithms, and builds resilient and fault-tolerant software. This role involves evaluating requirements, exploring design trades, developing and testing embedded software, and mentoring less experienced engineers while communicating with stakeholders.

Q: What qualifications and skills are required for the Software Engineer position at Draper? Candidates must possess a bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or Electrical Engineering, and have 5-10 years of experience. Essential skills include expertise in real-time systems, proficiency in languages like C/C++ and Rust, excellent troubleshooting skills, and experience with tools such as UML/SysML and JTAG debuggers.

Q: Does the position require any specific security clearances? Yes, applicants selected for the Software Engineer position at Draper will be required to obtain and maintain a government security clearance. A Secret Clearance is required for this role.

Q: How can I prepare for an interview at Draper? To prepare for an interview at Draper, research the company thoroughly, review the job description, and sharpen your skills related to the position. Practice common interview questions using resources like Interview Query and be prepared to discuss your past experiences and technical skills relevant to the role.

If Draper's mission of tackling critical national challenges and cultivating true innovation in areas such as military defense, space exploration, and biomedical engineering excites you, then the opportunity to join their esteemed multidisciplinary team should not be missed. To fully understand what it's like to interview with Draper and maximize your preparedness, check out our comprehensive Draper Interview Guide. We've also compiled interview guides for various roles, including software engineer and data analyst, helping you to familiarize yourself with the unique aspects of Draper's hiring process.

At Interview Query, we are dedicated to providing you with the tools, confidence, and insights needed to ace your interview and secure your spot at a top-tier innovation company like Draper. Explore all our company interview guides to give yourself the best chance of success. Good luck with your interview!