CERN Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

I submitted an online application with lots of details and answered questions about my interest in CERN and what I'd like to do. Three really good reference letters from top people were required. After the committee made their decision, HR contacted me to set up an interview with the supervisor. I was given a description of the project and asked about my previous experience and goals. There were also a couple of technology-related questions. The interview took a while, but HR was very helpful at their own pace.

I applied online and a recruiter reached out pretty fast. The first step was an online interview where I had to record myself answering 5 questions about myself and my experience, without a live interviewer, which was kind of strange. About a week later, I got an invitation for an onsite interview in Geneva. I was expecting it to be an all-day thing with lunch, but they were busy that day, so it ended up being a shorter interview, around an hour, with 5 engineers. For the first 15 minutes, I presented a past project relevant to the role. Then, they asked me some technical questions, mainly focusing on databases. Since the LHC and museum were closed, there wasn't much else to do in the city that day. A couple of days later, the recruiter told me they were looking for someone with more experience but encouraged me to reapply in the future. Despite being a bit let down by the interview day, everyone was super nice throughout the process and it moved really quickly.

The recruitment process for this Early Career position has been a great experience. The interview is more conversational and human than in other places. There's a real curiosity to know applicants, their experiences and interests, and to share about life at CERN, which I really appreciated. The process is also very respectful of candidates' time, being quite fast with just one interview. Everyone I've been in contact with has been very nice and responsive.