Maxim Integrated Hardware Test / Validation Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

I had a phone interview where they asked me 4 questions. They wanted to know about Assembly language code, counter design, amplifier equation derivations, and logic gates. I answered all of them. The position was closed so I didn't get an offer. The Assembly language code question involved taking the compliment of a number and rearranging it. For the amplifier part, it was about the Inverted Amplifier Gain Derivation steps and assumptions. They also asked about a 4-bit Counter design, and the design and simplification of 3 input NAND and NOR Gates using De Morgan's law.

First, I had a 30-minute phone call with the manager of the test team. Then, I went in for a full 8-hour in-person interview. This started with a group interview in a conference room where about 8 people asked me questions about my background. After that, I had one-on-one interviews with each of them for the rest of the day. They asked a lot of technical questions that felt like they were from college. The younger interviewers seemed tougher than the older ones. Eight days later, I got a one-line email saying they couldn't offer me the job. I emailed back asking for feedback but haven't heard anything, which is disappointing after spending 9 hours on it.

It began with a phone interview where I was asked about my understanding of a test engineer's role and my coursework. They also asked a straightforward question about the ideal traits of Op-Amps. Later, they scheduled me for a half-day interview at their San Jose headquarters, which was a few months after the initial call since I was living in Los Angeles at the time. During the half-day interview, I met with three different interviewers. The majority of the questions involved analog circuit analysis, covering topics like voltage followers and diodes. The manager also presented a logic puzzle concerning 8 balls, where 7 had identical weights and one was slightly lighter, and I had to determine the minimum number of weighings on an unmarked scale to find the lighter ball.