Interview Prep & Log

Use this file to record technical interview questions, whiteboard tasks, behavioral questions, and areas of improvement discovered during mock or real interviews.

Core Conceptual Flashcards

HTTP & REST

• What is the request-response lifecycle?
• Difference between PUT and PATCH?
• What is middleware and how is it used in FastAPI?

Databases

• What are ACID properties?
• Explain database normalization (1NF, 2NF, 3NF).
• What is an index? When should you NOT use an index?
• What is the difference between INNER JOIN, LEFT JOIN, and RIGHT JOIN?

Security & System Design

• How does JWT authentication work?
• Why do we use refresh tokens, and where should they be stored?
• What is RBAC (Role-Based Access Control)?

Mock & Real Interview Log

[Date] - [Company Name]

• Role: Junior Backend Developer
• Stage: (e.g. Phone Screen, Technical, System Design, Behavioral)
• Questions Asked:
• Whiteboard / Live Coding task:
• Things I couldn't answer or struggled to explain:
• Follow-up Action Plan: