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Garmin·Software Engineer·Technical Phone Screen·Junior

JuniorPending
Jun 2026

Summary

Did a 30-minute in-person technical screen with Garmin for an internship, which apparently happened before the phone screen because they met at a campus career fair. Went okay, survived the coding question, but definitely left some things on the table.

Questions Asked (4)

Q1

Why do you want to work at Garmin, and which team would you want to be part of?

Adaptability & Ambiguity
Author's notes

Pretty standard opener but I still fumbled around trying to sound genuine without being too rehearsed.

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Connect Garmin's mission and products to your personal interests and technical skills, showing genuine enthusiasm. Then, demonstrate adaptability by discussing multiple teams you're interested in and how your skills could apply to each, while expressing a primary preference.

Pro tip: Research Garmin's recent product launches or technical blog posts and mention specific projects or technologies that excite you. This shows initiative and genuine interest beyond generic company praise.

1. Show Genuine Interest in Garmin

Explain why Garmin's mission, products, or culture resonates with you, using specific examples from your own life or career.

2. Align with Role and Skills

Connect your technical skills and experiences to Garmin's engineering challenges, highlighting how you can contribute.

3. Demonstrate Adaptability

Discuss multiple teams you're interested in, showing flexibility and willingness to work where you're most needed.

4. Express Primary Preference

State which team you'd prefer and why, but emphasize openness to other opportunities.

5. Ask Insightful Questions

Pose thoughtful questions about team dynamics or projects to show engagement and learn more.

Key Points to Mention

  • Garmin's mission in health, fitness, and outdoor technology
  • Specific Garmin products or technologies you admire
  • Your relevant technical skills (e.g., embedded systems, mobile apps, cloud)
  • Multiple teams of interest (e.g., wearables, aviation, marine, automotive)
  • Your adaptability to different projects and technologies
  • How you stay updated with industry trends

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.

Q2

What is 15 in hexadecimal?

Algorithms & Data Structures
Author's notes

Straightforward conversion question.

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Explain the conversion process from decimal to hexadecimal, showing that 15 in decimal is F in hexadecimal. Then, briefly discuss the significance of hexadecimal in computing, especially in contexts like memory addressing and bit manipulation.

Pro tip: Mention that hexadecimal is base-16 and that each hex digit represents exactly 4 bits, which is why it's commonly used in low-level programming and debugging. This shows you understand its practical relevance beyond just the conversion.

1. Understand the question

Recognize that the question asks for the hexadecimal representation of the decimal number 15. It's a straightforward base conversion problem.

2. Recall hexadecimal basics

Hexadecimal uses digits 0-9 and letters A-F to represent values 0-15. So, 10 is A, 11 is B, ..., 15 is F.

3. Perform the conversion

Since 15 is less than 16, it can be represented by a single hexadecimal digit. The digit for 15 is F.

4. Verify and contextualize

Confirm that 0xF equals 15 in decimal. Then, relate this to common uses in software engineering, such as bitmasks or color codes.

Key Points to Mention

  • Hexadecimal is base-16, using digits 0-9 and A-F.
  • The decimal number 15 corresponds to the hexadecimal digit F.
  • Each hexadecimal digit represents exactly 4 bits (a nibble).
  • Hexadecimal is widely used in programming for memory addresses, color codes, and bitwise operations.
  • Conversion between decimal and hexadecimal is a fundamental skill in low-level programming and debugging.
  • In languages like C or Python, hexadecimal literals are prefixed with 0x (e.g., 0xF).

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.

Q3

Write a function that rounds an integer to the nearest tens place.

Algorithms & Data StructuresTechnical Trade-offs
Author's notes

This is the one that still bugs me.

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Start by clarifying the rounding rule for halfway cases (e.g., 5) and whether negative numbers are included. Then present a simple arithmetic solution using integer division and multiplication, and discuss potential pitfalls like overflow and language-specific behaviors.

Pro tip: Mention that many languages have built-in rounding functions, but implementing it manually shows understanding of integer arithmetic and edge cases. Also, consider how the solution might need to be adapted for different rounding conventions (e.g., banker's rounding).

1. Clarify requirements

Ask about the rounding rule for halfway cases (e.g., round half up, half down, half to even) and whether negative numbers should be handled. Confirm the input range to anticipate overflow.

2. Outline a simple arithmetic approach

For positive numbers, add 5, then integer divide by 10, then multiply by 10. For negative numbers, adjust accordingly (e.g., subtract 5 before dividing).

3. Discuss edge cases and trade-offs

Address overflow when adding 5 to large integers, and consider using a conditional to avoid overflow. Also, mention alternative approaches like using modulo or built-in functions.

4. Write pseudocode or actual code

Implement the function in a language of your choice, ensuring it handles negative numbers and the chosen rounding rule. Include comments for clarity.

5. Test with examples

Walk through test cases: e.g., 24 -> 20, 25 -> 30 (if round half up), -24 -> -20, -25 -> -30. Verify the logic and discuss any discrepancies.

Key Points to Mention

  • Integer division and multiplication for rounding without floating-point errors.
  • Handling of negative numbers: the rounding direction may differ from positive numbers.
  • Halfway cases: specify the rounding rule (e.g., round half up) and how it affects the implementation.
  • Overflow concerns when adding 5 to the maximum integer value.
  • Alternative approaches: using modulo, built-in functions, or bitwise operations.
  • Language-specific behaviors: e.g., integer division truncates toward zero in many languages, which affects negative numbers.

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.

Q4

Tell me about your favorite software project and walk through how you approached solving the problems in it.

Adaptability & AmbiguityTechnical Trade-offs
Author's notes

I talked about a project I actually liked, which helped.

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Choose a project that genuinely excited you and had meaningful technical challenges, ideally one with ambiguity or trade-offs. Structure your answer as a story: set the context, describe the problems you faced, explain your decision-making process (including alternatives considered), and highlight the impact and what you learned.

Pro tip: Garmin values engineers who can navigate ambiguity and make pragmatic trade-offs, so emphasize how you gathered requirements, prioritized features, and balanced competing constraints like performance, cost, and time-to-market. Show that you can make decisions with incomplete information and adapt when things change.

1. Set the Context

Briefly describe the project, your role, the team size, and why it was your favorite. Keep it concise but give enough background for the interviewer to understand the stakes.

2. Define the Problem

Clearly state the main technical or product challenge(s) you faced. Highlight any ambiguity, constraints, or conflicting requirements that made it non-trivial.

3. Explain Your Approach

Walk through how you tackled the problem: research, prototyping, design decisions, and trade-offs. Mention alternatives you considered and why you chose your path.

4. Describe the Outcome

Share the results: metrics, user impact, team feedback, or lessons learned. Be specific about what improved and how you measured success.

5. Reflect and Connect

Summarize what you learned and how it applies to this role at Garmin. Show enthusiasm for similar challenges and how you'd bring that experience to the team.

Key Points to Mention

  • How you handled ambiguity or incomplete requirements
  • Specific technical trade-offs you made (e.g., performance vs. maintainability, build vs. buy)
  • Your decision-making process and how you validated choices
  • Collaboration with cross-functional teams or stakeholders
  • Measurable impact or results of the project
  • What you would do differently or how you grew from the experience

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.