New club helps students practice whiteboarding skills
// Update: BoardMasters is now officially recognized as a club by Student Life and the ASGRC Senate. Two students, Carmen Gallardo and Alicia Buehner, have also joined the BoardMasters team to manage promos and marketing on behalf of the club.
Technical interviews can be a stressful experience for college students who are looking for that first internship or job. Unlike interviewing in other fields, the typical technical interview usually focuses on a candidate’s knowledge of data structures and algorithms, and involves hand-coding solutions to problems on a whiteboard in front of a small audience of interviewers.
The point isn’t merely to write code on a whiteboard. It’s about the interviewee talking through what’s going on in her head, asking follow-up questions, and making an effort to collaborate with the interviewer to come up with a solution to the problem at hand.
This kind of back-and-forth reveals thought process and demonstrates the ability to communicate effectively. It shows how the interviewee goes about solving a problem, which is precisely what the interviewer is trying to get at.
Recognizing how difficult technical interviews can be, Green River College student Robert Hill recently helped launch a new club to help software development students practice their whiteboarding skills. The aptly-named club — BoardMasters — held its first meeting this week at Green River’s Auburn Center campus.
“I am the passionate president and chief organizer of BoardMasters,” Hill said. “This new club aims to provide a platform for students to prepare for internships and jobs in the software development field. We hope to foster an environment that celebrates hard work and effort, and to help students develop a growth mindset. We are here for software development students at Green River College, but any student who is interested in getting into the software field is welcome.”
Green River instructor Josh Archer, who regularly teaches IT 333 Data Structures and IT 334 Algorithms within the college’s applied baccalaureate in software development, also supports the club as a faculty advisor.
“I am the faculty advisor for the BoardMasters club,” Archer said. “In this role I will provide general guidance for club activities. In particular, I want to make sure that any white-boarding activities simulate the technical interview process as closely as possible.”
Reflecting on how difficult the hiring process can be for college students, Archer added:
“Software development students typically face a technical interview as part of the hiring process. During this interview they will be required to write code by hand at a whiteboard. This process allows an interviewer to see a candidate’s problem solving skills and communication skills. This can be a nerve-wracking and humbling experience, especially if this is a candidate’s first time. Yet this is a skill that can be mastered. What I would like is for the BoardMaster’s experience to help students become familiar and confident in the process. Practice makes perfect, as they say!”
BoardMasters currently meets every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 12–1 pm at Green River’s Auburn Center campus, room 260.
Learn more about Green River College’s applied baccalaureate in software development at www.greenriver.edu/software
Visit the BoardMasters club page to view upcoming events at https://boardmasters.greenriverdev.com/
