[MUSIC] Hi, I'm Christine Alvarado. >> I'm Leo Porter. >> And I'm Mia Minnes. Welcome to our fourth course in our intermediate Java programming specialization. This course is about how to succeed through all elements of a job application process in order to get a software engineering position. Front and center to that process is the technical interview. >> Yeah, and that technical interview can be stressful. I remember my first one. I was in a small college in New Hampshire. I had to drive two hours down to Boston for this interview, completely unprepared. Didn't know what to expect. And it was a train wreck. It couldn't have gone any worse. I just remember 20 years later that awful feeling, how I felt after that interview. Now things got better from there but I don't want any of you to have to go through what I went through. >> That's incredibly rough. If it's any consolation, my first interview, now this is back in high school, actually finished with the interview telling me that I should call back after job interviews offers went out to get interview advice. >> Ouch. It was nice of her to offer that advice, but still that stings. >> You know technical interviews are just plain hard. It's not surprising that interviews with companies like Google had a reputation for being really difficult. You're asked to demonstrate expertise in softer engineering by solving new problems and writing code in high pressure situation. And it's not just about having strong technical expertise. It's also about how you convey yourself, your soft skills. Do you project confidence? Do you exhibit the communication and interpersonal skills that would make you a great team player? >> And so this course is going to address both of these elements of the technical interview. In this course we're going to pull back the curtain and show you the secrets of what you can do to make a good interview look easy. Just as is this course may look polished and easy there's lot of work that goes into making it look that way. I get it, that's why we're in the studio not out in some beautiful scenic UC San Diego location for this little chat. >> Exactly. So in this course we're going to be going deeper with your technical skills using the knowledge you gained in data structures, algorithm analysis, and programming that you've learned either in earlier courses in our specialization or elsewhere. And we'll teach you about the soft skills that can make or break the interview. >> Now you may think you're alone, and worrying about these soft skills that convey confidence and being well prepared for your interview, but everyone feels nervous before an interview. We'll teach you ways to combat that stress, overcome self doubt, and put yourself in a position to succeed. You know there's one common cure for doing well at something hard. It's practice. So we'll make sure to give you the tools and avenues you need to practice these skills. If you look at other interview videos on the internet you'll find that they don't give you this kind of practice. So what we're going to do is give you the programming assignments and the feedback that you need to succeed. Yeah, and these assignments will give you practice on many things. They'll give you practice on how to introduce yourself in your work, how to write code during a technical phone screen and an in-person interview, and how to solve new algorithmic problems on a whiteboard. >> Now this practice will help you hone both your technical and your soft skills. It may take awhile to get it all right, but the skills you learn aren't just about getting the job. There's a reason that interviews test you on all of these skills and that's because they are so fundamental for success throughout your career. >> We've had a lot of fun building this course and we've had some great help from a team of engineers and recruiters from Google to help make sure that what you're learning is up to industry standards. So we're really excited to have you with us and we believe this course can make a real difference in your career.