AWS developer interview questions
List of interview questions
- What do you understand about AWS?
- Can you explain your previous experience working AWS?
- When would you use EC2 over Lambda or vice versa?
- Can you describe the use cases for Amazon S3 and Amazon EBS?
- How did you approach a performance issue in an AWS environment?
- How can you monitor the performance and health of your AWS resources?
- How can you securely store sensitive data like API keys or database passwords in AWS?
AWS developers ensure that Amazon’s Web Services run smoothly. They are in charge of navigating the platform and checking if the applications on the service are maintained and optimized.
An AWS developer role requires a skilled individual with a unique set of technical skills. To help you find the right candidate for this position, you can ask the following interview questions.
Interview questions for an AWS developer
Below are some interview questions to ask an AWS developer:
1. What do you understand about AWS?
Since working around AWS is quite technical, you want a candidate who understands how it works and shows basic knowledge of how to navigate through it.
Listen to how extensive the applicants’ knowledge about AWS is and pay attention to which terms they understand and are familiar with. It will give insight into how well-versed they are in this line of work.
2. Can you explain your previous experience working AWS?
An ideal candidate has relevant experience working with AWS infrastructures.
You can ask what the candidates’ day to day tasks and responsibilities looked like in their previous jobs and what necessary skills they can bring that can help them excel in the role.
3. When would you use EC2 over Lambda or vice versa?
The question gives a clearer understanding of the candidate’s knowledge of the two fundamental AWS services.
Listen to how the candidate differentiates the EC2 (virtual machines) and Lambda (serverless, event-driven).
Pay attention to how detailed the answers are. It also helps to ask if the applicant has relevant experience using either one.
4. Can you describe the use cases for Amazon S3 and Amazon EBS?
This question assesses the candidate’s proficiency in using different AWS storage solutions. You learn how well the candidate understands the practical applications of these two services.
Listen to how specifically the candidates explain the uses of the two services and ask about their previous experience of using them.
As a follow-up, you can ask the applicants which solution they would personally use based on their knowledge of both and understanding of the project at hand.
5. How did you approach a performance issue in an AWS environment?
This question gives insight into how well the candidates can handle tricky situations.
You learn more about their problem-solving skills and their thought process on how to tackle issues, such as identifying bottlenecks.
6. How can you monitor the performance and health of your AWS resources?
Part of an AWS developer’s job is ensuring the health of the AWS infrastructure.
This question helps understand the candidates ability to manage the security of their AWS resources and find solutions to issues.
Similar to the previous question, ask them if they have any experience in fixing an AWS health issue and what specific steps they took to solve the problem.
7. How can you securely store sensitive data like API keys or database passwords in AWS?
Keeping confidential information safe is one of the AWS developer’s main responsibilities. This question assesses the candidate’s understanding of the necessary safety practices and how to implement them.
An ideal candidate has strong knowledge of protecting sensitive information in AWS and maintaining the security and trustworthiness of cloud applications.
Hire an AWS developer now
These are some questions you can ask a potential AWS developer candidate.
Working with AWS involves a lot of technical proficiency, so it is important to listen intently to how capable the candidate is in working in this environment.
It is important to ask the most relevant questions to provide the most helpful information on which candidate is best suited for the role.
To further help you with your talent search, here’s an AWS developer job description template you can use for your job postings.