Interview Questions to Hire Senior Data Scientist

Senior Data Scientists derive valuable insights from data, ensuring the information is actionable to benefit the business. They have a clear understanding of data requirements and robust methods to analyze the data they use. 

When interviewing a Senior Data Scientist, it is important to identify their general business operations and statistical knowledge, along with strong technical skills such as SQL and relevant educational background. Looking for candidates who have a Bachelor's degree or above in computer science and relevant experience in the field will be key to making the right hire. Extensive working experience is also a requirement.

Role Specific Questions

• Tell me what steps you would follow to design a data-driven model.
• How would you combine models to form model ensembles?
• What is dimensionality reduction? In what ways would you perform this? When would this be done?
• What do you find useful about confidence intervals?
• What are the main differences between statistical independence and correlation?
• What methods do you use to ensure enough data is collected in order to train a model?
• What do you think are the main differences between supervised and unsupervised learning?
• Describe your previous experience using SQL. How have you used it in previous roles?
• How do you feel about managing a team of data scientists?

Behavioral Questions

• When faced with a database problem, what are your steps in identifying the cause and resolving the issue?
• Do you actively keep up to date with industry standards? Tell me about some seminars and conferences you have attended.
• What is your biggest project achievement so far? What did you enjoy about it?

Conclusion

Most Senior Data Scientists will be able to provide comprehensive answers and demonstrate in-depth knowledge of these subject matter questions. Look for answers using the star method, and identify where persons are using specific examples from their previous roles/experience to demonstrate their working knowledge.

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