Screening Candidates for Backend and
Full Stack Developer Roles
1. Initial Interview Screening Questions
These questions assess a candidate’s knowledge of backend and full stack development
fundamentals, including API design, middleware, security, databases, and event-driven
programming.
2. Interview Questions with Answers
1. Q1. What is the difference between REST and GraphQL APIs?
Answer: REST uses multiple endpoints and standard HTTP methods. GraphQL uses a single
endpoint and lets clients request specific data, avoiding over-fetching.
2. Q2. What is the purpose of middleware in Express.js?
Answer: Middleware functions handle requests and responses, enabling tasks like
authentication, logging, and error handling.
3. Q3. How does the event loop work in Node.js?
Answer: The event loop allows Node.js to perform non-blocking I/O operations by
offloading operations to the system and executing callbacks asynchronously.
4. Q4. Explain the concept of CORS and how to handle it.
Answer: CORS allows or restricts cross-origin requests. It is handled by setting headers like
Access-Control-Allow-Origin on the server.
5. Q5. What is the difference between SQL and NoSQL databases?
Answer: SQL databases are structured and relational; NoSQL databases are non-relational,
suitable for unstructured or semi-structured data.
6. Q6. What is the difference between synchronous and asynchronous programming?
Answer: Synchronous blocks execution; asynchronous allows tasks to run in the
background, enabling non-blocking operations.
7. Q7. How do you secure a backend API?
Answer: Use HTTPS, token authentication (JWT), input validation, rate limiting, and follow
OWASP guidelines.
8. Q8. What are the key responsibilities of a Full Stack Developer?
Answer: Manage frontend and backend development, database integration, API
communication, and deployment.
9. Q9. What is ORM and give one example in Node.js.
Answer: ORM maps objects to database rows. Sequelize is a popular ORM in Node.js for
interacting with SQL databases.
10. Q10. How do you handle state management in a frontend app?
Answer: Use tools like Redux or Context API to manage and synchronize app state across
components.
3. Coding Problems (Beginner to Intermediate Level)
These coding questions are selected from LeetCode and are ideal for evaluating problem-
solving skills and coding logic in backend and full stack candidates.
Title Platform Link Difficulty Level Description Expected
Output
Two Sum https:// Easy Return indices Indices of the
leetcode.com/ of two numbers two numbers.
problems/two- adding up to
sum/ the target.
Valid https:// Easy Check if True or False.
Parentheses leetcode.com/ parentheses in
problems/ string are valid.
valid-
parentheses/
Merge Two https:// Easy Merge two Merged sorted
Sorted Lists leetcode.com/ sorted linked list.
problems/ lists.
merge-two-
sorted-lists/
Longest https:// Medium Find longest Length of the
Substring leetcode.com/ substring substring.
Without problems/ without
Repeating longest- repeating
Characters substring- characters.
without-
repeating-
characters/
Move Zeroes https:// Easy Move all 0's to Modified array.
leetcode.com/ end, keep order
problems/ of non-zero
move-zeroes/ elements.
