Technical screening questions
Ask for one example per question and listen for specifics.
- How do goroutines and channels differ from threads? A good answer: Lightweight scheduling by the Go runtime and communication by channels.
- How do you avoid goroutine leaks? A good answer: Context cancellation, closing channels and bounded workers.
- How do you handle errors in Go? A good answer: Returning errors, wrapping with context and checking explicitly.
- When do you use an interface? A good answer: To decouple consumers from implementations and to mock in tests.
- How do you profile a Go service? A good answer: pprof for CPU and heap and reading flame graphs.
Quick screening questions
Use these when you have only a few minutes.
- How do you avoid goroutine leaks?
- When did you choose gRPC over REST?
- Describe a Go service you profiled and optimized.
What separates the levels
Match the level to the requirement before you submit.
- Junior: implements endpoints and fixes bugs.
- Mid: designs concurrent components and tests.
- Senior: sets service design, performance and standards.
Red flags
Any of these is a reason to probe further.
- Go listed after a short course only.
- Cannot explain context usage.
- Writes everything in one package with no tests.
Tools you should hear mentioned
A Golang developer with real experience usually names several of these without prompting.
- Go standard library
- gRPC or REST frameworks
- Docker and Kubernetes
- PostgreSQL or Redis
- pprof
- Go modules
Run the call well
Ask for the last project first, then dig into the second or third question. Take notes on versions, team size and outcomes, and record them with the submission so the vendor’s later technical interview does not surprise you.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a Golang developer screening call take?
Fifteen to twenty minutes is enough to cover the project, three technical questions and availability, rate and work authorization.
Do recruiters need to know the technology?
Working vocabulary is enough. Use the sourcing guide for the role and listen for specifics instead of judging technical depth yourself.