Interview prep: the analyst loop · Lesson 45 of 99 · about 3 weeks
Drilling the timed SQL screen
After this you can solve medium-difficulty SQL interview problems involving joins, CTEs and window functions in under fifteen minutes while explaining your reasoning.
Why it matters
SQL screens reward speed and accuracy on a familiar set of patterns: top-N per group, deduplication, running totals, period-over-period change, retention, and self-joins. Drill daily for several weeks, timing yourself, and say your reasoning out loud as if to an interviewer. After each problem, compare your solution with others and note any pattern you did not know. The trap is solving problems silently; in a live screen, narration is half the score.
How to use this resource
Real SQL interview questions from tech companies, sorted by difficulty, with a free tier large enough for this phase.