Past experience with R programming language is essential to employers when searching for new talent (unless hiring an intern or trainee), as it is utilized in many IT positions along with fields such as coding and statistics. How a candidate answers this question can help hiring managers determine if they're right for the position. What to look for in an answer:

• Detailed history of candidate's experience working with R

• Knowledge of technical writing

• Data science background

This is an important question to ask potential candidates when R programming language is part of the daily workflow. Learning about past challenges shouldn't completely deter employers from hiring, but it can help them in determining whether the applicant has enough knowledge of the R programming language to efficiently handle assigned tasks. What to look for in an answer:

• Honest explanations of potential disadvantages of R

• Demonstration of problem-solving skills

• Critical thinking skills

Asking this question in an R programming job interview is a fun and casual way to learn what a potential employee enjoys about the language and how they approach tasks using specific functions. When the interviewee is describing their favorite functions, this can also give insight into how well they understand R. What to look for in an answer:

• Detailed descriptions of R's various functions

• Clear understanding of R programming language software

• Technical writing skills

This is a good question to ask R job candidates who are seeking data scientist positions such as statisticians and data miners, as R programming language is utilized in these fields in both research and applications. How a candidate answers this question can provide insight into their past experience and knowledge of data science. What to look for in an answer:

• Description of past data science experience

• Strong research skills

• Clear attention to detail

R programming language is extremely common in analyst and statistics positions, so this question can help potential employers gain insight into how much experience an applicant has. If a candidate has limited experience with R but has worked with Python, a general-purpose programming language, they may be able to learn R programming functions quickly. What to look for in an answer:

• Verbal examples of past uses of R in predictive analysis

• Strong knowledge of R software functions

• Demonstration of critical thinking and problem-solving skills

Writing functions in R is an easy task for coders, programmers, analysts and statisticians who are experienced with the programming language, so this question provides a good opportunity for employers to gauge an applicant's overall aptitude and familiarity with the program. What to look for in an answer:

• Clear knowledge of how to write functions in R

• Strong understanding of R programming language functions

• Demonstration of attention to detail

Asking a candidate to give some examples of the advantages of R programming language gives employers a good idea of how familiar they are with the system and areas of R that they may excel in, such as writing their own functions, data sorting and data mining. What to look for in an answer:

• Clear understanding of R programming language

• Enthusiastic about working with R software

• Open to learning new things

This is another good question for potential employers who are looking to gauge an applicant's overall experience with R. Skilled programmers, analysts and statisticians should be familiar enough with the program to provide examples without any hesitation. What to look for in an answer:

• Clear demonstration that applicant is knowledgeable of common syntax in R

• Strong understanding of R functions

• Problem-solving skills

Asking for a step-by-step example of their troubleshooting process can give an employer a good idea of a potential hire's problem-solving skills while providing insight into their overall experience with the program. While R often displays error messages for common problems, there may be instances when a programmer needs to troubleshoot an issue without guidance. What to look for in an answer:

• Strong problem-solving skills

• Flexibility when finding solutions to difficult problems

• Ability to demonstrate troubleshooting steps

Decision trees are often created by data mining technicians to deliver consequences based on input decisions. This question is essential for employers who are looking to hire data miners and statistical analysts, as R decision trees are utilized frequently in a wide range of applications, including fraud detection, marketing and medical diagnostic software. What to look for in an answer:

• Past experience in creating R decision trees

• Demonstration of problem-solving skills

• Willingness to provide an example of an R decision tree