10 Interview Questions About Web Services (With Example Answers)
A web service is a part of an application that lets two applications on the same network talk to each other and share information. Web services solutions try to give users a place to work that is easy to understand and lets them do tasks and take care of clients. This article has a list of sample interview questions and answers for people who want to work in web services.
Web services interview questions and examples of how to answer them
Here are some questions and answers for a web services job interview:
- How knowledgeable are you about web services?
- Explain what the different types of web services are.
- What is the most common kind of criticism you hear?
- What was a problem you were able to figure out how to solve?
- What about this job makes you want to try to get it?
- What does that mean?
- Can you tell me how SOAP helps in a clear way?
- What exactly does it mean to REST?
- Can you tell me something good that REST does?
- How would you decide between a SOAP web service and a REST web service?
1. How familiar are you with web services?
To do your job in web services, you will need to know a lot about how applications connect to the World Wide Web. The interviewer wants to make sure that you know how to use more than one web service so that you can help customers who use both of them. In your answer, clear up any confusion and tell the truth.
Example: “Web services use a model called “client-server,” which lets applications use web services over a certain network. Web services create URLs and show methods that can be shown over a network by programs written in Java, shell script, or other technologies. Also, web services don’t keep user sessions going as well as web apps do.
2. Talk about the different types of web services.
If you want to work in web services, your boss will want to know if you can do your job tasks no matter how hard they are. This gives you a chance to show how well you can move through the details of web services that are important to the company’s progress in using new technology.
Example: “Simple Object Access Protocol and Representational State Transfer are the two types of web services. SOAP uses Extensible Markup Language to send important information about web services without showing how they are put together. XML also helps code information so that it can be understood by users. On the other hand, REST sends data that can be found through URLs using both XML and Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure.
3. What kind of criticism do you hear most often?
The interviewer needs to know what your biggest weakness is so that they can help you improve your skills and teamwork when working with new technology. Think of a time when your boss told you something bad, and explain how it helped you grow. You can come up with a complete, well-thought-out answer by using the STAR method. STAR stands for:
- Tell me about a work-related problem you had to solve.
- Describe what you are doing.
- Write down what you did to figure out the problem.
- Result: Tell what happened because of what you did.
Example: “I am very self-motivated. I think it’s important to keep working on hard projects until they’re finished. My boss at my last job didn’t like it when I worked late on important tasks because he was afraid I would get too tired. We finally came up with a plan that would let me finish my work without having to stay later. Overall, I think I can still get better at being productive and managing my time, but I don’t see those things as obstacles to getting my work done.
4.What was a problem that you once had to solve?
This is your chance to tell us more about how you work with clients or team members. Your answer can help the interviewer figure out if you will be able to help clients get what they want.
Example: “I worked with the manager on a client project that had to be done in a week. It was one of those times when the deadline couldn’t be changed. My manager was sick, so I had to build a customer service process from scratch on my own. But I was able to get my proposal to my manager by Friday, and thankfully the client approved it the following week.”
5. Why are you interested in this job?
Employers want to make sure that they can offer you what you want in your next job. Answer this question honestly, but don’t bring up any bad things about your last job.
“My last job at my old company was rewarding, but I think I can take more ownership in this role because I’ll be in charge of building customer service processes to help the web services team. Since my college internship, I’ve wanted to work in web services, so being a junior software developer puts me in a good position to move up in my career.
6.What does SOAP stand for?
The interviewer may ask you technical questions to make sure that the job is a good fit for your skills. So, you’ll have to come up with answers that meet the requirements of the employer. Don’t be afraid to show how good you are.
“SOAP” is an acronym for “Simple Object Access Protocol.” It helps build web services by using XML markup language as a protocol to send and receive data. It lets web pages run no matter what programming language was used to make them, such as Java or PHP.
7. Can you explain the benefits of SOAP in a clear way?
Make sure to directly answer this question to show how your experience fits with the job. If you want to keep track of how you answered a previous question, you can do that.
Example: “SOAP lays out the information a customer needs to use their web service correctly, without having to give away important details about how they set it up. Also, SOAP is the payload for web services, so it is easy to understand even if you don’t know much about technology. Last but not least, SOAP is an industry standard for web services that is easy for clients to use.
8.What does REST stand for?
When asked to explain terms used in your field, you can be more direct as long as your answer gets to the interviewer’s main point. Your knowledge can help you get a job as a manager where you’re in charge of younger staff members.
Example: “RESTful web services, or REST, use the HTTPS protocol, which is a safer way to talk on the Internet. Instead of sending data like SOAP, its architecture shows the resources of the web services, which can be seen in the URL. So, there is no need to transfer data.”
9. Can you list some of REST’s benefits?
During an interview, explain as much as you can about technical questions so that the interviewer can get a full picture of what you know. They might ask you more questions to see how much you know.
Example: “It’s easy to learn because it runs on HTTPS, and it’s safer to use and test from a web browser than to pull up the code. It does have the ability to send data, such as XML and text, when necessary.”
10.How would you choose between a SOAP web service and a REST web service?
The interviewer wants to know which web service you would recommend to a client based on their needs. Your answer should connect what you know to what you’ve done in the past to help customers.
Example: “It’s usually better to use REST because it’s easy to keep up with. You don’t need to know a lot about technical details to use an HTTPS protocol in your browser to help secure your network. SOAP might be a better choice if the client doesn’t want to make changes to their web service, but REST is the service I recommend because it gives the client more security.
