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Embedded Systems test for hiring

See how candidates reason about microcontroller design, firmware, and faults in device code.

10 minuten
15 vragen
Intermediate
Multiple choice
Questions in Engels
Phone and desktop

Use this test free See the question formats

Het korte antwoord

The Embedded Systems test is a timed check of practical knowledge for building and supporting software that runs on microcontrollers. It measures design trade-offs, peripherals, C for small devices, and fault finding. Use it with intermediate firmware and embedded software engineers, microcontroller developers, and other engineers who write or test device code.

Wat het meet

Knowledge of embedded design trade-offs, microcontroller peripherals, C for small devices, and finding and preventing faults in device code.

System design and trade-offs

Questions ask candidates to weigh design choices when timing, memory, and power are limited.

Microcontroller peripherals

Questions cover setting up on-chip peripherals on a microcontroller.

Firmware in C

Questions use short standard C code written for small devices.

Fault finding and verification

Candidates track faults from symptoms, signal traces, and short code listings, including how to prevent them.

Question formats

Multiple choice

The candidate: Reads a short situation, table or statement and picks the right answer, or every right answer.

You see: Whether the candidate knows the material well enough to apply it, not just recognize it.

15 questions in 10 minutes, served one at a time.

Roles this test fits

Firmware and embedded software engineers, microcontroller developers, electronics engineers who also write device code, and test engineers working on embedded products.

Evidence from device-code decisions

See trade-offs in context
Questions put timing, memory, and power limits together, showing how candidates approach constraints found in embedded design.
Keep vendor familiarity from deciding
Each question describes a generic microcontroller and states the clock figures, register layouts, and data widths needed to answer it.
Review fault-finding approaches
Symptoms, signal traces, and short code listings show how candidates approach problems in device code.
C as written for small devices
Code is short standard C with fixed-width types, so you see whether a candidate reads data widths and register values correctly rather than which toolchain they know.

What you get for each candidate

Example report (fictional data)Embedded Systems

70%Percentile 44. Benchmark: HireValid candidates, n = 1.005

System design and trade-offs76%

Microcontroller peripherals73%

Firmware in C66%

Fault finding and verification63%

Integrity ScoreHoge betrouwbaarheid

Stayed on the test tab throughout
No pasted answers
Answered at a steady pace

Scores, profiles and integrity signals are evidence for you to review alongside an interview, never an automatic decision.

Use this test free

Test integrity signals for review

Each candidate receives a different question set, with questions in a different order and answer options shuffled. The browser shows one question at a time, and answer keys stay on HireValid’s servers. The 10-minute timer runs on the server; reloading returns the same question with only the time left, and candidates cannot go back. Question text cannot be copied or selected, and blocked copy attempts are recorded. HireValid records signals such as time away from the test tab, pastes into answers, and answers faster than a question can be read. The employer reviews an Integrity Score and evidence timeline; the system does not decide on its own. With candidate consent, random webcam photos can be added. See how we build our tests.

Hoe we fraude met AI tegengaan · Integrity signals

Use the score as one signal

Review the score alongside a work sample that reflects the device-code work in the role and a structured interview. The test is evidence for a person to consider, not a hiring decision by itself. Ask candidates to explain choices or investigate a scenario, then compare their reasoning with the work sample. For more guidance, see our pre-employment testing guide and the Clean Code test for a related programming skill.

Vragen voor gestructureerde sollicitatiegesprekken

How would you choose between two design approaches when timing, memory, and power constraints compete?
Listen for how the candidate weighs the stated constraints and explains the trade-offs behind a choice.
Walk me through how you would set up an on-chip peripheral for a device task.
Listen for a clear sequence of decisions and attention to the microcontroller details in the scenario.
A device shows a fault and you have a signal trace and a short C listing. How would you investigate?
Listen for a reasoned path from symptoms through the trace and code, plus how the candidate would verify a finding.
Tell me about a device-code fault you would try to prevent, and how you would approach that.
Listen for a concrete prevention approach tied to firmware or verification work, rather than a definition.

Understand scoring and benchmarks

Fairness and accommodations

Each question describes a generic microcontroller in its own text, stating the clock figures, register layouts and data widths it needs, so no single vendor's parts, tools or libraries give anyone an advantage. Code is short standard C with fixed-width types, the language is plain US English without idioms, units are metric, and the arithmetic is light enough for the scratch paper every candidate may use.

You can give any candidate extra time as an accommodation. Results are evidence for a person to review, never an automatic decision.

Provisional: reliability is reported once 200 candidates have completed it.

Lees hoe we met eerlijkheid omgaan

Test details

A timed check of practical knowledge for building and supporting software that runs on microcontrollers. Questions cover design trade-offs under tight timing, memory and power limits, setting up on-chip peripherals, C code written for small devices, and tracking down faults from symptoms, signal traces and short code listings.

Questions are in English.
Aids allowed: Scratch paper.
Each question is answered once, in order, with no going back.
4 practice questions, 3 minutes, before the timed test.

Veelgestelde vragen

How does the Embedded Systems test keep questions fair across microcontroller backgrounds?+

Each question describes a generic microcontroller and includes the clock figures, register layouts, and data widths needed for that question. The code is short standard C with fixed-width types. The wording uses plain US English without idioms, units are metric, and the arithmetic is light enough for scratch paper.

Can candidates use scratch paper on the Embedded Systems test?+

Yes. Every candidate may use scratch paper for the light arithmetic, such as working from the clock figures a question states. Each question is answered once, in order, with no going back to an earlier one.

What practice is available before the Embedded Systems test?+

Candidates can use a practice set of 4 questions with a 3-minute time limit. The actual test has 15 multiple-choice questions and a 10-minute time limit. The practice set gives candidates a chance to see the question format before the hiring assessment.

Which roles suit the intermediate Embedded Systems test?+

It is intended for firmware and embedded software engineers, microcontroller developers, electronics engineers who also write device code, and test engineers working on embedded products. It is set at an intermediate level, for people who already do this work.