Professional System Analysis Interview Questions & Answers:

1. Would you provide the documentation required by the system analyst?

Describe the various documentations you keep as part of your daily responsibilities. Analysts document problems as well as the solutions required or implemented. They make records of inventory and maintain system documentation.

2. Tell me what is your technical expertise in this field?

Be specific about what you actually have training and experience in. But generally speaking, system analysts are usually experts in computer systems, hardware platforms, and programming techniques.

3. Structured design produces computer programs that are:
A. easily
B. maintained
C. easily understood
D. both (a) and (b)

D. both (a) and (b)

4. A system design is said to be functionally modular if:

A. the system is able to handle all the function of the application
B. each module performs a specific function and can be developed relatively independently by programmers
C. the system makes extensive use of function. keys for maximum user assistance
D. the system is developed using structured programming through COBOL or PASCAL
E. None of the above

B. each module performs a specific function and can be developed relatively independently by programmers

5. Which of the following tools is not used in modeling the new system?
A. decision tables
B. data dictionary
C. data-flow diagrams
D. All of the above

D. All of the above

6. Nassi - Schneider charts:
A. are being replaced by flowcharts
B. often describe over lapping control structures
C. are made up of boxes within boxes
D. both (a) and (c)

C. are made up of boxes within boxes

7. The first step in systems Development Life Cycle is:
A. database design
B. system design
C. preliminary investigation and analysis
D. graphical user interface
E. None of the above

C. preliminary investigation and analysis

8. The longest method of conversion is:
A. direct
B. parallel
C. phased
D. pilot
E. None of the above

A. direct

9. Back-up procedure helps in:
A. restoring the operation whenever there is a disk failure
B. restoring both application and system software whenever there is disk corruption.
C. restoring the data files whenever there is a system crash
D. All of the above

D. All of the above

10. Which are the tools not used for System Analysis:
A. System - test data
B. Decision table
C. Data Flow Diagram
D. Flowcharts
E. None of the above

A. System - test data

11. The rule(s) to follow in constructing decision tables is (are):
A. a decision should be given a name
B. the logic of the table is independent of the sequence in which conditions rules are written, but the action takes place in the order is which the events occur.
C. standardized language must be used consistently.
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

D. All of the above

12. Management's decision to rent a computer system may be based upon:
A. tax advantages
B. desire to avoid a large one-time payment
C. operational flexibility in changing hardware
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

D. All of the above

13. Indexed-Sequential organization:
A. means storing records in contiguous blocks according to a key.
B. Stores records sequentially but uses an index to locate records
C. uses an index for each key type
D. has records placed randomly throughout the file
E. None of the above

B. Stores records sequentially but uses an index to locate records

14. In the system concepts, term Integration:
A. implies structure and order
B. refers to the manner in which each component functions with other components of the system.
C. means that parts of the computer system depend on one another.
D. refers to the holism of systems
E. None of the above

D. refers to the holism of systems

15. Which of the following is not a characteristic of good test data:
A. users do not participate at this preliminary stage
B. should be comprehensive
C. every statement should be executed
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

A. users do not participate at this preliminary stage

16. On a systems flowchart, the online manual keeping of input data is identified by using the:
A. online storage symbol
B. Online keyboard symbol
C. keeping operation symbols
D. manual operation symbols
E. None of the above

B. Online keyboard symbol

17. An example of a hierarchical data structure is:
A. array
B. link list
C. tree
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

C. tree

18. Which of the following appropriately explains the desirable characteristic of good system design?
A. Modular approach
B. Proper documentation
C. Conversion
D. Long discussions
E. None of the above

A. Modular approach

19. The set of. instructions for how to tie a bow is an example of the _____Structure.
A. Control
B. Repetition
C. Selection
D. Sequence
E. switching

D. Sequence

20. Data manipulation language (DML):
A. describes how data are structured in the data base
B. specifies for the DBMS what is required; the techniques used to process data
C. determine how data must be structured to produce the user's view
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

B. specifies for the DBMS what is required; the techniques used to process data

21. Which of the following is (are) not a tool for Application Prototyping?
A. Application generators
B. third generation language
C. screen generators
D. report generators
E. None of the above

B. third generation language

22. During the system study, the executive vice-president and the other managers exercise their responsibility of:
A. planning
B. controlling
C. directing
D. organizing
E. None of the above

B. controlling

23. Elapsed time, between initiating a query and receiving a response is called:
A. response time
B. waiting time
C. processing time
D. Turnaround time
E. None of the above

D. Turnaround time

24. An appraisal, of a system's performance after it has been installed, is called system:
A. planning
B. review
C. maintenance
D. batch Processing
E. None of the above

B. review

25. A branch office, location or other data processing centers, where a newly developed system is used under normal operating conditions for several months, to test it, is called:
A. beta test data
B. alpha test data
C. string test data
D. system test data
E. None of the above

A. beta test data

26. A _____ is an outline of a process that keeps develop successful information systems:
A. System Development Life Cycle
B. CASE tool
C. Phased Conversion
D. Success Factors
E. Move of the above

A. System Development Life Cycle

27. On the feasibility committee, department representatives serve as:
A. direct users of the new system
B. liaison to their departments
C. ready sources of information
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

D. All of the above

28. A decision table facilitates conditions to be related to:
A. actions
B. programs
C. tables
D. operation
E. None of the above

A. actions

29. Top-down programming is:
A. a group of related fields
B. a map of the programmer's view of the data
C. an approach in which the top module is first tested then program modules are added from the highest level to the lowest level
D. a series or group of components that perform one or more operations of a more complex system
E. None of the above

C. an approach in which the top module is first tested then program modules are added from the highest level to the lowest level

30. Decision tree uses:
A. pictorial depiction of alternate conditions
B. nodes and branches
C. consequences of various depicted alternates
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

D. All of the above

31. Problem analysis is done during:
A. system design phase
B. systems analysis phase
C. before system test
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

B. systems analysis phase

32. The mistake, committed by interchanging two digits in a numeric held, during data entry, is called:
A. transposition error
B. transcription error
C. Beta testing error
D. Alpha testing error
E. None of the above

A. transposition error

33. During the maintenance phase:
A. System requirements are established
B. System analysis is carried out
C. Programs are tested
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

E. None of the above

34. In phase 1 of the system development life cycle, which of the following aspects are usually analyzed?
A. outputs
B. input (transactions)
C. controls
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

D. All of the above

35. Data Definition Language (DDL):
A. describes how data are structured in the data base
B. specifies for the DBMS what is required; the techniques used to process data
C. determine how data must be structured to produce the user's view
D. All of the above

A. describes how data are structured in the data base