ASML interview, from the recorded video to the on-site culture round.
Updated · Sources at the end
ASML builds the lithography machines that chipmakers use to print patterns on silicon, and its machines run on software written by thousands of engineers. Many candidates meet ASML first through a recorded HireVue video: a few behavioural and motivation prompts, answered to a camera, with one attempt at each. Candidates for software roles then report a technical interview with engineers from the team, which can be a one-hour conversation about your past work or a longer session where you should be ready to code.
ASML's own interview page describes the rest. The first interview is usually virtual, with the hiring manager and a team member, on your education, experience and motivation. Before the second interview you may get a talent exploration questionnaire, which ASML says is only a conversation starter. The second interview usually takes place on-site and focuses on your drivers, your ambitions and how you match ASML's culture. Some candidates have a third interview with HR, and ASML says you should generally hear back within five working days.
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Who ASML hires
ASML is headquartered in Veldhoven in the Netherlands and had more than 44,500 employees in July 2026. It reported €32.7 billion of net sales and €9.6 billion of net income for 2025, and now expects 2026 sales between €43 billion and €45 billion. Around 3,000 software engineers work there, in embedded software for the machines' mechatronic modules and sensors, scanner metrology, and applications software for customers, using C, C++, C#, Java, Python and MATLAB. Software roles sit in Veldhoven and Eindhoven, in San Jose and San Diego in California, Wilton in Connecticut and Hillsboro in Oregon, and in Asia, including Hsinchu in Taiwan. ASML asks for a bachelor's degree or higher, good English and strong communication, and prefers work in person. In January 2026 it announced a net reduction of around 1,700 positions, mostly leadership roles in its Technology and IT organisations in the Netherlands, while it keeps creating engineering roles. Beyond software, it hires field service and support engineers for customer fabs and cleanroom technicians in Veldhoven. On 5 October 2026 its careers site listed 610 jobs and 41 internships.
ASML uses the same official interview steps for most jobs, but what the technical part tests depends on the track. Software is the focus of this guide; its customer support and manufacturing technicians are hired in large numbers too, and their interviews lean on hands-on troubleshooting.
Track · Software
Software engineers
Often a HireVue video, then a technical interview with engineers from the team, from a one-hour talk about your past work to a longer session where you code, then the on-site culture interview.
Track · Early careers
Interns and graduates
Internships and graduation assignments at Veldhoven, plus the Gateway Program and a Management Traineeship for new graduates. Interns report a HireVue with three or four video questions, then a second interview with the team.
Track · Customer Support
Field service and support engineers
Over 9,500 engineers keep more than 5,000 ASML machines running in customer fabs, on shifts and on call. Candidates report a final panel of about an hour, mostly technical, and in Seoul several interviews with supervisors that went deep on theory. Months of training follow, at centres in the Netherlands, Taiwan, China and South Korea.
Track · Manufacturing
Assembler technicians, Veldhoven
Cleanroom assembly, integration and testing on two shifts. ASML asks for a vocational qualification at Dutch MBO level 3 or 4 and two years of hands-on mechanical, electrical or mechatronic work, and matches you to a team after one application.
What is the ASML interview process?
The interviews below are ASML's own, from its interview tips page. The video round and the technical detail come from candidate reports from 2024 to 2026, marked as reported. The exact order varies by team and country.
A degree in software engineering, computer science or a related field, good English and communication. Physics and maths backgrounds are welcome in software, ASML says.
Reported as three or four video prompts about you, your experience and why ASML, sometimes with a few written questions on logistics such as start dates. Behavioural and motivation questions, with no technical content reported.
Reported, many rolesYour education, experience and motivation, in ASML's words. Software candidates report this as the technical round: one described an hour with two engineers on backend work and Java.
One software design candidate was told only that it would be technical and to be ready to code. Candidates report C++ memory management, debugging, object-oriented design and concurrency in Python or C++.
Some software rolesA field service candidate for EUV in Malta, New York, in February 2026 reported a final panel of about an hour, mostly technical, and advised studying how EUV machines work. A Seoul candidate described several detailed interviews with supervisors, deep on technical theory.
Field service, reportedASML says it is used purely as a conversation starter for the second interview. Answer it honestly and expect to discuss it.
Your drivers, your ambitions and how you match ASML's culture. Expect questions on how you work with other disciplines and on what you want to do next.
The offer comes from HR. ASML says feedback generally arrives within five working days, and it gives feedback if you are not selected.
ASML HireVue interview: what to expect
From candidate reports, 2024 to 2026Many ASML candidates, from interns to experienced engineers, start with a recorded HireVue video. ASML's own interview page does not describe it, so everything here is reported by candidates.
- How many questions: Reported as three video questions in several cases, and three or four for internships, sometimes with written questions as well. One internship candidate in 2026 had three video and seven written questions.
- One attempt: A Veldhoven software candidate in 2026 reported one attempt per prompt and a short preparation time, about 30 minutes in all. Another reported having all the time needed to answer, so read the instructions on your invitation.
- What they ask: Questions about you, your experience and your motivation, with no technical content reported. Prepare a short answer to why ASML, a project you are proud of, and a time you worked in a team.
- The written part: Internship candidates report written questions on basic logistics, such as dates and location. Answer them precisely.
- Talking to a camera: Candidates found it unusual to answer a camera instead of a person. Practise answering aloud in about two minutes, looking at the lens.
Calibrd's mock interview can rehearse recorded answers aloud: practise the why-ASML and project answers until they fit in two minutes.
What ASML screens for
ASML names three core values, challenge, collaborate and care, and its interview page and job ads say what else it looks for.
- Challenge: questioning the status quo and daring to try what others say can't be done
- Collaborate: working with customers, partners and colleagues from other disciplines
- Care: acting with integrity and respect, aware of your impact beyond your own work
- Clear drivers and ambitions, the focus of the second interview
- Solid fundamentals in the language the team uses, often C++, C# or Python
ASML interview questions
Candidate-reported themesThese practice questions follow the rounds ASML describes and the topics candidates reported from 2024 to 2026. They are written in our own words.
Behavioural & motivation
- Why ASML, and why this team?Listening for: Specificity · Connection · Research
- Tell me about a time you questioned the way something was done and changed it.Listening for: What you saw · Making the case · The result
- Describe a project where you worked closely with people from another discipline, such as mechanical engineers or physicists.Listening for: The gap · How you bridged it · The outcome
- What drives you, and where do you want to be in five years?Listening for: An honest driver · A direction · Why here
Technical
- Practice: a long-running C++ service that controls a machine module crashes with a segmentation fault after several hours. Walk through how you would find the cause, and how you would change the code so it can't happen again.C++ memory and debugging: Reported for ASML software engineers in 2026: smart pointers, memory leaks, segmentation faults in older codeListening for: Finding it · Likely causes · A lasting fix
- Practice: design the classes for a set of sensors on a machine. Each sensor type reads data differently, some need calibration, and you want to test the control software without real hardware.Object-oriented design for hardware: Reported topic: object-oriented design for hardware interfacesListening for: A clean interface · Testable without hardware · Room to change
- Practice: one thread reads measurements from a sensor at a fixed rate, and another processes them. Write the hand-off between them, and explain what happens when processing falls behind.Concurrency: Reported topics: multithreaded Python and real-time controlListening for: Thread safety · When it falls behind · Language details
- Practice: walk two engineers through a backend problem you solved. What was slow or broken, what you changed, and how you knew it worked.Your own past work: Reported for a software engineer in Eindhoven, May 2026: an hour with two engineers on backend work and JavaListening for: The context · Your choices · Proof it worked
- Practice: a module on a machine in a customer's fab stops with a vacuum fault during production. The customer wants it running again as fast as possible. Walk through what you check, in what order, and when you call for help.Hands-on troubleshooting: For field service and technician roles: ASML's field service ads ask you to troubleshoot optics, lasers, vacuum systems and electronics from schematicsListening for: Safety first · A logical order · Escalating and reporting
These are the reported themes, and your loop is role-specific. Paste the actual posting and Calibrd predicts the questions for that exact role and level.
Predict my ASML questions →Pay
US figures are base pay posted in ASML's San Jose and Austin job ads, read 5 October 2026; some US ads, such as an embedded role in Wilton, show no range. Netherlands figures are yearly total pay from Levels.fyi's ASML software engineer data, read 5 October 2026, which also shows stock vesting over three years. The Veldhoven technician range is posted in ASML's own ad; ASML does not post pay ranges for its Dutch software roles.
How to prepare for an ASML interview
- Prepare three short spoken answers before the HireVue: why ASML, a project you are proud of, and a time you worked in a team.
- Ask the recruiter how long the technical interview is and whether you will code; reports range from one hour to two and a half.
- Refresh the fundamentals of your main language: memory and pointers in C++, copying and threads in Python, or the .NET stack for C# roles.
- Practise designing classes for hardware you can't touch, with simulated parts for testing.
- Prepare to talk about your drivers and ambitions, the focus of ASML's on-site second interview.
- Field service and technician candidates: learn the basics of how ASML's machines work, and practise talking through a fault from symptom to fix in a clear order.
- Check the shift, on-call and cleanroom lines in technician ads before you apply; field service roles can run nights and weekends.
- For US roles, check the export control line in the ad: some roles require authorisation to access controlled technology before you start.
This guide covers ASML's software engineering interviews in the Netherlands and the US, for experienced hires, new graduates and interns, and gives a shorter view of field service and manufacturing technician hiring, which follows the same official steps with hands-on technical rounds. For management and leadership roles the loop is similar but the bar shifts to people, delivery and strategy, so pair it with the leadership interview prep hub. The bar for your exact role comes from the role-by-role guides, and the prep that actually transfers is spoken, so run a mock interview before the real one.
Also interviewing at Arm, Cerebras or TSMC? Their guides follow the same format, from the first screen to the offer.
Knowing the questions isn’t the same as answering them out loud. Run an ASML mock: spoken answers, coached on the spot. Your first mock is free.
Run an ASML mock →FAQ & sources
What is ASML's interview process?
The video round and the technical detail come from candidate reports from 2024 to 2026, marked as reported. The stages, in order: Application review; HireVue video; First interview; Technical interview; Technical panel; Talent exploration questionnaire; Second interview; HR interview and offer.
What does ASML look for in candidates?
ASML names three core values, challenge, collaborate and care, and its interview page and job ads say what else it looks for. Challenge; Collaborate; Care; Clear drivers and ambitions, the focus of the second interview.
What questions does ASML ask in interviews?
These practice questions follow the rounds ASML describes and the topics candidates reported from 2024 to 2026. Technical themes: C++ memory and debugging; Object-oriented design for hardware; Concurrency; Your own past work; Hands-on troubleshooting.
What is the ASML HireVue interview like?
Many ASML candidates, from interns to experienced engineers, start with a recorded HireVue video. ASML's own interview page does not describe it, so everything here is reported by candidates. Covered on this page: How many questions; One attempt; What they ask; The written part; Talking to a camera.
How do I prepare for an ASML interview?
Prepare three short spoken answers before the HireVue: why ASML, a project you are proud of, and a time you worked in a team. Ask the recruiter how long the technical interview is and whether you will code; reports range from one hour to two and a half.
- 01ASML, interview tipsthe first, second and HR interviews, the talent exploration questionnaire, the on-site second interview and feedback within five working days, read 5 October 2026.
- 02ASML, software engineering careersaround 3,000 software engineers, the languages, the main software areas, requirements and the in-person policy, read 5 October 2026.
- 03ASML, Byte-sized engineering (February 2024)over 4,000 software engineers from over 100 nationalities, and hires from physics and maths.
- 04ASML, vision and missionthe values challenge, collaborate and care, read 5 October 2026.
- 05ASML, 2025 results (28 January 2026)€32.7 billion net sales and €9.6 billion net income in 2025.
- 06ASML, strengthening focus on engineering and innovation (28 January 2026)a net reduction of around 1,700 positions, mostly leadership roles in Technology and IT, and new engineering jobs.
- 07ASML, Q2 2026 results (15 July 2026)€9.3 billion of quarterly sales, the €43 to €45 billion outlook for 2026 and more than 44,500 employees.
- 08ASML, find your job610 jobs and 41 internships listed on 5 October 2026.
- 09ASML, Sr. Software Engineer, San Josethe $183,200 to $251,900 base range and 10 to 15 years' experience, read 5 October 2026.
- 10ASML, Principal Software Engineer, systems software, San Josethe $202,000 to $277,750 base range, read 5 October 2026.
- 11ASML, Senior Software Quality Assurance Engineer, San Josethe $140,250 to $210,375 base range, read 5 October 2026.
- 12ASML, Embedded Software Engineer, Wiltonthe US software sites, C and C++ with Python, and the export control requirement, read 5 October 2026.
- 13ASML, working in Customer Supportover 9,500 customer support engineers, more than 5,000 machines, months of training and the training centres, read 5 October 2026.
- 14ASML, Field Service Engineer, Hillsborohigh school education, three years of field service, night shifts, cleanroom work and troubleshooting optics, lasers, vacuum and electronics, read 5 October 2026.
- 15ASML, Field Service Engineer, Austin$27 to $37 an hour, five years with electronics, on call for nights and weekends, read 5 October 2026.
- 16ASML, Assembler Technician, VeldhovenMBO level 3 or 4, two shifts, €47,500 to €53,500 plus profit sharing and shift allowance, one application matched to a team, read 5 October 2026.
- 17Glassdoor, ASML field service engineer interviewsan EUV field service candidate in Malta, New York (February 2026): a final panel of about an hour, mostly technical.
- 18Glassdoor, ASML field service engineer (FSE) interviewsa Seoul candidate (March 2026): interactive, detailed interviews with supervisors, deep on technical theory.
- 19Levels.fyi, ASML software engineer pay in the Netherlandstotal pay by level and three-year stock vesting, read 5 October 2026.
- 20PracHub, ASML single-attempt HireVue (Veldhoven, published 4 September 2026)one attempt per prompt, short preparation, about 30 minutes, questions about the candidate.
- 21PracHub, ASML HireVue and backend interview (Eindhoven, May 2026)a video assessment, then an hour with two engineers on backend work and Java, and an offer a week later.
- 22PracHub, ASML software engineer interview guide (2026)reported topics: C++ memory management, debugging, object-oriented design for hardware, multithreaded Python.
- 23Glassdoor, ASML interviews59.7% positive experiences, difficulty 2.92 out of 5, and a three-question HireVue (Phoenix, January 2026), read 5 October 2026.
- 24Reddit, a 2.5 hour software design interview (2024)told only that it would be technical and to be prepared to code.
- 25Reddit, ASML HireVue for an internship (2026)three video and seven written questions.
- 26Reddit, internship interview time frame (2025)three or four video questions and a few written logistics questions, then a second interview.
Interview processes change. This reflects widely-reported and sourced conditions as of 2026 — confirm specifics with your recruiter, and treat it as a map rather than a guarantee.
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