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Introduction

The Software Development Life Cycle is a set of well-defined, tried and tested processes or phases that a project has to go through in order to be successful and delivered as per the expectation within the available resources. SDLC requires knowledge of various SDLC phases, tools and techniques that one has to implement as per the need of the project. If you are a beginner, intermediate or experienced professional who is looking out to make your career in SDLC, then this s article on SDLC interview questions is a perfect resource for you as it covers various basic to advanced concepts of SDLC like SDLC methods, i.e., waterfall, spiral, agile models, risk management, scope creep, Scrum, various types of testing, CMM, RAD and various scenario-based questions. This will help you prepare and ace your next interview to build a career in SDLC roles that will provide you with opportunities to manage and drive an entire project and team.

SDLC Interview Questions and Answers for 2025
Beginner

1. What is SDLC?

SDLC stands for Software Development Life Cycle is a set of structured processes and defined phases used for the development of High-Quality Software with defined budget, schedule and resources for meeting or exceeding the Customers expectations. SDLC covers all the phases of Software Development right from start to end. SDLC once defined, it is then documented and shared with the respective teams so as to keep track of the overall project.

2. Explain why do we need SDLC.

Software Development involves various tasks that need to be completed in a well-defined and sequential manner for its successful completion as input of one phase serves as an output for the following phases, also there are multiple teams and people involved in the Software Development, Development of Software requires various inputs from different team which then becomes the output for a different stage/team hence to orchestrate the entire process smoothly we need to follow SDLC

For Example, A Software has to be developed and there are multiple teams working on the project, it is obvious that development cannot be done until requirement gathering is completed and testing cannot be done until development is completed, so to orchestrate the tasks of the team in a manner that each team is able to perform their tasks uninterrupted and with clear set of goals and inputs SDLC is required to be an essential part of the project.

3. What are the different Phases of SDLC?

Expect to come across this popular question in basic SDLC interview questions. DLC mainly has 6 Stages, namely: 

  • Requirement gathering and analysis 
  • Design 
  • Implementation or coding 
  • Testing 
  • Deployment 
  • Maintenance 

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  • Requirement Gathering: 

During this phase all the necessary and relevant information is collected through the customer by meeting them face to face or virtually in order to understand the requirement of the customer, this information gathered will be used to design the product as per customer expectations. Any ambiguities should be addressed in this phase itself. 

  • Design: 

In this phase the requirements gathered are documented in SRS documents and architecture of the software is designed keeping in mind the customer requirements. 

  • Implementation or Coding: 

In this phase the software developer gets the SRS document, and the design is translated into source code. The Application is made executable/ functional in this phase as per customer requirements. 

  • Testing: 

In this phase the software developed in released for testing by the testing team who verifies the application as per customer requirement and reports any issues or ambiguity which are then fixed by developers 

  • Deployment: 

Once the product is tested, it is deployed in the production environment or first UAT (User Acceptance testing) is done depending on the customer expectation. 

In the case of UAT, a replica of the production environment is created and the customer along with the developers does the testing. If the customer finds the application as expected, then sign off is provided by the customer to go live. 

  • Maintenance: 

After the deployment of a product on the production environment, maintenance of the product i.e., if any issue comes up and needs to be fixed or any enhancement is to be done is taken care by the developers. 

4. What are Different Software Development Models?

There are various Software development Life Cycle Models in industry and each one of them has their own pros and cons. Following is the list of different software life cycle models in use: 

  • Waterfall Model 
  • V-Shaped Model 
  • Spiral Model 
  • Prototype Model 
  • Iterative and Incremental Model 
  • Big Bang Model 
  • Agile Model 

5. Why is SDLC important?

SDLC has become as good as a foundation and a pillar for a building without which a building cannot be built, similarly a project cannot be built successfully if there is no proper SDLC defined for it. Below are a few points that highlight the importance of SDLC 

  • It provides a standardized framework that defines activities and deliverables 
  • It aids in project planning, estimating, and scheduling 
  • It makes project tracking and control easier 
  • It increases visibility on all aspects of the life cycle to all stakeholders involved in the development process 
  • It increases the speed of development 
  • It improves client relations 
  • It decreases project risks 
  • It decreases project management expenses and the overall cost of production 

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Top Software Development Life Cycle Interview Tips and Tricks

Software Development Life Cycle interviews offer positions that are mostly related to Managerial and Planning, Strategy Implementation. Professionals in SDLC positions are responsible for the smooth running of Projects that required strong Interpersonal Skills as well as they should be approachable and have Good Problem-Solving Skills. These qualities should reflect in your personality when you go for the interview. Here are some tips and tricks that will help you stand out from the crowd in SDLC interview questions and answers -

  • Always Dress well and look fresh as this will firstly make you feel confident and the interviewer will have a good first impression of your personality.
  • Be confident, clear, and concise in your answers, these are also some of the most sought soft skills in a person for SDLC positions.
  • Highlight your focus on Customer Satisfaction as the end result of your project
  • Be a good listener i.e., listen to the interview attentively and wait for the interviewer to complete before shooting up with your answers as one of the qualities of a manager is that they listen attentively.
  • Never let the interviewer feel that you do not have patience, be polite in your answers.

How to Prepare for an SDLC Interview?

Software Life cycle interview questions are designed for a varied set of roles like previous SDLC interview questions for testers, SDLC interview questions for business analysts etc., hence you need to prepare for your interview based on the role that you appear for. Here are some points which will guide you in your preparation:

  • Prepare according to the role that you are appearing for
  • Get your basics right, and prepare for topics like interview questions on the waterfall model, agile SDLC model interview questions, SDLC methodologies interview questions etc.
  • Practice answering common SDLC life cycle interview questions
  • Read case studies related to various projects and how SDLC was executed for those projects, this will help you prepare for scenario-based SDLC questions and answers

SDLC Job Roles

  • Business Analyst
  • Assistant Project Manager
  • Project Manager
  • Scrum Master
  • Program Manager
  • Senior Program Manager.

Prepare well with these SDLC interview questions and answers and ace your next interview at organizations like:

  • Accenture
  • Infosys
  • JPMorgan Chase
  • TCS
  • Hexaware technologies

We firmly believe that these questions on the software development life cycle will help you confidently face your upcoming interviews. If you are looking for certifications in software development, then you can enroll in our Software Development certification.

What to Expect in an SDLC Interview?

SDLC interviews will mostly revolve around SDLC and STLC interview questions. The interviewer will try to assess your personality and way of approaching and solving a problem, your communication skills, and your leadership qualities. The interview will start with questions like Tell me something about yourself and your projects.

After the interviewer has an idea of you and your experience, he/she will then ask you SDLC basic interview questions, will try to find out how you have managed various projects by asking scenario-based questions and at the end the interviewer will conclude by giving you a chance to ask any questions related to the job role, organization ad will be happy to answer and your questions and doubts.

Summary

The software development life cycle is an essential part of a Software Development Project as it lays down the entire structure of how the project is to be executed and what are its phases. As we have already read in this blog SDLC has various models and each model has its own pros and cons and should be used as per the requirement and nature of the project.

Professionals looking for roles in SDLC have a huge demand as every software-based organization, be it small, mid, or large size needs these professionals for the management of their project. Every business and organization in software development or wants to develop software will focus on an optimized SDLC plan for its successful implementation and for this, they will require good Project/Program Managers, Scrum Master.

This blog will help you ace your interview by helping you prepare for interview questions on SDLC and STLC with answers whether you are looking for a fresher role or are an experienced professional we have curated this article for all levels of Interviews. Along with traditional Interview questions we have also prepared questions on trending topics like agile SDLC interview questions and role-specific questions like SDLC interview questions for testers. Learners must check out top Programming certifications offered by KnowledgeHut to upskill themselves in the field of software development. We wish you the best of luck for your upcoming interviews and may you excel in your career.

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