Preparing for your combined Laravel and React software engineering internship interview

involves understanding key concepts in both technologies. Given your experience with React
and PHP, focusing on Laravel's fundamentals will be beneficial. Here are some high-probability
interview questions to guide your preparation:

Laravel Interview Questions:

1. What is Laravel?

o Laravel is an open-source PHP web application framework that follows the

Model-View-Controller (MVC) architectural pattern, providing an elegant syntax
and robust features for web development. usebraintrust.com+1Simplilearn+1

2. Explain the MVC architecture in Laravel.

o MVC stands for Model-View-Controller. In Laravel:

 Model: Manages the data and business logic.

 View: Handles the user interface and presentation.

 Controller: Acts as an intermediary between Model and View, processing

user input and returning responses.

3. What are migrations in Laravel?

o Migrations are version control for your database, allowing you to modify and
share the application's database schema. They help in creating tables, adding
columns, or deleting columns in a structured way. usebraintrust.com

4. What is Eloquent in Laravel?

o Eloquent is Laravel's Object-Relational Mapper (ORM) that provides an easy and

expressive way to interact with the database, allowing developers to work with
database records as PHP objects.
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5. How does Laravel handle validation?

o Laravel provides multiple ways to validate data, including form request

validation, manual validation using the validate method, and the Validator
facade. usebraintrust.com

6. What are service providers in Laravel?

 o Service providers are the central place to configure and bind services into the
Laravel application's service container. They are responsible for bootstrapping all
the framework's various components. usebraintrust.com+1Simplilearn+1

7. What is middleware in Laravel?

o Middleware acts as a filtering mechanism, enabling you to run code before or

after a web request, perfect for tasks like authentication or logging.
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8. How does Laravel handle CSRF protection?

o Laravel uses CSRF tokens in forms to protect against Cross-Site Request Forgery
attacks. The @csrf directive can be used to generate the token in Blade views.
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9. What are facades in Laravel?

o Facades provide a static interface to classes available in the service container,

allowing for more expressive and concise syntax.
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10. Explain the purpose of the artisan command-line tool.

o Artisan is Laravel's command-line tool, assisting in tasks like migrations,

generating boilerplate code, and managing configurations.

React Interview Questions:

1. What is React?

o React is a JavaScript library developed by Facebook for building user interfaces,

primarily for single-page applications. usebraintrust.com

2. What is JSX?

o JSX stands for JavaScript XML. It allows developers to write HTML inside
JavaScript and make it work as JavaScript. usebraintrust.com

3. How does the Virtual DOM work?

o The Virtual DOM is a representation of the actual DOM. When the state of an
object changes, React creates a new Virtual DOM and then compares it with the
previous one, updating only the changed parts in the real DOM.
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4. Explain the component lifecycle in React.

 o React components have several lifecycle methods, such as componentDidMount,
shouldComponentUpdate, and componentWillUnmount, which allow code
execution at specific points in a component's lifecycle.
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5. What are hooks in React?

o Hooks are functions that let you use React features like state and lifecycle
methods from function components. usebraintrust.com

6. What is the Context API in React?

o The Context API allows you to share values (like themes, user authentication)
across component boundaries without passing props down manually.
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7. What are higher-order components (HOCs) in React?

o Higher-order components are functions that take a component and return a new
component, enabling code reuse and abstraction.

8. How does React handle events?

o React uses synthetic events, which are cross-browser wrappers around native
events, providing a consistent API for handling events in React components.
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9. What is prop drilling, and how can it be avoided?

o Prop drilling refers to the process of passing data through multiple levels of
components. It can be avoided using context or state management libraries.
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10. How do you optimize performance in a React application?

o Performance can be optimized by techniques such as code splitting, lazy loading,

memoization using React.memo, and avoiding unnecessary re-renders.

Core PHP Questions:

1. What is PHP, and why is it widely used?

PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor) is a server-side scripting language used primarily for web
development to create dynamic web pages. It's popular for its simplicity, flexibility, and
integration capabilities.

2. What are the differences between PHP 5.x and PHP 7.x?
 o Improved performance (nearly 2x faster)

o New null coalescing operator ??

o Return type declarations

o Scalar type declarations

o Anonymous classes

o Error handling improvements

3. Explain PHP data types.

o Scalar types: integer, float, string, boolean

o Compound types: array, object

o Special types: resource, null

4. How can you handle sessions and cookies in PHP?

o Sessions: Using session_start(), setting values in $_SESSION.

o Cookies: Using setcookie() to store data on client-side.

5. Explain the difference between GET and POST methods in PHP.

o GET: Data sent via URL, limited size (~2KB), not secure.

o POST: Data sent in HTTP message body, unlimited size, more secure.

OOP PHP Questions:

6. What are the four pillars of OOP in PHP?

o Encapsulation (bundling data/methods)

o Inheritance (reusing properties/methods from another class)

o Polymorphism (same method behaving differently in subclasses)

o Abstraction (hiding complex reality by exposing only necessary parts)

7. What is the difference between Abstract class and Interface in PHP?

o Abstract Class: Can contain both abstract methods (without implementation)

and concrete methods.
 o Interface: Only method signatures, no implementations allowed; used for
standardizing class structures.

8. Explain constructor and destructor methods in PHP.

o Constructor (__construct()): Executes when an object is created.

o Destructor (__destruct()): Executes when an object is destroyed or script ends.

Security Questions:

9. How can you prevent SQL injection in PHP?

o Use prepared statements with PDO or MySQLi.

o Sanitize user input using filter_var() and validation.

10. What are common PHP vulnerabilities, and how can they be prevented?

o SQL Injection: Use prepared statements.

o XSS (Cross-Site Scripting): Use htmlspecialchars() and content validation.

o CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery): CSRF tokens.

PHP Framework (Laravel-related) Questions:

11. Explain autoloading in PHP and Composer.

o Autoloading: Automatically loading class files without explicitly including them.

o Composer: Dependency management tool handling PHP libraries and

autoloading (vendor/autoload.php).

12. What is the PSR standard?

o PHP Standard Recommendations: Coding style and interoperability standards for

PHP applications.

PHP Array Questions:

13. What are the different types of arrays in PHP?

o Indexed arrays

o Associative arrays (key-value pairs)

 o Multidimensional arrays

14. Explain PHP array functions frequently used.

o array_push(), array_pop()

o array_merge(), array_combine()

o array_slice(), array_splice()

o array_filter(), array_map()

PHP Functions and Errors:

15. Explain the difference between include, include_once, require, and require_once.

o include: Includes file; warning if missing.

o include_once: Includes once to prevent duplicate inclusion; warning if missing.

o require: Includes file; fatal error if missing.

o require_once: Same as require, but prevents multiple inclusions.

16. Explain PHP error handling techniques.

o Using custom error handlers (set_error_handler())

o Exception handling (try-catch)

o Error reporting settings (error_reporting())

PHP MySQL-related Questions:

17. Explain how you can connect PHP to MySQL.

o Using MySQLi (Procedural/Object-oriented)

o PDO (PHP Data Objects), recommended for its security, flexibility, and database
abstraction.

18. How do prepared statements prevent SQL injection?

o Prepared statements separate SQL code from user input, ensuring data is safely
handled.

PHP Performance and Optimization:

 19. What methods do you use to optimize PHP performance?

o Caching (Redis, Memcached)

o Using efficient queries

o Reducing database calls

o Using OPcache for byte-code caching

20. Explain error handling in PHP.

o Error-handling methods (try-catch blocks).

o Custom error handlers (set_error_handler()).

o Logging errors to files or monitoring systems.

PHP Miscellaneous (Real-world scenario questions):

19. How would you debug a PHP application effectively?

o Use Xdebug, error logging, print debugging (print_r, var_dump), and monitoring
tools.

20. Describe the differences between GET and POST methods.

o GET: Data visible in URL, limited data size.

o POST: Data not visible, better for sensitive information.

Additional Quick Questions (Often Asked in Interviews):

 What is the difference between echo and print?

 What is MVC architecture?

 What is the difference between == and === in PHP?

 Explain traits in PHP.

 How do you implement error handling in PHP?

 What are PHP namespaces?

Example scenario-based PHP question (Commonly asked):

 Question:
“You have a PHP application that’s running slow in production. How do you troubleshoot
and resolve performance issues?”
Suggested Answer:

o Profile with tools like Xdebug.

o Check query optimization (slow queries).

o Enable OpCache.

o Use caching strategies (Redis, Memcached).

PHP Performance and Optimization:

19. What methods do you use to optimize PHP performance?

o Caching (Redis, Memcached)

o Using efficient queries

o Reducing database calls

o Using OPcache for byte-code caching

20. Explain error handling in PHP.

o Error-handling methods (try-catch blocks).

o Custom error handlers (set_error_handler()).

o Logging errors to files or monitoring systems.

PHP Miscellaneous (Real-world scenario questions):

19. How would you debug a PHP application effectively?

o Use Xdebug, error logging, print debugging (print_r, var_dump), and monitoring
tools.

20. Describe the differences between GET and POST methods.

o GET: Data visible in URL, limited data size.

o POST: Data not visible, better for sensitive information.

Additional Quick Questions (Often Asked in Interviews):

 What is the difference between echo and print?

 What is MVC architecture?

 What is the difference between == and === in PHP?

 Explain traits in PHP.

 How do you implement error handling in PHP?

 What are PHP namespaces?

Example scenario-based PHP question (Commonly asked):

 Question:
“You have a PHP application that’s running slow in production. How do you troubleshoot
and resolve performance issues?”
Suggested Answer:

o Profile with tools like Xdebug.

o Check query optimization (slow queries).

o Enable OpCache.

o Use caching strategies (Redis, Memcached).

Laravel-Specific Questions

1. Core Concepts

o Explain Laravel’s MVC architecture. How does it differ from plain PHP?

o What is Eloquent ORM? How does it simplify database operations?

o How do you define routes in Laravel? What’s the difference

between web.php and api.php?

o What is Middleware? Give an example (e.g., authentication).

2. Database & Relationships

o How do you create a migration and define a users table schema?

 o Explain Laravel’s hasMany and belongsTo relationships with an example.

o What are Seeders and Factories? Why are they useful?

3. APIs & Security

o How would you create a RESTful API endpoint in Laravel to fetch data for React?

o How does Laravel handle CSRF protection, and how do you disable it for APIs?

o What is JWT authentication, and how would you implement it in Laravel?

4. Blade Templating

o Can Laravel Blade be used with React? Why or why not? (Hint: React handles the
frontend; Blade is optional.)

React-Specific Questions

1. Core Concepts

o Explain React’s virtual DOM and its advantages.

o What are controlled vs. uncontrolled components? Provide examples.

o How do you manage state in React? Compare useState, Context API, and Redux.

2. Hooks & Lifecycle

o What does useEffect do? How does it replace lifecycle methods

like componentDidMount?

o Create a custom hook to fetch data from an API.

o How do you optimize performance in React (e.g., React.memo, useMemo)?

3. React + API Integration

o How would you connect React to a Laravel backend? (Axios, Fetch API)

o How do you handle CORS issues when integrating React with Laravel?

4. Component Architecture

o How do you pass data from a parent component to a child component?

o What are keys in React lists, and why are they important?
Combined Laravel + React Questions

1. Full-Stack Workflow

o How would you structure a project with React as the frontend and Laravel as the
backend?

o How do you handle form validation in React and send data to Laravel?

2. Authentication

o Explain the flow for implementing login/auth using React (frontend) and Laravel
(backend).

o How do you store and send JWT tokens securely from React to Laravel?

3. Deployment

o How would you deploy a React app with a Laravel backend? (Separate
frontend/backend hosting, CORS setup)

Scenario-Based/Problem-Solving Questions

1. Debugging

o A React component isn’t rendering data fetched from Laravel. How would you
troubleshoot?

 Check network requests (CORS, 404 errors), validate API response

structure.

2. Optimization

o How would you optimize a slow API endpoint in Laravel used by React?

 Eager loading, caching, pagination, or query optimization.

3. Real-Time Features

o How would you implement real-time updates (e.g., notifications) using React and
Laravel?

 Mention Laravel Echo, WebSockets, or Pusher.

Key Tips for Success

 1. Show Enthusiasm to Learn: Admit if you’re new to Laravel but highlight your PHP
experience and willingness to learn.

2. Relate to Your Projects: Use examples from your React/PHP projects to explain concepts
(e.g., state management, API calls).

3. Ask Questions: E.g., “How does your team typically structure React + Laravel projects?”

Final Prep Checklist:

 Review Laravel’s official docs (focus on Eloquent, Routing, Middleware).

 Practice writing React hooks (fetch data, manage forms).

 Understand RESTful API design (HTTP methods, status codes).