Table of contents

53 GD&T interview questions to ask professionals

 18 general GD&T interview questions to ask professionals
 5 general GD&T interview questions and answers
 30 GD&T interview questions about technical definitions
 5 GD&T interview questions and answers about technical definitions
 5 GD&T interview questions and answers about processes and
situations
 7 tips for using GD&T interview questions
 ✅ Use skills testing to hire the best engineers
18 general GD&T interview questions to ask professionals
Ask interviewees some of these 18 general GD&T interview questions
to evaluate their knowledge of critical GD&T terms, processes, and
standards.
1. Explain what GD&T means.
2. Explain why GD&T is essential.
3. When should you use GD&T?
4. Name five different examples of GD&T tolerances.
5. Name five different examples of modifiers in GD&T.
6. Which skills do engineers working with GD&T need?
7. Which soft skills do engineers working with GD&T need?
8. Which skills do you need to improve?
9. How is dimensional tolerance different from geometric tolerance?
10. What is ASME Y14.5?
11. Name the main orientation tolerances.
12. Name the main profile tolerances.
13. Name the main form tolerances.
14. Name the main location tolerances.
15. Name the main runout tolerances.
16. Explain what geometry is.
17. Explain what dimension means.
18. What is the total number of GD&T symbols?
5 general GD&T interview questions and answers
Here are the answers to five of the general GD&T interview questions
to help you gauge your interviewees' knowledge and assess their
responses.

1. Which skills do engineers working with GD&T need?

Your applicants should know that Geometric dimensioning &

tolerancing knowledge is essential for engineers working with GD&T.
Can they also name a few sub-skills required to work as a GD&T
engineer, such as datum referencing knowledge and symbology? Can
they show that they have these skills and give examples of projects
where they have used them?

2. What is ASME Y14.5?

Candidates should know that ASME is the American Society of

Mechanical Engineers, while ASME Y14.5 is the organization’s standard
for the rules, definitions, requirements, symbols, and best practices of
GD&T.

They should be able to explain that there are several ASME standards
and that engineers should know these standards confidently.

Can they also clarify that the ASME standards are updated at intervals
of approximately 10 years?
 3. What is the total number of GD&T symbols?

Do your applicants know that there are 14 types of GD&T symbols?

Can they give a few examples of the symbols, such as the profile of a
line or the profile of a surface?

4. Which soft skills do engineers working with GD&T need?

Skilled applicants should know that visual attention to detail is critical

for engineers working with GD&T. They should also know that strong
collaboration and communication skills are also essential for
engineering roles.

5. Explain why GD&T is essential.

Can your candidates explain that GD&T is vital for the design process
of mechanical products? Are they aware that GD&T helps maintain
precision and accuracy in the design of mechanical products?

Candidates should also know that GD&T allows engineers to define the
nominal geometry of parts and assemblies.

30 GD&T interview questions about technical definitions

Ask your interviewees some of these 30 GD&T interview questions
about technical definitions to reliably assess their skills and knowledge.

1. Explain what straightness is.

2. Explain what flatness is.
3. Explain the main difference between straightness and flatness.
4. Explain what circularity is.
5. Explain what cylindricity is.
6. Explain the main difference between circularity and cylindricity.
7. Explain what the profile of the line means.
8. Explain what the profile of the surface means.
9. Explain why profile control tolerances are essential in GD&T.
10. Explain what LMC means.
11. Explain what MMC means.
12. Explain what feature control frames are.
13. Explain what the tolerance zone is for perpendicular tolerance in
GD&T.
14. Explain what virtual conditions are in GD&T.
15. Explain what form of control is in GD&T.
16. Explain what unilateral tolerance is.
17. Explain what bilateral tolerance is.
18. Explain what geometric tolerance is.
19. Describe the symbol used to indicate straightness.
20. Describe the symbol used to indicate flatness.
21. Describe the symbol used to indicate circularity.
22. Describe the symbol used to indicate perpendicularity.
23. Describe the symbol used to indicate parallelism.
24. Describe the symbol used to indicate concentricity.
25. Describe the symbol used to indicate symmetry.
26. Describe the symbol used to indicate the profile of a surface.
27. Describe the symbol used to indicate angularity.
28. Describe the symbol used to indicate a circular runout.
29. Describe the symbol used to indicate total runout.
30. Describe the symbol used to indicate the profile of a line.

5 GD&T interview questions and answers about technical definitions

Here are the answers to five of the GD&T interview questions about
technical definitions from the list above.

Use them to evaluate the thoroughness of your candidates’ responses.

1. Explain what MMC means.

Can your candidates explain that MMC means “maximum material

condition”? Can they demonstrate that MMC is a condition where a
feature contains the largest amount of material within the size limits?

2. Explain what LMC means.

Applicants should know that LMC means the “least material condition”.
They should be able to explain that LMC refers to a condition where a
feature contains the smallest amount of material within the size limits.

3. Explain what the tolerance zone is for perpendicular tolerance in GD&T.

Do your applicants know that the tolerance zone for perpendicular

tolerance either refers to parallel surfaces that run perpendicular to a
datum plane or a cylinder boundary that surrounds a true axis?

Can they explain that controlled surface points should lie inside the
tolerance zone and that for axes, the points must lie inside the
cylindrical boundary?

4. Describe the symbol used to indicate parallelism.

Applicants should know that the symbol used to indicate parallelism

shows two parallel lines angled slightly to the left with a small space
between them. They may also explain that the lines in this symbol are
the same length.

5. Describe the symbol used to indicate symmetry.

Your candidates should know that the symbol used to indicate

symmetry has three horizontal lines. The symbol features one long line
 in the center of two shorter lines, which are equidistant from the long
line in the middle.

5 GD&T interview questions and answers about processes and situations

Ask your interviewees these five GD&T interview questions about

processes and situations, and use the answers below to assess your
candidates’ responses.

1. How would you measure perpendicular tolerance?

Can your applicants explain a few methods engineers can use to

measure perpendicular tolerance? They may provide the following
examples when responding to this question:

 Use a surface gauge and a square ruler block

 Use a VMM or CMM machine
 Use a dial gauge

2. When would you use runout tolerance?

Your applicants should know that engineers use runout tolerance when
they need to control the entire cylindrical or circular feature variation
as the part rotates around the datum axis.

Applicants may also explain that engineers use total runout and
circular runout for rotating shafts, including vehicle axles and engine
transmission parts.
 3. For which GD&T tolerances would you use the datum plane?

Can your applicants explain that a few tolerances require a datum

plane? Knowledgeable applicants may list the following examples of
tolerances engineers use in this instance:

** add a graph

 Symmetry
 Concentricity
 Total runout
 Circular runout
 Position control
 Parallelism
 Angularity
 Perpendicularity

4. When would you use MMC in GD&T?

Applicants should know that engineers can use MMC in GD&T to gain
extra tolerance. Can your applicants also explain that engineers
frequently use MMC during clearance fits or to indicate the mating
parts’ tolerance?

5. Which skills would you use to measure perpendicular tolerance?

Do your candidates know that visual attention to detail is vital for

measuring perpendicular tolerance? Knowledge of particular tools,
such as dial gauges and VMM machines, is also essential. Can they
show they have the required attention to detail and understanding of
the tools necessary to measure perpendicular tolerance?
 7 tips for using GD&T interview questions

Below, you’ll see our seven tips for using the GD&T interview questions
from this article.

Review them before you start interviewing your applicants.

1. Send skill assessment invitations after sourcing candidates and before

interviews

We recommend using skills tests early on in the recruitment process,

right after you receive candidates’ applications to your job listing.

If you choose TestGorilla as your skill assessment platform, you can

invite applicants to take a skills assessment (consisting of up to five
tests) with a single click. You can also integrate the platform with your
own ATS or simply copy the link and send it to applicants via email.

Make sure you’ve included the GD&T test as part of the assessment to
evaluate applicants’ technical knowledge.

2. Use general interview questions to get the ball rolling

Before you begin with GD&T interview questions related to technical

definitions, get the ball rolling by asking a few general questions. This
will help you make your candidates feel more at ease and will give you
information on their background and motivation.

Some of the following questions are good options to learn more about
applicants early in the interview:

 What made you apply for this position?

 Talk about your GD&T and design engineering skills.
 How do you make sure to keep your GD&T skills and knowledge up-to-
date?
 Describe your engineering career so far.

3. Give candidates more information about the open role

Now’s the time to expand on the information you’ve given applicants in

the job ad. Give more details about the role and explain some of the
projects your team has been working on.

4. Avoid unstructured interviews and closed-ended questions

Unstructured interviews can lead to unconscious bias because they

leave a lot of room for small talk. If you want to ensure that evaluating
your applicants’ responses is straightforward and unbiased, use a
structured interviewing approach.
It’s also a good idea to use specific open-ended questions. For
example, don’t ask, “Have you used VMM machines before?” and ask,
“Describe your experience or knowledge of VMM machines if you have
used them.” With open-ended questions, you’re more likely to get
detailed answers from your applicants.

5. Record candidates’ responses by taking notes and using scoresheets

The notes you take can jog your memory when reviewing your
applicants’ responses. Use scoresheets to make your job easier and
collect data from your applicants when they respond to your GD&T
interview questions.
6. Give good news to the best candidate and feedback to silver medallists

Next on your agenda is to review all the data you have collected and
give the good news to the candidate who meets all your requirements.

At the same time, you should try to give helpful feedback to silver
medallists. For example, if their datum referencing knowledge didn’t
shine through on this occasion, use their skill assessment results to
provide them with helpful advice on the ways they can improve.

This approach enhances the candidate experience and your reputation

as an employer.

7. Put together a training and onboarding schedule

Your new hire is now ready to join your team. Ensure that you put
together an appropriate training and onboarding schedule to make
onboarding as easy as possible.
For the training schedule, you can take your new hire’s skill
assessment results into account and plan accordingly. For instance, if
your new hire didn’t know all GD&T best practices, make sure you
include a section in your training schedule that helps them refresh
their knowledge.

You’ll also know your new hire’s strongest skills: Consult the skill
assessment to see in which areas they don’t need additional training.
 Hire the best engineers using our GD&T interview questions

Even though hiring engineers can be difficult due to the complexity of

the role and the many skills you must assess, the recruitment process
doesn’t need to be complicated.

The best way to hire engineers is to use a skill assessment like the
GD&T test by TestGorilla, along with the right interview questions.

Remember, when hiring engineers, follow the two steps below:

 Use skill-testing in the early stages of the hiring process

 Use skill test results to identify the best candidates and invite them to
an interview
This way, you’ll find out whether your applicants have the right GD&T
knowledge you need. Use GD&T interview questions and our skills tests
to hire a professional who fits your requirements. Sign up for a
TestGorilla free plan.