8 Syneos Health SQL Interview Questions (Updated 2024)
At Syneos Health, SQL is essential for analyzing clinical trial data for pharmaceutical studies, helping to assess the effectiveness and safety of new treatments. It is also used for managing patient data for healthcare research, ensuring that findings are based on accurate and reliable information, that is why Syneos Health includes SQL questions in interviews for Data Science, Data Engineering, and Data Analytics jobs.
So, to help you practice, here’s 8 Syneos Health SQL interview questions – able to solve them?
8 Syneos Health SQL Interview Questions
SQL Question 1: Identifying Power Users for Syneos Health
Syneos Health, a company specializing in biopharmaceutical solutions, has an interest in identifying their power users, defined as customers who have scheduled the highest number of physician appointments in a given month. Write an SQL query to find for each month, the user who has scheduled the most appointments.
Example Input:
| appointment_id | user_id | appointment_date | physician_id |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1231 | 345 | 06/02/2022 00:00:00 | 11101 |
| 2342 | 567 | 06/03/2022 00:00:00 | 12202 |
| 5678 | 345 | 06/07/2022 00:00:00 | 4569 |
| 8652 | 345 | 06/10/2022 00:00:00 | 78227 |
| 4069 | 567 | 06/15/2022 00:00:00 | 92565 |
Example Input:
| user_id | username | |
|---|---|---|
| 345 | michael45 | michael45@example.com |
| 567 | linda78 | linda78@example.com |
Example Output:
| month | year | power_user_id | username | num_of_appointments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 2022 | 345 | "michael45" | 3 |
Answer:
In this query, we use a common table expression (CTE) to count the number of appointments made by each user for each month. Next, we take this count and find the max count for each month using another CTE. This represents the maximum number of appointments made by any user in that month. Finally, we join our two CTEs with the users table to fetch the user details of users who have made the max appointments in any month.
To work on a similar customer analytics SQL question where you can solve it right in the browser and have your SQL query instantly graded, try this Walmart Labs SQL Interview Question:
Explore the fascinating insights on artificial intelligence from Syneos Health and see how AI is reshaping the healthcare industry! This knowledge can help you appreciate the innovative approaches that companies like Syneos Health are taking to enhance patient care.
SQL Question 2: Employees Earning More Than Their Boss
Given a table of Syneos Health employee salary data, write a SQL query to find all employees who make more money than their direct manager.
Syneos Health Example Input:
| employee_id | name | salary | department_id | manager_id |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emma Thompson | 3800 | 1 | |
| 2 | Daniel Rodriguez | 2230 | 1 | 10 |
| 3 | Olivia Smith | 8000 | 1 | 8 |
| 4 | Noah Johnson | 6800 | 2 | 8 |
| 5 | Sophia Martinez | 1750 | 1 | 10 |
| 8 | William Davis | 7000 | 2 | NULL |
| 10 | James Anderson | 4000 | 1 | NULL |
Example Output:
| employee_id | employee_name |
|---|---|
| 3 | Olivia Smith |
This is the output because Olivia Smith earns $8,000, surpassing her manager, William Davis who earns 7,800.
Try this question interactively on DataLemur:
Answer:
First, we perform a SELF-JOIN where we treat the first table () as the managers' table and the second table () as the employees' table. Then we use a clause to filter the results, ensuring we only get employees whose salaries are higher than their manager's salary.
If the code above is hard to understand, you can find a step-by-step solution with hints here: Employee Salaries Higher Than Their Manager.
SQL Question 3: What is the purpose of a primary key in a database?
The primary key of a table is a column or combination of columns that serves to uniquely identify each row in the table. To define a primary key in a SQL database, you can use the constraint.
For instance, consider a table of :
In this example, the column is the primary key of the Syneos Health employees table.
Primary keys are important in databases for several reasons:
- Uniqueness: A primary key is used to uniquely identify each row in a table. This means that no two rows in the table can have the same primary key value. This is important because it helps to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the data in the table.
- Non-nullability: A primary key is typically defined as a non-null column, which means that it cannot contain a null value. This helps to ensure that every row in the table has a unique identifier.
- Relationship-building: Primary keys are often used to establish relationships between tables in a database. For example, you might use a primary key to link the table to the table.
SQL Question 4: Calculate average monthly patient visit for each hospital
Suppose Syneos Health wants to track the average monthly patient visits for each participating hospital over the past year. The numbers are based on the data from the table, which has the following format:
Example Input:
| visit_id | hospital_id | visit_date | patient_id |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1001 | 221 | 2021-01-15 | 40001 |
| 1002 | 321 | 2021-01-21 | 40002 |
| 1003 | 221 | 2021-02-10 | 40001 |
| 1004 | 321 | 2022-02-15 | 40003 |
| 1005 | 221 | 2022-02-16 | 40001 |
| 1006 | 421 | 2022-04-20 | 40004 |
| 1007 | 321 | 2022-05-13 | 40004 |
| 1008 | 421 | 2022-05-19 | 40005 |
| 1009 | 221 | 2022-07-13 | 40003 |
| 1010 | 221 | 2022-08-08 | 40002 |
SQL Question 4A:
Write a SQL query to calculate the average number of visits per month for each hospital.
Answer:
This query uses Window function , which counts the number of patient visits for each hospital in each month. Result is ordered by hospital_id and visit date for convenience.
SQL Question 4B:
To make this more insightful, write a SQL query to Calculate average number of monthly visits for each hospital over the past year.
Answer:
This query first uses a subquery to create a temporary table similar to the output we had in our previous question. Then it calculates the average monthly visits for each hospital using the function. The clause in the subquery is used to limit the data to the past year.
For more window function practice, solve this Uber SQL Interview Question within DataLemur's interactive SQL code editor:
SQL Question 5: How does differ from ?
Both and are used to combine the results of two or more SELECT statements into a single result set.
However, only includes one instance of a duplicate, whereas includes duplicates.
SQL Question 6: Calculate Average Duration of Clinical Trials
Syneos Health is a multinational contract research organization that specializes in clinical trials, among other things. As a database administrator for Syneos Health, you've been asked to calculate the average duration of completed clinical trials by therapeutic area for the past year.
Example Input:
| trial_id | start_date | end_date | therapeutic_area |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5021 | 01/02/2021 | 13/05/2021 | Cardiology |
| 3678 | 03/04/2021 | 05/07/2021 | Oncology |
| 6543 | 09/06/2021 | 12/10/2021 | Cardiology |
| 7823 | 12/09/2021 | 15/12/2021 | Endocrinology |
| 8067 | 01/01/2021 | 31/12/2021 | Neurology |
Example Output:
| therapeutic_area | avg_duration_months |
|---|---|
| Cardiology | 5.00 |
| Oncology | 3.00 |
| Endocrinology | 3.00 |
| Neurology | 12.00 |
Answer:
In this query, we use PostgreSQL's and functions to calculate the duration of each completed trial in months, and the function to compute the average trial duration for each therapeutic area. The clause filters the data to include only trials that started in 2021 and have already ended.
To practice a very similar question try this interactive CVS Health Pharmacy Analytics (Part 1) Question which is similar for 'calculating and grouping by attributes' or this Amazon Average Review Ratings Question which is similar for 'grouping by periods and calculating averages'.
SQL Question 7: Can you list the various types of joins in SQL, and describe their purposes?
In SQL, a join is used to combine rows from different tables based on a shared key or set of keys, resulting in a single merged table of data.
There are four distinct types of JOINs: , , , and .
(INNER) JOIN: Retrieves records that have matching values in both tables involved in the join.
LEFT (OUTER) JOIN: Retrieves all the records/rows from the left and the matched records/rows from the right table.
RIGHT (OUTER) JOIN: Retrieves all the records/rows from the right and the matched records/rows from the left table.
FULL (OUTER) JOIN: Retrieves all the records where there is a match in either the left or right table.
SQL Question 8: Filter Customer Records at Syneos Health
Consider you are working at Syneos Health, a multinational contract research organization, like a data analyst. Your manager asks you to filter the patient records with specific conditions as per the department's need. You have a table named with columns , , and . All patient's names beginning with 'A' or 'a' are interested in the Pharmacy department for a new drug trial. Can you fetch these records using the SQL query?
Example Input:
| patient_id | patient_name | disease |
|---|---|---|
| 4567 | Andrew Smith | Diabetes |
| 8745 | Anna Johnson | Hypertension |
| 9562 | Bill Gates | Asthma |
| 5624 | Allison Green | Obesity |
| 5493 | Ben Foster | Hypertension |
Answer:
We can use the SQL keyword to filter the desired records. The keyword allows us to use wildcards where matches any sequence of characters and makes a case-insensitive search.
This SQL query to fetch all the patient records whose name begins with 'A' or 'a'. The function is used to take care of case insensitivity. The symbol '%' after 'a' means any series of characters. It will return these records:
Expected Output:
| patient_id | patient_name | disease |
|---|---|---|
| 4567 | Andrew Smith | Diabetes |
| 8745 | Anna Johnson | Hypertension |
| 5624 | Allison Green | Obesity |
Syneos Health SQL Interview Tips
The best way to prepare for a Syneos Health SQL interview is to practice, practice, practice. Besides solving the above Syneos Health SQL interview questions, you should also solve the 200+ DataLemur interview questions which come from companies like tech companies and healthcare and pharmaceutical companies like Syneos Health.
Each exercise has hints to guide you, fully explained answers along with a discussion board to see how others solved it and most importantly, there is an online SQL coding environment so you can instantly run your SQL query answer and have it checked.
To prep for the Syneos Health SQL interview it is also a great idea to practice interview questions from other healthcare and pharmaceutical companies like:
- Edwards Lifesciences SQL questions
- Hologic SQL questions
- Intuitive Surgical SQL questions
- Cerner SQL questions
In case your SQL skills are weak, don't worry about jumping right into solving questions – improve your SQL foundations with this SQL tutorial for Data Scientists & Analysts.
This tutorial covers SQL concepts such as LEAD/LAG and GROUP BY – both of these pop up routinely during Syneos Health interviews.
Syneos Health Data Science Interview Tips
What Do Syneos Health Data Science Interviews Cover?
In addition to SQL query questions, the other question categories to practice for the Syneos Health Data Science Interview include:
- Statistics Interview Questions
- Python or R Programming Questions
- Product Analytics Questions
- Machine Learning Questions
- Behavioral Interview Questions based on Syneos Health values & principles
How To Prepare for Syneos Health Data Science Interviews?
To prepare for Syneos Health Data Science interviews read the book Ace the Data Science Interview because it's got:
- 201 interview questions taken from tech companies like Google & Microsoft
- a crash course on Stats, ML, & Data Case Studies
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Don't forget about the behavioral interview – prepare for it using this list of behavioral interview questions for Data Scientists.