# How to explain a project in an internship interview

## Explain how a $300 total became $420

Fictional dashboard project: order value rises after joining orders to customer records, even though no new orders were added. The explanation is in the customer key, not the chart.

### Fictional join inputs

| Table | Record | Customer key | Value or note |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Orders | O1 | C1 | $120 |
| Orders | O2 | C2 | $180 |
| Customers | Row 1 | C1 | North |
| Customers | Row 2 | C1 | North; repeated key |
| Customers | Row 3 | C2 | South |

## Your turn

Calculate the joined total when each order matches every customer row with the same key. Then explain your debugging process as an interview answer.

## Your answer

[Write your approach here.]

## For your own application

Prepare one example where a check caught a plausible-looking wrong result. Explain the failed assumption and the test that exposed it, not just the finished screenshot.

Return to the guide for the worked answer and source notes:
https://internshipdeadlines.com/guides/internship-project-walkthrough