Coding
Practice
Barclays Online Assessment
Overview
Section titled “Overview”Here is how public prep guides and student write-ups describe the Barclays online assessment. This is not an official company brochure.
RISES values are a recurring interview theme.
Usual selection rounds
Section titled “Usual selection rounds”Rounds students usually mention: Online assessment → PPT → Technical / tech+HR interviews
| Item | From student reports |
|---|---|
| Platform | Online (HackerRank cited in related Medium FTE write-ups) |
| Online test summary | MCQs + coding; ~60-90 minutes depending on drive. |
| Eligibility notes | ≥60% across 10th/12th/semesters in 2024 DAVV account; no active backlogs |
| Branches (reported) | CS, IT, ETC in that drive |
Online test sections
Section titled “Online test sections”| Section | Questions | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| MCQ + coding | - | ~60-90 min | - |
Extra notes from sources
Section titled “Extra notes from sources”- Check your college placement email for the platform, section order, and timing.
Sample practice question styles
Section titled “Sample practice question styles”These are practice questions for speed - not claimed to be from a real Barclays live paper.
Coding Q1: Maximum subarray sum (Kadane)
Problem: Given an integer array, find the contiguous subarray with the largest sum and return that sum. Example: [-2,1,-3,4,-1,2,1,-5,4] → 6 (from [4,-1,2,1]).
Approach: Keep a running sum. If the running sum drops below 0, reset it to 0 before taking the next element (or track the best ending-here value). Track the global maximum as you scan once from left to right.
Complexity: O(n) time, O(1) extra space
Barclays tip: Restate the problem, sketch a brute-force idea, then tighten it. Call out edge cases (empty input, single element, overflow) before you write code.
Coding Q2: Reverse a string in place
Problem: Given a mutable character array representing a string, reverse it in place without allocating another array of the same size.
Approach: Use two pointers at the start and end. Swap characters, then move inward until the pointers meet. Watch empty and single-character inputs.
Complexity: O(n) time, O(1) extra space
Barclays tip: Restate the problem, sketch a brute-force idea, then tighten it. Call out edge cases (empty input, single element, overflow) before you write code.
Coding Q3: Check prime
Problem: Write a function that returns true if n is prime and false otherwise. Handle n < 2 correctly.
Approach: Return false for n < 2. Trial-divide from 2 to floor(sqrt(n)). If any divisor divides n evenly, it is composite; otherwise prime.
Complexity: O(√n) time
Barclays tip: Restate the problem, sketch a brute-force idea, then tighten it. Call out edge cases (empty input, single element, overflow) before you write code.
Coding Q4: Valid parentheses
Problem: Given a string containing only ‘()[]’, decide whether the brackets are balanced and correctly nested.
Approach: Scan left to right with a stack. Push opening brackets. On a closing bracket, the stack top must be the matching opener. At the end the stack must be empty.
Complexity: O(n) time, O(n) space
Barclays tip: Restate the problem, sketch a brute-force idea, then tighten it. Call out edge cases (empty input, single element, overflow) before you write code.
Prep tips from those student reports
Section titled “Prep tips from those student reports”- Know RISES with examples
- Projects + SQL
- Honest resume
Sources
Section titled “Sources”- Barclays Interview Experience for Intern 2025 On Campus - GFG (gfg)
- Barclays Internship On-Campus 2024 - GFG (gfg)
These notes come from public reports and can differ by campus, year, and role. If your college placement email or the official careers/notification PDF says something different, follow that.
Related
Section titled “Related”Similar companies
Section titled “Similar companies”Deutsche Bank · HSBC · JP Morgan · Citi · Wells Fargo