Interview Experience 1 - SDE
Candidate Profile: B.Tech CS, 8.7 CGPA, competitive programming, 2 internships
Round 1 - Online Assessment (90 minutes)
Platform: Microsoft Codility
Problem 1: Two Sum Variants
- Multiple variations of two sum problem
- Difficulty: Medium
- My Approach: HashMap O(n)
- Time: 15 minutes
Problem 2: Binary Tree Maximum Path Sum
- Find max path sum in binary tree
- Difficulty: Hard
- My Approach: Post-order traversal with global max
- Time: 25 minutes
Problem 3: Merge K Sorted Lists
- Merge multiple sorted linked lists
- Difficulty: Hard
- My Approach: Min-heap with O(N log k)
- Time: 30 minutes
Problem 4: Design Question
- Design efficient data structure for range queries
- Approach: Discussed segment tree
- Time: 20 minutes
Result: Cleared with all optimal solutions
Tips:
- Microsoft OA is challenging - practice hard problems
- Focus on trees, graphs, and optimization
- Time management is crucial
Round 2 - Technical Interview 1 (60 minutes)
Interviewer: SDE 2 Mode: Microsoft Teams
Problem 1: LRU Cache
- Design with O(1) operations
- My Approach: HashMap + Doubly Linked List
- Live coding on shared screen
- Discussion on thread safety
Problem 2: Number of Islands
- Count islands in 2D grid
- My Approach: DFS
- Follow-up: Count using Union-Find
Project Discussion:
- Discussed internship project (cloud service)
- Architecture decisions and trade-offs
- Performance optimization done
Tips:
- Code cleanly with proper naming
- Explain approach before coding
- Be ready for follow-ups
Round 3 - Technical Interview 2 (60 minutes)
Interviewer: Senior SDE
Problem 1: Word Ladder II
- Find all shortest transformation sequences
- My Approach: BFS + Backtracking
- Complex implementation, handled well
System Design (20 minutes):
- “Design a notification system”
- Discussed: pub-sub, message queues, delivery guarantees
- Scalability considerations
CS Fundamentals:
- Virtual memory and paging
- Database transactions and isolation levels
- Networking: TCP handshake
Result: Strong performance
Round 4 - AA (As Appropriate) Round (60 minutes)
Interviewer: Principal Engineer
Problem: Design a distributed rate limiter
- Discussed multiple algorithms (sliding window, token bucket)
- Distributed system challenges
- Consistency vs availability trade-offs
Behavioral Questions:
- “Tell me about a project you’re most proud of”
- “How do you handle technical disagreements?”
- “Describe a time you failed and learned”
Leadership Questions:
- “Have you mentored anyone?”
- “How do you approach learning new technologies?”
Round 5 - HR Round (30 minutes)
Questions Asked:
- “Why Microsoft?”
- “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”
- “What’s your ideal work environment?”
- “Any questions about Microsoft culture?”
Result: Selected! Package: ₹44 LPA (base + stock + bonus) Location: Hyderabad
Key Takeaways: Microsoft values optimal solutions and clean code. Prepare for both DSA and system design. Show growth mindset and leadership potential.