Interview Experience | Software Engineering Role
Part 1: On-Campus Selection Rounds (College)
Round 1: Online Assessment (Objective / CS Fundamentals)
Format & Duration: 50 minutes
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) focusing heavily on Core CS concepts.Topics & Key Questions Covered:Data Structures: * Postfix expression evaluation given specific numerical variables.Maximum number of nodes possible up to depth/distance 5 in a tree.Identifying invalid queue operations.Tracking front/rear insertions in an initially empty Deque.BST Path Validation: Given a sequence of visited nodes (e.g., $2 \rightarrow 252 \rightarrow 401 \rightarrow 398 \rightarrow 330 \rightarrow 344 \rightarrow 397$), identifying if it represents a valid path within a BST containing values 1 to 1000.C/C++ Programming Deep Dive:Extensive questions on pointer arithmetic, dereferencing, and memory management. (Pro-tip: Reviewing the GeeksforGeeks Pointers Quiz helps a lot here).Tracing tricky loops like for(int n = 7; n != 0; n--) { printf("%d ", n); n--; } (understanding infinite loop conditions).sizeof() operations on structs involving character arrays and integers, accounting for memory alignment and structural padding.Validating standard vs. invalid constructor types (e.g., assessing the concept of a "friend constructor").Output tracing for complex, nested ternary operators (?:).Algorithms & Recursion:Identifying properties of a Minimum Spanning Tree (MST) when given a complete graph represented by an adjacency matrix with 0s on the diagonal and 1s everywhere else.Tracing a recursive linked list function that prints, jumps curr->next->next, and prints again on unwind.Tracing bitwise expressions and recursive XOR patterns.Object-Oriented Programming (OOPs): Tracing constructor/destructor calling orders during inheritance, specifically handling an object of a derived class deleted via a base class pointer (testing virtual destructors).
Round 2: Aptitude, Logical Reasoning & Coding (75 Minutes)Aptitude & Verbal Section:
* English grammar, vocabulary, and reading comprehension.Syllogisms (Statement and Conclusion questions).Blood Relations (including both narrative mapping and symbol-coded relations).Quantitative aptitude: Mathematical operator insertion to balance equations, Probability, Profit & Loss, Direction & Distance grids, and Permutations & Combinations (e.g., arranging the vowels of the word "DETAIL" only in odd positions).
Coding Section (2 Questions):Problem 1: GeeksforGeeks - Reverse an Array in Groups of Given Size (Variant: Reverse Every Subarray of Size M).Constraints: $O(n)$ Time, $O(1)$ Space.Problem 2: LeetCode 1448 - Count Good Nodes in Binary Tree (Variant: Modified to find the Sum of Good Nodes instead of the count).Constraints: $O(n)$ Time, $O(1)$ Auxiliary Space.
Round 3: Technical Coding Round (75 Minutes)Format: Subjective coding round
focusing purely on optimal data structures and algorithmic efficiency.Coding Questions:Problem 1: LeetCode 2111 - Minimum Operations to Make the Array Non-Decreasing / Greedy Subarray Reduction (Variant: Array Compression to Non-Increasing Array using contiguous minimum values to maximize remaining elements).Constraints: $O(n)$ Time, $O(1)$ Extra Space.Problem 2: GeeksforGeeks - Delete N nodes after M nodes of a linked list (Linked List Keep-Delete Pattern).Constraints: $O(n)$ Time, $O(1)$ Extra Space.Problem 3: LeetCode 1315 - Sum of Nodes with Even-Valued Grandparent (Tree traversal problem tracking parent and grandparent state).Constraints: $O(n)$ Time, $O(1)$ Extra Space.
Part 2: In-Office Selection Rounds
Round 4: Office Online Assessment (50 Minutes)
Format: 2 Coding questions under tight time constraints.
Coding Questions:Problem 1: GeeksforGeeks - Delete N nodes after M nodes of a linked list (A retest of the on-campus Keep-Delete pattern question).Problem 2: LeetCode 2415 - Reverse Odd Levels of Binary Tree (Variant: Modified to Reverse Even Levels instead).Constraints: $O(1)$ Auxiliary Space (excluding recursion stack).
Round 5: Technical Interview 1 (Scheduled for 2 Hours - Finished Early)Format: One-on-one technical problem solving with a heavy emphasis on communication, edge-case analysis, and systematic dry runs.Coding Questions:Problem 1: LeetCode 1080 - Insufficient Nodes in Root to Leaf PathsProblem 2: LeetCode 209 - Minimum Size Subarray SumInterview Dynamics & Takeaways: * The interviewers expect you to thoroughly discuss your approach before jumping into writing code.They will make you actively dry run your logic with multiple test cases on the screen.Crucial Tip: If any part of the problem statement is ambiguous, clarify it immediately. Proactively ask about edge cases (like how the logic should behave if the tree or array contains negative numbers), as they look for this foresight.
Round 6: Technical Interview 2 & Project Discussion (2 Hours)
Format: Advanced problem-solving and system implementation, followed by an in-depth review of past projects.Coding Questions & Experience:Problem 1: LeetCode 298 - Binary Tree Longest Consecutive SequenceInterview Traps: I successfully solved this, but the interviewers immediately followed up by asking to remove all global/class-level reference variables from the recursive logic. Be prepared to implement a pure bottom-up post-order traversal passing state up via pairs/structs.Problem 2: LeetCode 2355 - Maximum Number of Books You Can Take / LeetCode 1776 - Car Fleet II (Variant: Minimum Operations to Convert All Elements to Zero).Experience: I deduced that a Monotonic Stack was required to find the next smallest element, but struggled to optimize the calculation within a single array traversal.Problem 2 (Switched Option): Because I hit a wall, the interviewers kindly offered a question switch to LeetCode 581 - Shortest Unsorted Continuous Subarray.Experience: I tried identifying the first point where the non-increasing order breaks and coded a solution, but it failed to account for complex hidden test cases during manual verification.Project Discussion: * The round concluded with a deep dive into my resume projects, examining the architecture and technical choices made.Result: Did not clear this final round.
I know they took a third technical interview of the candidates who were able to pass the second interview
