I applied through a recruiter. I interviewed at Parafin (San Francisco, CA) in Jan 2026
Interview
Last minute change in interviewer. Frontend to backend so they asked a more algorithm question but I was told by the recruiter to prep UI. So that didn't go very well.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Data structures complex work through n create a new Data structure
I applied through an employee referral. I interviewed at Parafin in Mar 2026
Interview
The interview process was fantastic. They don't use pure leetcode style questions where you have to know "tricks" to get the question correct. The interviewers are also fantastic and helpful. The culture here seems great and the recruiting team was very friendly.
- Resume screen and background/experience fit
- First technical round on programming logic and design basics (not leetcode style)
- Second technical round on API call, either on Hackerrank or use your own environment. AI and copilot allowed
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
First Round: The interviewer was very professional, demonstrated excellent problem definition and clarification skills. Overall a positive and constructive experience.
Second Round: The task involved calling an API endpoint and performing aggregation on the response. Unfortunately, this round was one of the most unprofessional and unprepared interviews I’ve experienced, for the following reasons:
1- The interviewer could not even recognize the programming language I was using (Java).
2- The problem statement included a time parameter. I asked for clarification three times before starting, but the interviewer did not understand it. Ironically, she realized its purpose only at the end of the interview, as it turned out to be central to what she intended to test. She was also unable to clarify which API endpoint to use. Although AI was allowed, but it's tough when the problem statement is unclear
3- Overall lack of preparation and poor time management
It’s concerning to have a technical interviewer who cannot even recognize the language being used (java in this case). Interviewers should be matched with the domain or language relevant to the problem to ensure fairness and a meaningful evaluation experience.
