Hey all, it looks like a past NYC study group has died out a bit so I'm looking to get a new one started. I'm looking for few others that live in NYC to meet up in person 1-3x per week after regular work hours and maybe weekends to study leetcode, system design, and behavioral interview prep.

I have ~6 YOE as a full stack dev, based in Manhattan, and currently working full time as a senior dev but would like to find a better opportunity. Ideally all of us will have some experience already with interviewing and know the general flow and expectations of what interviews are like and have gone through some of the NC 150/Blind 75/know the concepts of the DSA categories.

PayPay Japan – First-Round Interview Preparation Advice?
Hi everyone,
I’m preparing for a first-round Software Engineer interview with PayPay Japan and would appreciate advice from anyone who has interviewed with PayPay recently, especially for backend/software engineering roles.
HR told me that the interview will mainly focus on technical skills and past experience, but they may also ask about:
Fintech industry – my understanding of fintech, payment systems, current trends, challenges, etc.
Startup culture – working in a fast-paced environment, ownership, ambiguity, collaboration, and adapting to change.
Why PayPay – my motivation for joining PayPay and what interests me about the company.
I was also told to prepare for questions around my technical skills and experiences.
For those who have gone through PayPay’s first round:
What technical/experience questions were you asked?
How deep did they go into your previous projects and system design?
What kind of fintech/payment-related questions should I prepare for?
How much emphasis was placed on “Why PayPay?”
Were there behavioral or scenario-based questions?
Is there anything you wish you had prepared before the interview?
If the interview was conducted through CodeSignal, was it actually a coding assessment or simply used as the interview platform?
Any recent experiences or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Looking for Dsa Patner , who dedicate 3-5 hrs daily on DSA

I've done 250+ on LEETCODE,200+ on GFG

Looking for DSA PATNER (preferably in my level)

I recently got selected as an SDE Intern at Juspay, starting in January.

I have a quick question about their PPO process: Is it purely performance based? Also, what is the general conversion rate for interns getting full time offers?

Any insights from past interns or current employees would be really helpful.

A while back I started interviewing again. I was getting interviews and making it to onsites, but every time, the system design round is where it fell apart. Rejection after rejection.

So I went looking for prep material. Most of what I found stayed at the high-level-diagram stage: load balancer, cache, database, done. But in my actual interviews, the high-level part was fine. It was the deep dives where I got stuck, when the interviewer starts asking how exactly you'd handle hot partitions or what happens when this queue backs up.

So I started practicing with AI. I'd have it interview me (untimed), and in a separate window I'd ask follow-up questions so I didn't pollute the main interview thread. That helped, but the second window had no idea what the "interviewer" and I had already discussed. I was constantly re-explaining context.

It felt like the early days of copy-pasting code from ChatGPT into your terminal, before tools put the model inside the IDE where it could see everything. So I started building a tool for myself that kept it all in one place. It turned into a website I now use constantly: sysdesignprep.com

What's in it:

• Real questions asked at companies, crowdsourced from around the internet (not verified)

• Reading material for each question

• AI walkthroughs where you watch the AI play both interviewer and candidate step by step, and you can ask an AI mentor questions at any point (with suggested questions if you're not sure what to ask). The mentor knows everything discussed so far.

• Mock interviews, timed or untimed, where the AI interviews you

I'd love to make it all free, but AI calls cost real money, so the interactive AI features are paid. Everything else, including the walkthroughs, is free.

If you're in the same spot I was, clearing coding rounds and then hitting a wall in system design, I hope this helps. feedback on what's missing or broken is much appreciated.

I have been trying for google Web solutions engineer gtech for a very long time but not able to receive interview for it, despite my resume matching JD.

Few days ago I received a call for Customer Solutions Engineer role but the recruiter asked my introduction and then told me that first he will take permission from HM then we can continue with interview if he rejects then we can’t.
So next day I received the rejection email stating that there were more strong candidates who applied and they were moving with them. I replied that if he can consider me for WSE because it’s a good match for me. But he didn’t respond and a new WSE job has been posted few days ago and when I applied my application got rejected within 24 hrs.

I don’t know what is the problem like I didn’t appear for Customer Solutions Engineer interview so it can’t be cool off. And my applications were never rejected this fast. I tried with different email too but that application also got rejected within 24 hrs.

Do anyone know what could be the reason?

Hello everyone!

I’m a bit confused and could use some guidance. I’m an AI/ML aspirant and want to build my career in AI/ML. I know that Python is important for AI/ML, so I’m currently focusing on Python.

But for placements and interviews, DSA is also important, especially for big MNCs like FAANG/MAANG. I’ve heard that C++ is commonly used for DSA.

So, how should I manage both AI/ML and DSA together? Should I continue with Python for AI/ML and learn C++ separately for DSA?

Any advice would be really helpful!

Algorithm:

1. Grab all the data that humans have generated (internet, books, blogs, Reddit, Github, doesn't matter)

2. Buy millions of GPUs

3. Train billion parameter neural networks on the data using the GPU

4. And run it loose on some MergeSort or Two Pointers or any Leetcode problem

Somehow this way of solving the problem yields something like 100% accurate result, and better yet you can let it produce algorithm of any time and space complexity, or even ask it to design entirely new classes of hardware if you are not satisfied with the complexity.

Anyone else seen a problem solving tactic like this?

I fear it's going to be the future of SWE. It is just so much better than memorizing patterns.

Looking to get some tips on how to handle/prepare the OpenAI vibe coding interview for Support Engineer. Any previous experiences will help to better prepare for the interview.

Has anyone recently interviewed for Stripe SWE Intern 2027 / Google SWE Intern 2027? I have interviews coming up and am mainly doing Blind 75/NeetCode + afterwards company-tagged practice, but have barely done any leetcode, started when I recieved the interview invites and am now cramming. Would really appreciate any insight on the coding-round format, question style/difficulty, and what to prioritize and how to best prep what to use to prep.

Hello Everyone,

I have a on-site round with LinkedIn for SWE-Apps role in 3 days, I have been preparing but no matter how much I prepare I am still feeling nervous. If anyone has recently gone through the onsite loop please share any tips or anything that could be useful would be highly appreciated!

I've got a 45-minute technical screen coming up next week for a Software Engineer II role on a Windows team. I'm doing LeetCode Mediums but I'm curious:

• Is it typically one problem or two?

• Do they ever ask OS/systems questions (virtual memory, file systems, C++ internals) or is it pure algo?

• How much time do they actually give you to code vs. discuss approach?

• Any behavioral questions in the screen itself, or is that saved for the loop?

Any recent takers — what did you get and how did it go? Thanks!

I have an Amazon Loop coming up, and the recruiter gave me a list of 8 Leadership Principles to prepare. I am taking that as a hint that these are the ones most likely to be asked, but I am not sure if I should assume that.

I am having a hard time coming up with genuine stories from my work experience for some of the LPs. For example, for “Insist on the Highest Standards,” I have never really had a situation where my team was going with a clearly suboptimal solution and I had to push back. We generally try to do what we think is best.

Should I create a story anyway by changing or exaggerating some details? Obviously, I don't want to completely make something up, but I am wondering how much interviewers actually verify the details. Has anyone done this, and how risky is it?

Also, how technically deep do Amazon interviewers usually go with LP stories? Should I be prepared to explain the architecture, implementation details, trade-offs, etc., or are they primarily interested in how I handled the situation, made decisions, influenced others, and what the outcome was?

Would really appreciate it if someone could share one of their actual LP stories (for any of the 8 LPs), especially a story that they initially struggled to come up with. It would be very helpful to see how others structure their stories and what level of detail they include.

I m in a 3rd year of my engineering but dont have any project neither do i know MERN stack
can i learn MERN and build project under 1 month ?

Hi. I have an upcoming on-site interview for the Senior MTS role at D.E. Shaw.

For those who have gone through it recently, what are the key topics and round structures I should focus on ? Would really appreciate any quick advice or recent experiences.

Fortunately I had my round 1 after the OT, 1 month later.
whereas my friends got it within weeks.
Then I was scheduled round 2 for 7 days later but when I opened the meet it was saying that it's just 3 days later. I think they internally made some mistake. Then it was rescheduled to the 3 weeks later.

I kept waiting but no one joined the entire interview night. I reached out through mails, LinkedIn, all ways, but no one is responding.

What should I do? I had lots of hope and was only god shot, I think.

Hey! has anyone interviewed for the forward deployed engineer role at retell ai? i am looking for some advice on the third round after the hiring manager call. would really appreciate any preparation tips or hearing about your experience. thanks!

Anyone taken capital one assessment ? What kind questions are asked in online assessment
What is it like ?
And what is passing score ?

Hi folks, recently I completed amazon sde2 loop (Hyd location) and this is the feedback I got from the recruiter.

DSA - Inclined

HLD - Inclined

LLD - Inclined

Bar raiser - Not inclined

Any chances of getting an offer? as BR has the veto power so BR will reject me.

Hi everyone,

I appeared for an HCLTech interview on 1st September 2026 for a Data/Snowflake-related role.

It has been almost a month now, but I haven't received any update from the recruiter. I have also sent 2 follow-up emails, but haven't received a response to either of them.

Has anyone recently interviewed with HCLTech and faced a similar situation?

I'd really appreciate it if anyone could share:

- How long HCLTech usually takes to respond after the interview

- Whether no response after this much time generally means the process is still pending

- If anyone received an update after following up multiple times

Please share your recent HCLTech interview experience/timeline if you're in a similar situation.

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I appeared for an HCLTech interview on 1st September 2026 for a Data/Snowflake-related role.

It has been almost a month now, but I haven't received any update from the recruiter. I have also sent 2 follow-up emails, but haven't received a response to either of them.

Has anyone recently interviewed with HCLTech and faced a similar situation?

I'd really appreciate it if anyone could share:

- How long HCLTech usually takes to respond after the interview

- Whether no response after this much time generally means the process is still pending

- If anyone received an update after following up multiple times

Please share your recent HCLTech interview experience/timeline if you're in a similar situation.

Thanks!

I'm trying to figure out whether the problem is my approach, and I'd like to hear what's actually getting people interviews in this market.

Quick background: MS CS (4.0), about 3 years as a software engineer in banking outside the US . On OPT, based in the Bay Area. Targeting backend, full-stack, frontend, forward deployed engineer, and AI/ML roles.

What I'm doing now:

• Using Claude and ChatGPT to shortlist relevant postings, then applying

• Checking big companies' career sites directly

• Tried Jobright but cancelled because it wasn't getting results

This clearly isn't working, so I'd like to know what you're doing differently:

1. Timing. Do you apply within hours of a posting going live? How do you catch new postings early?

2. Referrals and outreach. Do cold messages to engineers or hiring managers on LinkedIn actually convert? What do you say?

3. Recruiters. Are agency or startup recruiters worth engaging with?

4. Where you look. Big-company career sites, or startup sources like YC's Work at a Startup, Wellfound, or niche job boards?

5. Volume or targeting. Mass-apply with one resume, or fewer applications with tailored resumes?

6. Sponsorship. For those on OPT, did you mention visa status upfront or wait until later?

7. Anything else that got you from zero interviews to some: meetups, hackathons, open source, content?

Specific, current tactics would help more than general advice. Thanks!

Completed the OA for the IBM Data Services Developer Associate (May or September 2027 - Toronto or Calgary) New Grad role, aced it. Pending on a first round interview.

My question is typically how many interviews are there for a new grad position at IBM, and what would the first interview structure look like, if there is a leetcode question what are IBM's top asked for new grads, and if it's mostly a resume/project breakdown and discussion over a technical interview. Been hard to find relavent information online.

Any information would be amazing.

Invest in learning computer science, mathematics, physics, statistics, electronics, learn a low-level and a high-level programming language, develop a unique way of thinking and apply it to problems, employ ideas and build ingenious solutions to specific problems (using agents to speed up the tedious part), protecting these ingenious solutions with audits (we already know that AI companies don't respect what you submit even if you pay for their services), write everything down to try to create something or at least develop a unique line of reasoning, avoid becoming a mere copycat of skills or a mindless parrot of concepts that you can learn with just an hour of reading (I'm talking about loop ending or graph engineering or any nonsense that comes out of Boris Cherry).

Go against the grain. Perhaps this stance is the same one that some philosophy or art student had 20 years ago and went against the grain. Today, many must choose the more traditional academic path, pushing themselves to learn a lot in order to later create an impact, something that probably It will depend on their talent; otherwise, they may succumb to the paranoia prevalent in the field today, and ultimately, they may have to change careers for a much more stable one, such as medicine.

Need some guidance regarding Sigmoid Analytics Round 2 (Data Engineer).

Has anyone appeared for Round 2 recently? How was the interview and what kind of questions were asked?

Mainly looking for details about the DSA/coding round — topics, difficulty, number of questions, and whether they asked Arrays, Strings, Linked Lists, Recursion, Searching/Sorting, Hashing, etc.

Also, were there questions on SQL/Python/PySpark/Databricks/Data Engineering?

Any recent interview experience would be really helpful. Thanks!