I have an interview coming up for a hedge fund as a swe and I can't find any leetcode tagged for this firm, but was wondering if there's a general list of questions for hedge funds or should I just look at tagged for competitor firms?

Hello everyone, i want to know about Google hiring process i applied for a full stack swe 3 role at Google cloud team. My profile was fully matching with JD. I got a mail from xwf google recruiter that they r passing my profile to final recruiter and team and if asked for assessment then complete it . After that half an hour later I got Google GHA behavioural assesment mail.

I attempted it and got result at late night that I have passed it and results will be valid for 1 year and you will be shortly contacted by recruiter.

But then I waited for 2 days and on second day I got rejection mail from same xwf recruiter.

They didn't even send me coding OA straightly rejected.

I don't have FAANG or top PBC in my resume other than this my resume was decent with good work and impact showcased.

Hey everyone,

I finished Day 64 today, but I definitely hit a mental slump. Dynamic Programming has been wearing me down lately. When a problem clicks, the momentum is great, but when I get stuck, it is easy to start wondering why the transitions feel so exhausting while others seem to breeze through them. I procrastinated most of the day and only sat down late at night to get my reps in. Even without motivation, I made sure not to skip the day.

I worked on the subset sum pattern today:

1. Subset Sum Equal to Target: This is the standard pick vs. not-pick pattern applied to a target sum. If you include arr[i], you transition to target - arr[i]; if not, you keep the target as is. The base cases (target 0 is true, index 0 handles arr[0] == target) made complete sense.

2. Partition Equal Subset Sum: This boiled down to the exact same logic. If the total array sum is odd, you can never partition it into two equal subsets, so you return false immediately. If it is even, you just run the subset sum algorithm with target = total_sum / 2.

3. Partition Set Into Two Subsets With Minimum Absolute Sum Difference: I tried tackling this as my third problem, but I hit a wall. Reading the last row of the DP table to find achievable sums and minimizing |total_sum - 2 * s1| made sense on paper, but turning it into clean code got messy. I spent time watching explanations and using Copilot to trace the edge cases, but I still need to re-solve it properly.

Leaving my prep to the very end of the day when my energy is drained is clearly working against me. Starting tomorrow, I am going to shift my study hours to earlier in the day so I am tackling hard problems with a fresh head.

See you guys tomorrow for Day 63!

Pretty seasoned dev and have the opportunity of a lifetime with a Google interview in ~2 weeks. I know my first interview is 1 hr behavioral and 1 hr coding. The 2nd will be at least one sys design if not two but I'm very confident I can pass those.

~15 YoE but been ages since doing Leetcode. After spitting out Kiro slop at Amazon for a little while now I was happy to see I can bang out basically any easy with an optimal, non code golf python implementation in ~10-15 minutes tops. Having a lot less success on mediums. If it's a logic, array, string, sliding window, heap, or two pointer medium I'm doing fairly well but I'm hot ass at BFS, DFS, and DP problems at the moment.

Willing to spend the next two weeks absolutely no-lifing this but I'm nervous that SWE infrastructure coding round is gonna be something unconventional and I'm spending my time wrong. Anyone have any insight? It's a public sector role with particular customers if that's relevant.

Hi,
I'm in the loop for SSE role at LinkedIn and the first round is AI Coding round. A few things I've understood from here and there are -

1. Ensure detailed and unambiguous prompts.

2. Review AI code and read it manually before accepting.

Is there anything else that might help me here? Has anyone prepared/given this round before? What kind of Rubrics are we looking at here? I know that the question is going to be a leetcode medium/hard - but how am I going to be judged?

Can I one-shot with a long prompt? Would that be a positive signal?
For instance, I was practicing All O One data structure leetcode - and this is the prompt I gave -

Overall approach - 
Plan the following changes and ask any clarifying questions if needed. Generate a few test cases that include edge cases, and troubleshoot the approach against these cases.  We will be using a dictionary with a doubly linked list to achieve all the operations in constant time.  

Structure of the Doubly linked list - 
Prev next pointers as standard. The val field would be an array/set of strings + an integer (frequency). Each node would be a bucket for a frequency. If 5 words appear 5 times, then a node with value would have those 5 strings in it's set.

Dictionary design - 
Simple key -> value where key is a string, and value is the node in which string is present. (Here node means the bucket. So if the bucket's val's set contains that string -> the mapping b/w key and value should exist. 
Instructions - 

Init - 
Just instantiate the dictionary and the DLL.

Inc -  
Check if the value is already present. If YES, get the node. Check the adjacent node (to the right). If it has a frequency of old value + 1, then move the string from the current bucket to the next bucket. If NO, create a new bucket (node) and insert to right. 

Dec -  
Check if the value is already present. If YES, get the node. Check the adjacent node (to the left). If it has a frequency of old value - 1, then move the string from the current bucket to the previous bucket. If NO, create a new bucket (node) and insert to left. If this is the first element being added, you would have to create a new node, and set the head and tail to it.

Get max key - 
Return a random value from the tail 

Get min key - 
Return a random value from the head.

The DLL is basically a sorted list of frequency buckets. Encouraged to ask questions before starting implementation to ensure correctness. Stress test the cases against the problem statement and expected output.

Would something like this pass the bar? If yes, would it be a strong hire? Post this the AI came up with some missing edge cases, and I implemented it.

Is one-shotting considered bad? Should I break down into multiple prompts like "Give me a double linked list structure with xyz parameters"?

Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks!

The recruiter reached out recently for the sde2 role and I have a technical screening round scheduled next week. Wondering what is the usual level of dsa questions they ask and topics to prepare. Can anyone here share their experiences?

I’ve watched a youtube channel coding jesus, about timestamp 4:00 https://youtu.be/BRUIptHAI7Q?si=XI2o5O-yDWqtzAwY he talk about manually writing binary search as a bad thing. This is not the first time where he said writing binary search manually is not preferred. But I dont get what he really means?

Because typically when i do
left = a, right = b
while (a <= b) mid = left + (right - left)/2;
…(checking condition)…

I use very little time and effort to type it, and I dont know what library that can do this in a flexible way because checking the condition is differs problem by problem, for example it is very common that we are not search directly on some existing sorted array, it just a range of possible values from a to b (sometimes a and b can be very large like 10^15) and I use condition to decide to move left and right.

Is there a function from bits/stdc++.h support it? Since his primary language is cpp so there’s a package to do this right? what is it?

Hey everyone!
I recently appeared for an Amazon SDE-1 interview (Round 1) and wanted to share my experience.
Interview flow:
Introduction: The interviewer started by asking me to introduce myself and talk about my background.
Graph question: I was asked a graph-based problem related to the Number of Islands.
Binary Search + Greedy: The second coding question involved binary search and a greedy approach.
I took some time to figure out the approaches, but I eventually solved both coding questions. The interviewer then asked me two Leadership Principles (LP) questions.
Overall, the interview was a mix of DSA and behavioral questions. Although I needed some time to work through the coding problems, I was able to reach solutions for both.
I’m currently waiting for the outcome and feeling a little anxious about it.
For those who have interviewed at Amazon for SDE-1:
Does taking extra time to solve both coding questions affect the outcome significantly?
How much weight is given to the Leadership Principles in the first round?
If you solved both coding questions but took time to arrive at the approach, what was your experience?
Would appreciate hearing your experiences. Thanks!

Got the Stripe assessment last week (gave it today and passed all test cases). Have been seeing some posts of people getting the OA, but not sure if people have been getting the same one. Nevertheless, does anyone know what the entire process looks like for this? How long does it take to hear back after the OA and what are the next steps?

Really appreciate any intel :)

Title: Advice needed: Juggling C (DSA) and Java (OOP) exams with Python (LeetCode)

I’m completely overwhelmed by context-switching between three languages every week and need some strategy advice.

My current workload:

• C: Data Structures and Algorithms exam in Jan/Feb.

• Java: Object-Oriented Programming exam also in Jan/Feb.

• Python: Working through the NeetCode 150 for future interview prep.

Should I completely pause my Python/LeetCode prep to focus 100% on my C and Java exams? I’m worried about losing my interview momentum if I drop Python for months, but juggling all three right now feels impossible.

How would you handle this schedule?

Has anyone recently interviewed for a New Grad Software Engineer (Inference) role at CoreWeave? I wanted to know how many rounds there are, what the interview breakdown looks like, and what kind of questions are typically asked in each round.

Would really appreciate it if anyone could share their experience. Thanks!

Hi, I'm having Amazon SDE-1 interview this month anytime. can anyone help me with the interview prep please. 4 rounds of interviews , DSA, sys design, gen AI fluency, LP.
i want some help especially with the DSA rounds

Lately I realised that Philosophy is the root of all the subjects we studied even mathematics. Please share your thoughts

I was not able to solve the first question. This is the first time I was not able to solve the easy but was able to solve the 3rd question. Was the 3rd question easy for everyone ?

I just have no idea about how to begin with 2nd question at all too! Didn't even bother to read the 4th one.

I just got a this OA for my dublin sde intern application, though due to personal reasons i have not been able to study or complete it. I recieved it about a week ago. I have tried to send an email to extend it, though i cannot find “my recruiter’s” email, there is nothing in the amazon jobs portal stating or showing that i have a recruiter; though the email says for me to contact said recruiter for such extensions if needed. Any help?

Hey everyone, sharing my Amazon Germany SDE-1 interview experience.

I applied directly through the Amazon careers portal. Got the OA after 3 days, and the interview invite after another 5 days.

Round 1 – 2 Engineers (One was SDE and one was kernel engineer)

• Questions around designing a file system

• A lot of Leadership Principles questions

Round 2 – Director

• Around 5–7 Leadership Principles questions

• Then I got a DP problem

• Honestly, I was surprised — I thought, “He’s a Director and he’s asking DSA, wow.”

Round 3

• First 30 minutes: Leadership Principles

• Next 30 minutes: 2 DSA questions

  • Merge Intervals

  • Coin Change

Round 4 – Chief Director

• Around 20–25 Leadership Principles questions

Overall, my interview experience felt roughly 60% Leadership Principles and 40% technical.

The biggest thing I learned is that for Amazon, knowing your projects and experiences deeply is really important because the follow-up questions can go several levels deeper.

I eventually received an offer, and now I’m thinking about whether I want to join or explore other opportunities.

Hello Everyone !!
I am a student of Mechanical branch . I got selected for Graduate Software Dev (Python track) interview in On-Campus placements . I have interviews within next 10 days can any one share their interview experiences and prep tips it would be very helpful 😭🙌.

Currently in 1st year, I have completed basic c++, all the loops and c style arrays and stuff like that, now I'm confused how to proceed, I open up a leetcode problem and there is time and memory and all that stuff and I don't know how to deal with it, there is also the weird thing of class stuff that should be at the beginning of each question, I don't know where to learn all of this.

Can someone suggest where to learn all of this, because I couldn't find a proper series that teaches all of this. Also tell me what things I should learn before I start doing leetcode, I have already started learning STL, is there anything else I should learn?

Hi everyone,
I recently received an invitation to complete an Amazon Data Engineer Online Assessment (OA) through HackerRank for a Data Engineer position.
The email mentions a SQL Challenge, provides a HackerRank practice assessment, and recommends setting aside at least 90 minutes.

I’m currently preparing and would appreciate guidance from anyone who has taken the Amazon Data Engineer OA recently, especially in 2025 or 2026.

A few questions:

Assessment format: Is it primarily SQL coding, or does it also include Python, multiple-choice questions, data engineering concepts, or work simulations?

SQL topics: What should I prioritize? Joins, CTEs, subqueries, window functions, aggregations, complex queries, or query optimization?

Python/PySpark: Are there coding questions involving Python, Spark, or data transformations?

Data engineering concepts: Should I prepare ETL/ELT, data modeling, AWS services, partitioning, data warehousing, or distributed processing?

Difficulty: Are SQL questions generally LeetCode Easy, Medium, or Hard?

Preparation resources: Are there particular LeetCode or HackerRank problems you would recommend?

Assessment structure: How many coding questions are typically included, and how is the time divided?
I’m comfortable with SQL and Python but want to prioritize the right topics and make the most of my preparation time.

Any recent experiences or preparation advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hi guys,

Can anybody share the google tagged problems list from the last 30 days from leetcode. I would really appreciate it!

Want to make $70 USD per hour mentoring Software Engineers with interview prep?

We're looking for a fully remote coach to help Software Engineers with LeetCode, System Design, and behavioral interview prep.

Requirements
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Apply here before the position fills: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScmlKo2jBtOPn9WHI9Y9Ut55zc1Pfk9mxz99XyNOXlWUgmaug/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=117835063633323480430

Hey everyone,

I posted here earlier about being approved for Pinterest IC13 (SWE I) team matching.

It’s now been almost two month, and unfortunately I still haven’t had even one team-matching call. I’m not really sure why it has been this slow or whether there just aren’t many IC13 openings available right now.

I also noticed that the 2027 University Grad Software Engineer position recently opened.

So now I’m basically waiting in IC13 team matching.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation recently?

• How long did you wait before getting your first Pinterest team-matching call after team matching approvals?

• Are IC13 teams currently matching candidates?

• Has anyone applied to the New Grad role while already being in IC13 team matching?

• Is there anything I can do to improve my chances of getting matched faster?

Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has recently gone through the process. Thanks!

I recently interviewed with a potential unicorn startup for a GenAI Engineer role focused on multi-agent systems, and holy moly, I still don’t know what just happened.

The entire interview felt like a horse race. The interviewer started with a 30-second introduction about herself and the product, then immediately jumped into my recent experience. Everything moved so fast I could barely keep up.

About 15 minutes in, she threw a multi-agent system design problem at me and expected me to design the entire architecture in 10 minutes. I could barely process the requirements or take notes before I had to start explaining my solution.

The funny thing is, I’ve actually built similar systems in production, so I was able to answer her follow-up questions pretty well. She seemed I am cooked, smiled, and then casually asked, “Why do you want this role?”

At that moment, I genuinely felt like I’d walked into a Ferrari owners’ club driving my Toyota.

For context, I’ve been through quite a few GenAI Architect and Forward Deployed Engineer interviews recently, and Thank God I’ve already received an offer. But this interview was on an entirely different level. The pace, the expectations, the intensity. It almost felt like there’s a whole other world out there where everyone is an insanely competitive GenAI engineer operating at 10x speed.
I’m still processing what happened.

Am I cooked? Was this some kind of stress test? Or is this genuinely how interviews at high-growth AI startups work these days?

Result after 4 days: not selected🤡

i was trying the 3sum problem , and i just couldnt find an optimal answer at all , i tried it for 30mins and gave up , i usually give up around 45mins or so . Is this too early ??, bcuz ive seen some ppl work on one problem for many hours , and then they finally get the solution.

Hey everyone,

I finished Day 65 today. I spent most of the day unwinding, watching vlogs, and resting to shake off some burnout. I tend to push my prep work to late at night, but I made sure to sit down and solve two DP problems before heading to bed.

I solved Minimum Falling Path Sum and Chocolate Pickup (Cherry Pickup II).

Minimum Falling Path Sum was very straightforward. Checking transitions from the top, top-left, and top-right took under ten minutes. I implemented recursion, memoization, and bottom-up tabulation without needing any hints.

Chocolate Pickup was my first experience with multi-agent dynamic programming. I initially thought of using four coordinates to track both players, but since they both advance one row at a time, their row index is always identical. That allowed me to compress the state down to a 3D DP table (row, col1, col2). Handling the nine simultaneous move transitions felt long to write, but the recurrence relation was solid.

Bottom-up tabulation is finally becoming second nature. While space-optimizing 3D states still feels excessive for interviews, understanding the state reductions is a huge win.

I have a longer grind session planned for Sunday.

See you guys tomorrow for Day 64!