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Microsoft | L62 | Hyderabad | Offer

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Introduction

In April 2024, I had the opportunity to interview with Microsoft for the position of SDE 2 (L62). Having 6.3 years of prior experience as a SSE at a product-based MNC, I was excited to explore this new opportunity. Here’s a detailed account of my interview journey.

Application and Initial Contact

After applying to over 30 job IDs through referrals, I swiftly received the online assessment link. Within a week, I found myself preparing for four rounds of rigorous interviews.

  • Company: Microsoft
  • Position: SDE 2 (L62)
  • Interview Dates: April 2024
  • Offer Date: May 2024

Online Assessment

  • Question 1:
    This question delved into manipulating a 2D matrix with prefix sums, posing a formidable challenge.

  • Question 2:
    This question was based on sorting 2 lists and then finding the maximum possible answer with a given K.

Round 1: DSA (1 hr)

  • Question 1:
    Given n friends, each one can remain single or can be paired up with some other friend. Each friend can be paired only once. Find out the total number of ways in which friends can remain single or can be paired up.

  • Question 2:
    This was an unseen question, I don't remember the question correctly, but given a set of elements and a scoring function, the goal is to find the subsequence that maximizes the score while satisfying a specified constraint..
    Approach: Sorting + Min heap

  • Question 3:
    Find Prime Numbers in the most optimized way(Sieve Theorem)

  • This round concluded on a high note, leaving a strong impression on the interviewer.
    \xA0
    Round 2: Low Level Design (1.5 hrs)

  • Question 1:
    Design LLD for a board game similar to that of Sudoku. Implement all the classes, interfaces etc.
    Implementation of filling all the cells
    Approach: I wrote all the classes, and fully working code of filling all the cells.

  • Question 2:
    Design a generic cache class, using the principles of OOPS to create a flexible and extensible solution.
    Extend this cache class and write the implementation of LRU Cache
    Approach: Discussed the possible algorithms and wrote fully working code of both the questions.

  • This round went well, Personal verdict: Strong Hire

Round 3: Principal Architect, High Level Design (1 hr)

  • Question: Design Cricbuzz
    This was an interesting problem because the interviewer gave me a lot of requirements after I asked about them like no of users, scale issues etc. He asked a lot of follow up questions and wanted precise answers.

  • This round also went extremely well, Personal verdict: Strong Hire

Round 4: Hiring Manager, DSA + High Level Design (2 hrs)

  • Question 1:
    I was asked to discuss a problem statement in my current project and the technical solution for it in granular mode. Hence it turned into a technical discussion about the scope of the problem, business case, coding, deployment etc. Was asked some questions related to solving it differently, what could 've been done better, enhancements and all. Since this was a complete microservices & Kafka project, I had to explain the entire ecosystem as well where it fits.
    Then followed some questions on NFRs and design to give an idea of High Level Architecture of the same. Also some questions related to Kafka and why it was chosen.

  • Question 2:
    Print 1 to 100 using 3 threads
    Write implementation of thread Safe Singleton class
    Approach: I struggled to print using 3 threads, I was able to print using 2 threads.

  • Question 3:
    Given the root of a binary tree, return the zigzag level order traversal of its nodes' values. (i.e., from left to right, then right to left for the next level and alternate between).

  • Question 4:
    Design an OTP service. It could have multiple places for generating OTPs. Each service that requests for the OTP should get an OTP each OTP should be unique for User and service.
    Approach:\xA0 Spent most of the time in HLD discussion, and covered a lot of cases. Major questions regarding scalability, how to generate unique OTP, DB design, which microservices will be created etc.

  • Though I encountered a minor setback in the threading question, I navigated through all the other problems, leaving a positive impression on the hiring manager, Personal verdict: Hire

Result
Following the intense scrutiny of the Hiring Manager round, I found myself consumed by a mix of anticipation and apprehension. However, the wait proved worthwhile when the much-awaited "hire" confirmation arrived a week later, bringing a sense of fulfillment and marking the successful culmination of my journey with the Microsoft interview process.

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