Google Software Engineer Interview Experience
Google · Mid level
Interview process
The overall interview process was really good. Both interviewers were experienced and made the rounds feel more like technical discussions than just solving a problem. In the first round, we discussed different approaches to the binary tree problem, along with their tradeoffs, time and space complexity. In the second round, we explored multiple variations of the router problem, which tested both problem solving and code design.
What went well was that I could come up with optimised solutions, write working code, and explain my thought process clearly. I also enjoyed discussing how to make the code flexible enough to handle changing requirements. Overall, I felt comfortable with the discussions and was able to address the variations we covered. I don't think anything went particularly poorly, though I could always improve on how quickly I explore edge cases and communicate tradeoffs.
Interview rounds · 1
- 1
Technical round
CodingQ1. Find Leaves Of Binary Tree
How they answeredWe started with this question and I gave the optimised solution and working code with 15-20 mins. Then we moved on to multiple variations of this about the ways we can delete the leaves and what would be pros and cons.
The interviewer then asked me to code up of the variations and also note down the time and space complexity.
He was quite impressed with my answers here and asked me to note those points down in the doc so that they have my ideas documented for feedback.
Q2. Question: https://leetcode.com/discuss/interview-question/2064646/google-screening-interview-question-may-2022
How they answeredThe question was a variation of this question. Intially all routers had same range, then different range. Range was also unbounded. Then we moved to a variation where src and dest are not in the list.
Then a variation where multiple queries would be run for different source and dest. Pre-compute was required here.
There 1-2 more variations we covered and discussed the approaches for.
One variation was where some routers were swtiched off and couldn't transmit.
The interviewer clearly told me the expectations at the begining of the inter view. They were - Optimised algorithm, Working code and OOPs based class structure of the router and other model i use.
He was also focusing on how much change my code required to accomodate the changes for each variation.
Variable names and how I break computations into different fuctions was also evaluated here I guess.
I had answered all the queries he had and also the time and space complexity of each of the approaches/variations.
At the end, he said we covered quite a few scenarios. It was a good discussion
Tips from the candidate
I would recommend practising medium to hard DSA problems and, more importantly, their variations. Don't stop once you have the optimal solution. Think about how the solution would change with new constraints, what alternative approaches are possible, and what tradeoffs they involve. Be comfortable explaining time and space complexity, writing clean working code, and structuring it using good OOP principles where relevant. Also, practise communicating your reasoning as you solve the problem, because the discussion around your approach matters just as much as the final solution.
Company culture
What stood out to me was the interviewers' technical depth and the way they approached the discussions. They gave clear expectations at the beginning and encouraged exploring different approaches instead of rushing through the problem. The conversations felt collaborative, and I appreciated that the interviewers acknowledged good ideas and gave room to discuss tradeoffs. It left me with a positive impression of the engineering culture.