I applied through an employee referral. I interviewed at Microsoft
Interview
- Call with Recruiter, this was just a get to know you and for them to understand my background.
- 1 hour Phone screen, technical with a software engineer,
- 4 hour on site, four different interviews 45 mins back to back with at least 10 min break between
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
1. Given a Boolean 2D matrix, find the number of islands
2. Look up an element in a 2D array
3. Sorting larger file with smaller RAM
4. System design I just went through the pervious system I worked on and discuss aspects related to security, scalability and reliability
I applied online. I interviewed at Microsoft (Melbourne)
Interview
After submitting an online application, I received a HackerRank assessment after passing the resume screening stage, then I was rejected after completing the assessment and did not proceed to further interview rounds.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
The assessment consisted of two LeetCode-medium-level coding questions to be completed within 75 minutes.
45 mins technical interview with a member of their San fran team. Very relaxed and informal but questions were focused and lots of follow ups. Easy to schedule as was over video conferencing platform
Straightforward technical loop overall, with strong interviewers at every stage. I genuinely enjoyed the in-depth conversations around technical challenges and algorithmic problem-solving — the entire process felt well-structured and genuinely engaging.