Round 1
Questions: The interview started with a simple trie problem, which was then expanded to include an additional data structure in the second part.
Candidate's Approach
The candidate solved both parts optimally and felt they showcased their problem-solving skills effectively. They finished the coding portion early and had time to ask the interviewer about their experience at Google.
Interviewer's Feedback
The interviewer was impressed with the candidate's approach.
Round 2
Questions: This was an OOP-style interview focused on designing a class with specific methods and data structures optimized for time complexity. It was a mix between InsertDeleteGetRandomO1 and LRU Cache.
Candidate's Approach
The candidate felt confident while working through the problem but initially missed a minor detail in the problem statement, leading to some over-optimization. The interviewer allowed them to continue despite this.
Interviewer's Feedback
The feedback was positive, indicating a good performance overall.
Round 3
Questions: This interview featured an array problem that the candidate hadn't encountered before. The unique twists made it difficult to categorize.
Candidate's Approach
The candidate quickly coded a brute-force solution but struggled to arrive at the optimal approach without guidance. They managed to code a basic version of the optimal solution just in time but missed a few edge cases, which made this feel like their weakest performance.
Interviewer's Feedback
The feedback indicated that this round was challenging for the candidate, which might affect their overall outcome.
Round 4
Questions: A standard behavioral interview covering questions about experiences, teamwork, and problem-solving approach.
Candidate's Approach
No approach provided.
Interviewer's Feedback
The feedback was positive, indicating a good performance in behavioral aspects.
Final Thoughts: The experience was a rollercoaster of ups and downs. The candidate recommends staying calm, asking clarifying questions early, and being mindful of time constraints during interviews.