119 questions · from 15 interviews · 1 asked more than once
Morgan Stanley interview questions
Every question candidates reported from their Morgan Stanley interviews, most frequently asked first. Each links to the write-up it came from, so you can see the round and how it went.
Morgan Stanley coding and DSA questions
- 01
House Robber
I encountered a problem similar to 'House Robber I', though its exact wording was different.
Medium · Asked 2 times · From 📍📍 Morgan Stanley (Code to Give) Online Assessment Questions
- 02
XOR Array Traversal
Problem based on XOR operation combined with array traversal. The solution passed all 15 test cases in the coding section of the online assessment.
- 03
3D Knapsack Problem
A 3‑dimensional knapsack problem was presented in the coding section of the online assessment. The solution passed all 22 test cases.
- 04
Generate Strings of Length ≥3 from Given Characters
Given a vector ['a','b','c','d','e'], generate all possible strings formed with these characters where the string length is at least 3. I solved this using recursion and backtracking during the technical interview round.
- 05
Group Anagrams
I was asked a LeetCode question related to grouping anagrams.
- 06
Multithreaded File Processing
How to scale more than 100 threads efficiently in Java. Write a program that reads a file and writes in a different file using multithreading/concurrent programming.
- 07
HashMap Internal Working
Explain the internal working of Java's HashMap.
- 08
Anagrams and its Variations
Discuss problems related to identifying anagrams of strings and their various common problem variations.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 09
Spiral Matrix Traversal
Given a matrix, print its elements in spiral order.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 10
Find Max in Matrix using Threads
Design a multithreaded solution to find the highest number in a randomly generated matrix.
Hard · From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 11
Next Permutation
Given an array, find its next lexicographically greater permutation.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience | Associate
- 12
Next Taller Height Index Difference
Given an array of heights, for each element find differences of indices to the next taller height. If no taller height, return -1 for the element.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience | Associate
- 13
Password List Validation
You were given a list of passwords and had to filter valid ones based on specific rules: - Password is valid if: - Length is greater than 5 - It must not contain only characters or only digits ⚠️ Tricky part: Passwords with only special characters (like @$%)…
From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 14
Closest Number to Average in Array
Given an array of integers of positive numbers. Find the closest number with average of those numbers
Medium · From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience
- 15
Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock (Indices)
Given the closing prices of a stock on a given day. Find the buying and selling day to maximize the profit. eg: 12, 5, 15, 22 output: [1, 3]
Medium · From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience
- 16
- 17
Build a Carousel Component
I was asked to build a carousel component as a live coding task.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley | Senior Software Developer
- 18
JavaScript 'this' Context with Call Method
let object1 = { name: 'ABC', age: 20, callingFunction: function(){ console.log(this.name, this.age) } } let object2 = { name: 'XYZ', age: 29, } object1.callingFunction.call(object2); What will be the output of this JavaScript code?
Easy · From Morgan Stanley | Senior Software Developer
- 19
JavaScript Octal Literal Interpretation
let value = 010101011000111010101011; What will be the output (value)?
Easy · From Morgan Stanley | Senior Software Developer
- 20
Shortest Subarray to Be Removed to Make Array Sorted
The task was to find the number of subarrays that could be removed such that the remaining array became strictly increasing and non-empty.
Medium · From 📍📍 Morgan Stanley (Code to Give) Online Assessment Questions
- 21
Subarrays with K Different Integers
This problem asked me to find subarrays with exactly k different integers, presented with different wording than the standard LeetCode problem.
Hard · From 📍📍 Morgan Stanley (Code to Give) Online Assessment Questions
- 22
Merge Intervals
Given a collection of intervals, merge all overlapping intervals. For example, merge [1,3] and [2,6] into [1,6] .
Medium · From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 23
Level Order Tree Traversal
Given the root of a binary tree, traverse and print its nodes level by level, meaning all nodes at the current depth are processed before moving to the next depth.
Easy · From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 24
LFU Cache
Design and implement a data structure for a Least Frequently Used (LFU) cache. I discussed my approach based on variations of the LRU Cache problem, and then performed a dry run for provided test cases.
Hard · From Morgan Stanley | Technology Analyst | US | July 2023
- 25
Count the Number of Ideal Arrays
I initially proposed a recursion-based solution, but the interviewer hinted at a mathematical approach due to its time complexity issues. I attempted to adapt it to a DP solution, but it didn't fully satisfy the interviewer.
Hard · From Morgan Stanley | Technology Analyst | US | July 2023
17 more in the Morgan Stanley write-ups.
Morgan Stanley system design questions
- 01
Battleship Game Class Design
Create the classes for a Battleship game.
- 02
Distributed Tracing in Microservices
Explain how to track a request as it flows across multiple microservices in a distributed system, specifically discussing concepts like Distributed Tracing.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 03
API Gateway Responsibilities
Explain the key responsibilities and functions of an API Gateway in a microservices architecture.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 04
Monolithic vs. Microservices Architecture
Compare and contrast Monolithic and Microservices architectures, discussing their pros, cons, and appropriate use cases.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 05
Kubernetes Deployment and Scaling
Discuss the steps involved in deploying applications using Kubernetes, including concepts of scaling and managing instances.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 06
Low-Level Design of a Service
Design a complete service on paper, outlining its architecture from Controller to Service layer, Data Access Object (DAO), and Entity mapping.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 07
LLD: Snake and Ladder Game
Low-Level Design (LLD) discussion of Snake and Ladder Game, focusing on classes, design patterns, and OOP concepts.
- 08
Implement Pagination (Infinite Scrolling & Numbered)
I was asked how I would implement pagination, covering both infinite scrolling and numbered pagination. I explained multiple approaches, covering aspects such as state management, dynamic data loading, and overall user experience. I was later criticized for…
Medium · From Morgan Stanley | Senior Software Developer
- 09
MongoDB vs. SQL Database Choice
Explain your rationale for choosing MongoDB over a traditional SQL database for a project, detailing the advantages and disadvantages for your specific use case.
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 10
SQL vs NoSQL
When would you choose a NoSQL database over a SQL database? Discuss the scenarios and reasons.
From Morgan Stanley | Bangalore | Senior Associate | Mid April 2022 | India
- 11
Handling High Incoming Requests
How would you design a system to handle a large number of incoming requests?
From Morgan Stanley | Bangalore | Senior Associate | Mid April 2022 | India
- 12
Fallback Mechanism Implementation
Explain how you have implemented a fallback mechanism in your previous projects or systems.
From Morgan Stanley | Bangalore | Senior Associate | Mid April 2022 | India
- 13
Remove Duplicate Lines from Large File
Design a system or algorithm to remove duplicate lines from a 10 GB file, given only 2 GB of available memory.
- 14
MongoDB vs. PostgreSQL Comparison
Discuss the differences between MongoDB and PostgreSQL, highlighting the flaws or weaknesses of MongoDB compared to PostgreSQL.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley | Mumbai | 2021 | Macro Strata Team
- 15
Concurrency in MongoDB
Explain how concurrency is achieved in MongoDB.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley | Mumbai | 2021 | Macro Strata Team
- 16
Granular Concurrency in Databases
Describe the single most granular level of concurrency that can be targeted at a database level.
Hard · From Morgan Stanley | Mumbai | 2021 | Macro Strata Team
- 17
Optimize API for Large Sorted Data Stream
How can an API be optimized to send a large stream of sorted numbers efficiently? The API's efficiency is directly dependent on the size of the data sent in the response. Example data: 1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,2,2,9,9, 13,13,13,...
Hard · From Morgan Stanley | Mumbai | 2021 | Macro Strata Team
- 18
Storing Time Series Data
Given time series data structured as {timestamp: array of numbers} , how would you store this data efficiently?
Hard · From Morgan Stanley | Mumbai | 2021 | Macro Strata Team
Morgan Stanley behavioural and HR questions
- 01
Reporting to a Junior Colleague
How would you react if you were asked to report to a colleague who is junior to you in terms of experience or tenure?
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 02
Reaction to Not Being Promoted
How would you react if you were not promoted, especially if you felt you deserved it?
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 03
Problem-Solving Approach
Describe your preferred problem-solving approach: do you attempt to solve problems independently first, or do you seek understanding and input from others before proceeding?
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 04
Career Aspirations and Plans
What are your long-term career aspirations and how do you plan to achieve them?
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 05
Why Morgan Stanley?
What specifically attracts you to Morgan Stanley, and why do you want to join our company?
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 06
Knowledge of Morgan Stanley's Business
What do you know about the business side of Morgan Stanley and its operations?
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 07
Morgan Stanley Core Values
Discuss Morgan Stanley's core values and how you see yourself aligning with them.
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 08
Team Preference: Python vs. C++
If you had the choice between joining a team working primarily with Python and another working with C++, which would you prefer and why?
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 09
Scenario: Sacrificing Ethics
Describe a situation where you had to make a difficult decision that involved potentially compromising your ethics, and how you handled it.
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 10
Interesting Project Incident
Share an interesting or challenging incident that occurred during one of your projects and how you addressed it.
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 11
Scenario: Product Delivery Dilemma
You are working on a team with a one-month deadline to deliver a product to a client, but some critical bugs cannot be removed within this timeframe. You have two options: deliver the product late, or deliver it with known bugs. What would you do and why?
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
- 12
Technology Choices Justification
During project discussions, you may be asked to justify why you chose a particular technology or framework.
From Morgan Stanley | Bangalore | Senior Associate | Mid April 2022 | India
Morgan Stanley other questions
- 01
Spring Security Concepts
The interviewer asked questions related to Spring Security.
- 02
Multithreading Concepts
Questions on multithreading were discussed during the round.
- 03
Build Tools Discussion
Discuss common build tools used in project development.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 04
CI/CD Pipeline Flow
Describe the end-to-end flow of a Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipeline.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 05
SOLID Principles and Real-World Applications
Explain the SOLID principles of object-oriented design and provide examples of their real-world application.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 06
Compare-And-Swap (CAS) in Java
Explain the Compare-And-Swap (CAS) operation in Java, including its usage and benefits in concurrent programming.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 07
Transaction Management in Java
Discuss transaction management concepts and implementations in Java applications.
From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 08
SQL Cartesian Product and Row Count
Given two tables, table1 with 10 rows and table2 with 20 rows, what is the expected output count of SELECT FROM table1, table2 ? Also, what would be the expected output count after deleting 10 rows from table1 ?
Easy · From Morgan Stanley – Interview Experience (Backend Engineer | Java + Microservices)
- 09
Java 17 Features Discussion
Discussion on Java 17 features usage in real-life scenarios.
- 10
Java Version Migration Challenges without Gradle
How to migrate Java version without Gradle, mainly discussing the challenges.
- 11
Kafka Discussion
Discussion on Kafka, including its UI, use case, partitioning, and difference with MQ.
- 12
Multithreaded Batch Processing Deadlock Scenario
Scenario based question on multithreaded batch processing stuck in a deadlock. Identify issues.
- 13
Caches and Real-life Implementation
Discussion on Caches and real-life implementation details, specifically based on my usage.
- 14
Singleton vs. Decorator Pattern
Difference between Singleton and Decorator Pattern.
- 15
Pre-Production Software Checks
Discussion on checks required before taking software to production.
- 16
Exception Handling Discussion
Discussion on Exception handling strategies.
- 17
Database Deadlock Identification and Resolution
How to identify and resolve if a Database goes into a deadlock situation.
- 18
Batch Processing Performance Degradation
Scenario: A batch processing job runs for 15 minutes, now its time increases to 45 minutes. Identification and resolution discussion.
- 19
Java Stack vs. Queue Output Prediction
Code snippet involving Stack vs Queue behavior. You had to predict the correct output based on insertion/removal order.
From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 20
Vector vs. ArrayList Differences
Difference between Vector and ArrayList – mainly around synchronization and performance.
From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 21
Java Exception Hierarchy
Understanding the root cause of the Java Exception hierarchy – concepts of Throwable, Error, and Exception.
From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 22
Java Garbage Collection Basics
Basic Java Garbage Collection question – when objects are eligible for GC, and what makes them unreachable.
From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 23
SQL Query: Emails on Weekends
Two tables were provided: - Table 1: id, email - Table 2: id, date Task: Write a SQL query to fetch email IDs where the associated date falls on a weekend (Saturday/Sunday). Required good understanding of JOIN, DATE functions, and filtering logic.
Medium · From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 24
Java Spring Boot Debugging Task
You were given a small Java web application with: Controller, Service, Repository, Unit tests Objective: Fix the bugs in the code so that all unit tests pass. This tested understanding of Spring Boot annotations, dependency injection, and logic errors.
From Morgan Stanley Online Assessment, April 2025 - Associate Java Backend Hiring (2025)
- 25
Recursive Function Memory Allocation
Given a C function void func(){ int arr[10];} that is called recursively an infinite number of times, and a system with 2 MegaBytes of memory, would this lead to an error or system crash? Explain the underlying memory management.
From Morgan Stanley Interview Experience for Summer Technology Analyst
22 more in the Morgan Stanley write-ups.
Morgan Stanley interview questions FAQ
What questions are asked in Morgan Stanley interviews?
Candidates reported 119 distinct questions across 15 Morgan Stanley interviews. 42 coding and DSA questions, 18 system design questions, 12 behavioural and HR questions, 47 other questions.
Which Morgan Stanley interview questions are asked most often?
The most repeated are "House Robber" (2 times).
How difficult are Morgan Stanley interview questions?
Of the questions candidates rated, 29% were easy, 51% medium and 20% hard.