I am a pre-final year student from a tier 2 college with no prior work experience, and I secured this opportunity through an on-campus drive. On November 1st, 2022, I registered for the UBS SDE Summer Intern 2023 program, which saw approximately 3000 applicants.

Online Assessment Round

Out of 3000 applicants, about 1500 were selected for the OA, likely based on CGPA and branch. The assessment was held on November 2nd. It consisted of 20-25 MCQs covering CN, DBMS, OS, and DSA, all of easy-moderate difficulty. The coding question was LeetCode easy level: I had to rearrange the bits of one binary input to maximize its XOR with another given binary input.

Interview Round

The OA results were announced on November 5th, and I was among the 40 shortlisted students out of 1500. My video interview with two UBS executives (a Director and an Associate Director) was scheduled for November 9th. The interviewers were incredibly friendly and made me feel very comfortable, even allowing me ample time to rejoin when I faced network issues. The interview began with my self-introduction.

They immediately moved on to the projects listed on my resume. I had a QR-Based Medical Application project built with Flutter (app), React (website), MongoDB, Node.js, and Python, where QR codes identified doctors. They repeatedly asked why I chose Flutter over React for the mobile application and the advantages of using Flutter/React over native options like Java/Swift. I also discussed potential replacements for QR codes for identification, suggesting Face Recognition and Fingerprint scanning, which seemed to satisfy them.

Here are some other questions I was asked:

• Why did you use MongoDB and not SQL?
  I explained that I used MongoDB because I was storing hierarchical data.
• I see that you have C++ listed as your first skill. Are they sorted in any order or mentioned randomly?
  I clarified that I intentionally placed C++ first because it was the language that introduced me to coding in 8th grade, sparking my passion for Computer Science.
• What are some languages other than C++ that use the concept of OOPs?
  I listed Java, Python, and Javascript.
• What are the advantages of using Python?
  I mentioned its easy syntax, suitability for beginners, and syntax closely matching natural language.
• How is garbage collection in Python different from that of C++?
  Initially, I couldn't recall the answer, but the interviewers were very supportive. They gave me hints, specifically mentioning pointers in C++, which helped me remember and correctly answer that Python lacks pointers, necessitating automatic garbage collection. We even shared a fun moment when I got it right.
• Explain the concept of Encapsulation.
  I don't have my full answer to this written down here.

Towards the end, they moved to HR questions:

• What do you know about UBS as a company?
  I was well-prepared, thanks to GFG interview experiences. I discussed its former full form, headquarters location, current CEO, foundation date, what the company does, and even the meaning of the three keys in their logo. This seemed to impress them.
• Why do you want to intern at UBS?
  I provided my reasons, which they seemed satisfied with.

They also asked some lighter, random questions like my last watched movie/TV series (I admitted I don't watch much) and my favorite guitar chord (as I had mentioned playing guitar). The entire interview went exceptionally well, and I felt hopeful for an offer.

On November 22nd, the final selection results were mailed, and I was among the 16 selected candidates.