Amazon | SDE 1 | India | Bangalore | July 2022 | New Grad | [Offer] [Accepted]
Summary
I successfully interviewed for an SDE 1 position at Amazon, receiving an offer after three challenging rounds that included various Data Structures & Algorithms problems and behavioral questions.
Full Experience
I applied to Amazon 73 times, primarily through referrals on their career portal, and received OA links 8-10 times. Coming from a Tier-3 college, which often sees only mass recruiters, landing an interview at Amazon was a significant step for me. I received my Online Assessment link in February 2022, where I solved two simple DSA questions within 15-20 minutes, followed by a Work Life Assessment.
My first interview round was in the first week of July 2022 with an SDE-2. After introductions, I was asked two DSA questions: Sudoku Solver and a problem very similar to Flower Planting With No Adjacent. I efficiently solved both. Towards the end, I asked the interviewer about his experience working at Amazon at such a high scale, given his background from a small-scale startup.
The second round, scheduled two days later, was with an SDE-1. She also started with introductions, then moved to a LeetCode Hard problem: Shortest Path in a Grid with Obstacles Elimination. Having solved this before, I directly presented the optimal solution, explained my approach, and wrote the code, which worked well. This round also included two behavioral LP questions: 'Tell me about a time when you helped someone grow but did not benefit them' and 'Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond your job responsibilities.' I concluded by asking her about Amazon's approach to employee growth and rewards in a large organization.
My third and final round, the Bar Raiser, was scheduled two weeks after the second round with an SDM (Manager) who had 20 years of experience. He asked for optimal solutions only. The DSA problems were LeetCode Hard - Race Car, which I solved in 15 minutes due to prior practice, and a medium-difficulty DP problem, Longest Line of Consecutive One in Matrix, which I completed in 20 minutes with code and explanation. Two behavioral LP questions followed: 'How do you analyze risk? Tell me a time when you took the risk' and 'How can you deliver results on time if the required thing is not known to you?' He also inquired about my current company work. I reiterated my question from the previous round regarding employee growth and rewards. Throughout all interviews, I was consistently asked about time and space complexity.
The verdict arrived on the same day as the Bar Raiser round; I received a call from HR at night confirming my selection for the SDE-1 position. Finally, I made it into FAANG! I felt these problems were quite hard for an SDE-1, but as the saying goes, 'When luck is bad, even Amazon can ask you DP problems.' This experience reinforced the importance of being prepared for the worst case, especially coming from a Tier-3 college.
Interview Questions (9)
Tell me about a time when you helped someone grow or achieve something, but you personally did not directly benefit from it.
Describe a situation where you went above and beyond your defined job responsibilities to achieve a goal or help someone.
How do you analyze risk? Describe a time when you took a calculated risk and what the outcome was.
Explain how you would deliver results on time if the required information or solution is not initially known to you.
Preparation Tips
I had solved over 900+ problems on LeetCode. My strategy was to be prepared for the worst-case scenarios, especially given my background from a Tier-3 college. My prior practice with specific LeetCode problems, like Sudoku Solver, Shortest Path in a Grid with Obstacles Elimination, and Race Car, proved invaluable in the interviews.