Amazon | SDE-1 | Selected | Full-Time Interview Experience
Summary
I successfully navigated multiple interview rounds to secure an SDE-1 role at Amazon, starting from an internship application that eventually led to a full-time offer.
Full Experience
I am a 2022 graduate from a Tier 3 college with a background in Information Technology, having dedicated over a year to practicing Data Structures and Algorithms.
My journey to Amazon began when I applied for a 6-month internship in October 2021. I successfully cleared the online assessment and received the test link. Initially, Amazon didn't contact me for interviews until January 2022, at which point they considered me for a full-time SDE-1 role instead of the internship.
Online Assessment
The online assessment consisted of two medium-level DSA problems. Unfortunately, I cannot recall the exact questions, but one involved a priority queue and the other was related to trees.
Round 1
This round was scheduled in February 2022. The interviewer started with an introduction, and then asked about my background. Following that, I was presented with two DSA questions and was expected to write production-level code. The first question was about Detecting a cycle in a linked list and then removing it. The second question involved Sorting an array containing 0s, 1s, and 2s. I found this round quite easy, and the interviewer was very supportive.
Round 2
A week later, Round 2 was scheduled. The process was similar to the previous one, focusing on two more DSA questions. The first question was Container with most water, for which I was asked to discuss two approaches and then code one. The second question was Spiral Matrix traversal. I considered this round to be of easy-medium difficulty.
After Round 2, there was a three-month waiting period before Amazon scheduled my next round.
Round 3
The interviewer for this round was a Software Development Manager. After mutual introductions, they inquired about my current and previous work experiences and companies. This was followed by several behavioral questions. While I can't recall the precise wording, they were related to topics like, "Mention about a time when you over-delivered from someone's expectations" and "Mention about a time when you failed". With only 30 minutes remaining, I was then given a combined DSA and design question: Serialize and Deserialize Binary Tree. I initially struggled a bit, but the interviewer was helpful, and I managed to solve it with 10 minutes to spare.
A week after this final round, I received an email from Amazon confirming my selection for the SDE-1 role.
Interview Questions (7)
I was asked to detect a cycle in a linked list and then remove it.
I had to sort an array containing only 0s, 1s, and 2s.
The interviewer presented the 'Container With Most Water' problem and requested two different approaches, then asked me to code one of them.
I was given the 'Spiral Matrix' problem, which involves traversing a matrix in a spiral order.
I was asked to describe a time when I exceeded someone's expectations.
The interviewer asked me to share an experience where I faced failure.
I was given the problem to serialize and deserialize a binary tree.
Preparation Tips
I dedicated over a year to practicing Data Structures and Algorithms. My advice for interviews is to always communicate your thoughts with the interviewer; it's okay if you don't immediately know the answer, just show you're trying and are close, as they might assist you. Additionally, I always made sure to ask some questions to my interviewer at the end of each round.