Amazon | SDE1 | Feb 2025 | Offer

My journey for the SDE1 role at Amazon began with an interview invitation received on February 21, leading to rounds conducted between February 24 and March 3. The entire process was eliminatory, consisting of several stages rigorously testing both technical prowess and alignment with Amazon's Leadership Principles.

R1: DSA + Leadership Principles (Feb 24)

This round was conducted by an SDE3 with extensive experience. I was presented with two data structure and algorithm problems:

• Q1: Print Zig-Zag in a Binary Tree
• Q2: Largest BST in a Binary Tree

I successfully solved both problems, articulating my approach clearly, writing the complete code, and performing a thorough dry run. I also discussed the time and space complexities involved. This round concluded with a pass.

R2: DSA + Leadership Principles (Feb 26)

This round was rescheduled and involved two interviewers, one an SDE1 and another with significant experience. The problems I encountered were:

• Q1: Modified Two Sum problem
• Q2: Keys and Rooms (Graph)

Similar to the first round, I managed to solve both problems, explained my thought process, coded them out fully, and performed a dry run while analyzing their time and space complexities. I passed this round as well.

R3: Bar Raiser (Mar 3)

The final round was with a Bar Raiser, a long-tenured Amazonian from the business team. This round was exclusively dedicated to Amazon's Leadership Principles and behavioral questions. I addressed approximately 6-7 questions and their follow-ups. While I felt reasonably confident, I would rate my performance around a 7-8 out of 10. Nonetheless, I successfully cleared this round.

Overall, the interview process felt very streamlined. The technical rounds had a clear emphasis on DSA and LPs, while the bar raiser was purely behavioral. I believe my technical performance was strong, and I performed decently in the LP discussions. After a couple of days, I received the offer!