Amazon SWE 2 Interview | Verdict : [Rejected]
- Posted
- 20 Mar 2026
Summary
I underwent a 5-round interview process for a Software Engineer 2 position at Amazon, which included DSA, LLD, HLD, and behavioral questions. Despite my best efforts, I was ultimately rejected, but I remain committed to improving and grinding for future opportunities.
How it went
Will keep it short. There were 5 rounds in the process.
1st OA: 2 medium/hard DSA questions
2nd DSA Round:
1st question → Sliding window optimized approach (Brute force: recursion/DP).
2nd question → 2D DP.
Verdict: +ve
3rd Round (LLD + DSA): Designed a Rate Limiter (gave the sliding window solution; for million users, missed Token Bucket) + Monotonic Stack question
Verdict: -ve
4th Round (HLD): Designed a CheerCoin system (I didn't understand what went wrong, but I saw this question for the first time. Might have missed something.)
Verdict: -ve
5th Round (Bar Raiser): 30 mins LP questions with deep grilling about past projects + LLD round to design max concurrent users logged in at the same time
Verdict: +ve
Good experience, although I felt I gave my best. Didn’t get the offer this time, but will keep grinding until then!!
Questions asked (5)
- 01
Design a Rate Limiter
System Design
I was asked to design a Rate Limiter system. I proposed a sliding window solution; however, I realized I missed discussing the Token Bucket approach, which would be more suitable for handling millions of users.
- 02
Monotonic Stack Question
Data Structures & Algorithms
I was given a Data Structures & Algorithms question that specifically required the application of a Monotonic Stack.
- 03
Design a CheerCoin System
System Design
I was tasked with designing a CheerCoin system. This was a new problem for me, and I felt I didn't fully grasp what the interviewer was looking for, potentially missing key aspects.
- 04
Leadership Principles and Past Projects
Behavioral
The Bar Raiser round included 30 minutes of Leadership Principles (LP) questions, which involved deep grilling about my past projects and experiences.
- 05
Design Max Concurrent Users Logged In
System Design
In an LLD round, I was asked to design a system capable of tracking and managing the maximum number of concurrent users logged in at any given time.
How they prepared
Preparation strategy:
DSA: LeetCode
LLD: Studied using ChatGPT
HLD: HelloInterview
Practice mocks: TryExponent
All the best everyone!!