Meta E5 Phone Screen
- Posted
- 12 Jun 2025
Summary
I completed a phone screen with Meta, where I was given two LeetCode questions. I fumbled on the first one due to an off-by-one error in my binary search logic, but performed well on the second, only needing an edge case and a minor optimization pointed out. I am hoping for a 3/4 score to advance to the next round.
How it went
Gonna give back to the community, got the two following qs for my phone screen https://leetcode.com/problems/random-pick-with-weight https://leetcode.com/problems/valid-word-abbreviation/
The first one I fumbled on; I found some edge cases, got buy-in, explained my thought process, etc. In retrospect (after the interview) I realized I updated my binary search variables incorrectly which resulted in an off by one error, just not for any of the test cases I wrote.
The second one was pretty good, I did the most optimal solution, but needed an edge case pointed out to me + a slight optimization I could make.
I'm hoping for a 3/4 score, which means I could go to the next round, but we shall see. I'm nervous about my off by one fumble and the optimization miss. We shall see.
Questions asked (2)
- 01
Random Pick with Weight
Data Structures & Algorithms
Open the problemI fumbled on this problem. I found some edge cases, got buy-in, and explained my thought process. In retrospect, I realized I updated my binary search variables incorrectly, resulting in an off-by-one error that was not caught by the test cases I wrote.
- 02
Valid Word Abbreviation
Data Structures & Algorithms
Open the problemThis question went pretty well. I implemented the most optimal solution, but needed an edge case pointed out to me and a slight optimization suggested.
How they prepared
My prep:
Mimer 50 and Meta Top 50 tagged, made sure I could do all of them in under 5 mins. Did the top 85 on LC for Meta tagged as well. Took me maybe two months, if I get to the next round I will do some more!