Meta Onsite E5 Infra
Summary
Had a Meta onsite E5 interview which included coding, AI, and system design rounds. The AI round was particularly challenging and had a negative impact on the overall experience.
Full Experience
Started with a coding round where I was asked to merge three sorted arrays and then solve the Binary Tree Right Side View problem. The interviewer was very supportive, asking me to explain my code and how I would test it.
In the AI round, I was given a problem where I had to find a subset of words that uses as many characters as possible without repeating any letters. The hint suggested using DFS, but the interviewer wasn't helpful, leading me to focus on passing unit tests. I managed to solve the first two but struggled with the third and fourth, and the interviewer's guidance was unclear.
The system design round involved designing Instagram with posts, images, and friends, and the interviewer asked about consistent hashing and handling high read traffic for the feed service.
The behavioral round covered conflicts with coworkers, negative feedback from managers, and handling ambiguous requirements. The AI round was a significant setback, affecting the overall outcome.
Interview Questions (4)
Given three sorted arrays, merge them into a single sorted array.
Given a binary tree, return the values of the nodes visible when viewed from the right side of the tree.
Given a list of words, find a subset that uses as many characters as possible without repeating any letter. The solution should use DFS and pass all unit tests.
Design a system for Instagram that handles posts, images, and friends. The interviewer asked about consistent hashing and strategies for handling high read traffic for the feed service.