My Nike Interview Experience
Summary
I recently interviewed with Nike, where I encountered a blend of DSA, Java fundamentals, and deep discussions on language concepts. I did not proceed with further rounds as I accepted a promotion at my current company.
Full Experience
I recently had an interview with Nike, which turned out to be a good mix of Data Structures & Algorithms, Java fundamentals, and in-depth discussions on language concepts. It was an interesting experience where I tackled several challenging problems and discussed core Java behaviors. Ultimately, I did not proceed with the next rounds because I received a promotion at my current company.
Interview Questions (4)
Two Sum in One Pass
Given an array and a number k, determine if any two numbers add up to k. The catch was to solve it in one pass using a HashMap. Example: [10,15,3,7], k=17 → true (10+7)
HashMap Behavior with Custom hashCode/equals
A fun scenario where a Student class had hashCode() always returning 1. We explored how all keys land in the same bucket, how equals() resolves collisions, and how HashMap handles such skewed distributions.
Java Pass-by-Value vs. Pass-by-Reference Implications
We discussed how passing obj.x (primitive) doesn’t change the original value, while passing the object modifies its internal state. A classic Java trick snippet was presented with a final output of 1.
Product of Array Except Self (No Division)
Another interesting problem: build an output array where each element is the product of all other elements except itself, without using division.
Preparation Tips
My preparation involved a mix of DSA problems, focusing on common patterns and optimizing for time and space complexity. I also delved into Java fundamentals, including core concepts like HashMap internal workings and pass-by-value mechanisms, to be ready for deep-dive discussions.