SDE 3(Python) - Paypal || Interview Experience
Summary
I interviewed for an SDE 3 (Python) role at Paypal, passing the online assessment and the first DSA round, but unfortunately, I was rejected after the system design round.
Full Experience
I have 6.2 years of experience and received an email from a recruiter at Paypal regarding an SDE 3 (Python) opportunity, which included a HackerRank link for an Online Assessment.
HackerRank Round - 3 hours
The HackerRank assessment had 4 questions. The first was on Object-Oriented Programming, which I successfully completed. The second question involved Purchase Optimization, incorporating concepts like prefix sum, binary search, and greedy algorithms, similar to LeetCode problems such as Maximum Number That Sum of the Prices Is Less Than or Equal to K and Maximum Number of Robots Within Budget. I was able to solve this one too. The third part consisted of two MCQs related to Authorization (401 and 403 errors) and the cache-control header, which I also answered correctly. The last question was a hard SQL querying problem, which I unfortunately couldn't attempt. Overall, I solved 3 out of 4 questions and cleared this round.
1st Round - DSA 45 Mins
After clearing the online assessment, I had my first technical round. The interviewer asked me to create a Linked List from a given list of values. Then, I was given a tuple with a value to remove from the Linked List and another to add at a different position, along with the requirement to remove all occurrences of a specific value. I successfully coded and demonstrated the working solution. I was selected for the next round.
2nd Round - System Design 45 Mins
This was the final round, focusing on System Design. The interviewer asked me to design BookMyShow. We discussed the High-Level Design (HLD), but then the conversation shifted to the Low-Level Design (LLD) for the seating arrangement of a screen. I struggled with this part and wasn't able to provide a clear solution. Unfortunately, I was rejected after this round.
Interview Questions (4)
The second question in the HackerRank round was related to Purchase Optimization. It involved different patterns related to prefix sum, binary search, and greedy algorithms. Similar problems on LeetCode are:
Two multiple-choice questions were asked, related to Authorization (specifically 401 and 403 errors) and the cache-control header.
Given a list of values, I was asked to create a Linked List. Subsequently, a tuple was provided containing a value to remove from the Linked List and another value to add at a different place. The task also involved removing all occurrences of a specific value from the Linked List.
I was asked to design the system for BookMyShow. We covered the High-Level Design (HLD), but the interviewer specifically asked for the Low-Level Design (LLD) for the seating arrangement of a screen.