PayU | SDE [Backend Java] | Gurugram | Oct 2023 [Reject]
Summary
I interviewed for an SDE [Backend Java] role at PayU in Gurugram, Haryana, in October 2023. With 3 years of experience, I completed DSA and System Design rounds but ultimately received a rejection.
Full Experience
I went through a two-round interview process for the SDE [Backend Java] position at PayU. The first round was focused on Data Structures and Algorithms, where I tackled questions involving array manipulation and flattening a nested list. The second round delved into technical discussion, presenting challenges such as finding the next greater number with the same digits and a detailed system design problem for a loan assessment job scheduler. I engaged actively, providing my best answers and addressing all follow-up questions on scalability, query optimization, data structure, and latency during the system design discussion.
Interview Questions (5)
Two Sum Problem
Given an array and a target number x, check if there are two numbers in the array that sum up to x.
Example:
arr = [9, 4, 10, 13, 5, 3, 6]
x = ? (can be any given number)
Check if the sum of two numbers in the array will be x or not?
Segregate Zeroes to End Inplace
Segregate all zeroes towards the end of the array using inplace operation. An extra array cannot be used.
Input: [0, -7, 2, 11, 0, 0, 0, 13, 12, 0]
Output: [-7, 2, 11, 13, 12, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0]
Flatten Nested List and Calculate Weighted Sum
Flatten the nested list and return the calculated output. The calculation seems to imply a weighted sum based on nesting level.
Input: [5, [6, 7, [8], 4]]
Output Example: 5 * 1 + (6 + 7 + 8*3 + 4) * 2 = ?
Next Greater Number with Same Digits
Find the next greater number with the same set of digits.
Examples:
123456 -> 123465
54321 -> -1
Job Scheduler for Loan Assessments System Design
Design a job scheduler to automate the process of running loan assessments for 1 million users on certain dates of a month at PayU. The system needs to fulfill the following requirements:
- The business team should be able to configure the frequency/dates of the run.
- Our system should run assessments on the specified dates and save the assessment response in the database.
- Our system should be able to scale for a growing number of users and handle failures effectively.
Assumption: We do not have to build the internals of the "assessment" process; that is already handled. Assume that assessment is a function already built into your service.