Experience#49

Google
SWE II | Level : L3
Interview Experience
Summary
📌 Job Role: Software Development Engineer
🔢 Number of Rounds: 6
📜 Offer Status: Offer
📍 Location: Sunnyvale, US
👤 Candidate Name: Not disclosing due to signed NDA
Interview Process:
Google's technical interview process seems to be slightly
different compared to other big tech companies. The interviews
typically begin directly with coding questions, with minimal
emphasis on behavioral or introductory questions. While some
interviewers may briefly ask a behavioral-style question such as
“Tell me about a time when you faced a problem and how you
solved it,” it’s not the focus and usually kept short. In my case, I
didn’t have to go through many behavioral questions until the
final round.

The process consisted of a technical phone screen followed by a

virtual onsite interview. The virtual onsite included five interviews
in total: four technical and one behavioral. The interviews were
scheduled with three back-to-back sessions, followed by a 45-
minute break, and then the remaining two interviews. The
behavioral round was the last one.

After clearing all interviews, the next phase was the team
matching process. Once I was approved by the Hiring Committee
(HC), my recruiter started circulating my profile to teams actively
hiring. This phase can be quite variable in duration—anywhere
from 1 day to 6 months. In my case, I had seven team match
calls. Only one team was interested in me, although I was
interested in five of them. Eventually, I matched with the team
that showed mutual interest and will be joining them soon.
Preparation Guide
I used LeetCode Premium as my main resource. There is a
dedicated section for top tech companies, allowing you to target
the specific types of problems and concepts that are often asked.

Although a subscription is not mandatory—especially if you have

prior experience solving similar problems or are just starting out
—I had about two months to prepare alongside a full-time job
(40+ hrs/week). So, I decided to focus specifically on Google.

Once I completed all the Google-tagged questions, I moved on to

solving high-frequency problems. In the final week of prep, I
avoided learning any new problems. Instead, I revised previously
solved problems and tried to optimize their solutions wherever
possible.
Round 1: Technical
Phone Screen
Duration: 45 minutes
Difficulty Level: Medium

Experience:
This was a 45-minute technical phone screen. I was asked
three coding questions. They were of medium difficulty and
not intended to trip you up. The goal seemed to be assessing
if I could code fluently and explain my thought process. The
questions were similar to:
Open the Lock
Binary Tree Level Order Traversal
I felt like I did quite well in this round. However, it took nearly
a month before I was invited to the virtual onsite. This seems
to be a standard delay in the current hiring process.

Key Learnings:
Be comfortable coding live while clearly explaining your logic.
Practice communication just as much as problem-solving.
Round 2: Coding Round
Duration: 45 minutes
Difficulty Level: Medium

Experience:
The round began with a short behavioral icebreaker. The
interviewer asked a basic “tell me about a challenge you’ve
faced” question, but quickly moved on. This helped me feel
more relaxed and made the session flow better.
I was then asked a single problem, which became the focus
for the rest of the interview. The question was similar to:
Number of Islands
Number of Islands II (premium)
Number of Distinct Islands
Max Area of Island

Key Learnings:
Building a small human connection early can significantly
help your mindset during the interview.
Make sure you’re comfortable deeply exploring variations of
a single problem.
Round 3: Coding Round
Duration: 45 minutes
Difficulty Level: Medium

Experience:
The round started immediately after a quick greeting. I began
proposing a dynamic programming (DP) approach right away.
The interviewer gently encouraged me to explore more test
cases before finalizing an approach.
Upon doing that, I realized a DP solution was unnecessary
and an optimal linear approach was better suited. The
question was more logic-based and touched upon arrays and
strings. Once I implemented a working solution, the
interviewer pushed me to improve the code structure. We
also explored some follow-up scenarios based on small
changes to the problem’s rules.
The problem was similar to:
Jump Game
Jump Game II
Odd Even Jump
Key Learnings:
Don’t settle on an approach too early. Use sample cases to
test assumptions.
Optimization isn’t just about time complexity—code clarity
also matters.
Round 4: Coding Round
Duration: 45 minutes
Difficulty Level: Medium

Experience:
This was a clean and simple coding round. I was asked a
single problem. Initially, I stumbled slightly, but then caught
my footing and wrote a solution. Midway through coding, I
came up with a better approach and told the interviewer I’d
like to try that instead. He was supportive and said we had
time, so I re-implemented the new idea.
We also discussed a couple of follow-ups after completing the
implementation.
The problems were similar to:
Verify Preorder Serialization of a Binary Tree
Check If Word Is Valid After Substitutions

Key Learnings:
If you think of a better idea midway, don't hesitate to pivot.
Most interviewers will appreciate initiative and clarity of
thought.
Round 5: Coding Round
Duration: 45 minutes
Difficulty Level: Medium to Hard

Experience:
This round included two questions. The first was an easier
tree-based problem, while the second was more complex,
matrix-based.
First question (easier):
Flip Equivalent Binary Trees
Symmetric Tree
Second question (harder):
Longest Line of Consecutive One in Matrix
Alphabet Board Path
Longest Increasing Path in a Matrix
I explained my thought process as I coded. Toward the end, I
realized my second solution wasn’t optimal. I asked the
interviewer what could have been better, and he walked me
through a more efficient method. We used the rest of the
time to discuss that approach.

Key Learnings:
Even if you don’t find the best solution, showing a desire to
learn is appreciated.
Stay vocal about your choices and keep asking if
[Link] 6: Virtual Onsite – Behavioral
Round 6: Behavioural
Duration: 45 minutes
Difficulty Level: Medium

Experience:
This was a structured behavioral interview. Each question
was followed by deep follow-ups. Be prepared to discuss:
A time when you faced a challenge
A time you faced or observed bias
A time you resolved a conflict within a team
The interviewer seemed focused on gauging interpersonal
skills, adaptability, and how you align with Google’s core
values like fairness, inclusion, and growth mindset.

Key Learnings:
Have clear, concise stories for the standard behavioral topics.
Try to show growth, empathy, and collaboration in your
responses.
Final Thoughts:
Focus your preparation on company-specific patterns. Google
likes deep dives into a single problem, so practice staying
focused under pressure.
Optimize what you know—review old problems and learn to
improve solutions instead of just solving new ones.
Team matching is an unpredictable but important phase.
Don’t get discouraged if it takes a while to find a match.
Stay calm and communicative—clear explanations and a
collaborative attitude go a long way.
Be honest about what you know and where you need
guidance. Interviewers are looking for growth potential, not
perfection.
 Experience Link

Thank You
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