I applied online. I interviewed at Google (Seattle, WA) in Feb 2021
Interview
I applied online and a recruiter reached out the very next day to set up the initial call. I chatted with a couple of recruiters and they set up the virtual onsite interview based on my availability. They did share a lot of information about what to expect and it was perfectly accurate. The onsite consisted of 5 back-back interviews, 3 coding + 1 system design + Googleyness. I managed to solve all the questions in the coding rounds, but came up with an optimal answer at the very end for one of the interviews and didn't have time to code it. The system design was the most fun and it was more of two engineers discussing a design much like day to day work. Googleyness was the regular behavioral questions. All the interviewers were extremely nice and every one of them asked me if I needed a break before we began the interview.
Recruiter contacted me within a week to tell me that my packet was going to the Hiring Committee. However got rejected at the HC stage, very likely to the one coding question I did not nail.
Despite an unfavorable outcome, I still loved the experience and will definitely apply again in the future.
As far as preparation goes, I'd recommend focusing on the basics and really understanding the standard data structures and algorithms. The questions asked were not difficult as such and it was more of a twist on the leetcode style questions presented as a real scenario rather than the vanilla coding questions. It was pretty collaborative and they do give you hints if you start straying in the wrong direction.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Signed an NDA so will not reveal any question. They weren't difficult as long as you know your basics and can identify corner cases.
I applied through an employee referral. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Google (Sunnyvale, CA) in Jan 2021
Interview
Stressing given that it was Google. Make sure you sleep well the night before of the onsite. The questions were medium and hard. Most involved arrays, DP and recursion. Ask a los of questions and stop for a moment to think and to make sure you understand the problem. Again Dynamic programming is super important. Actually two of the interviewers asked me the same DP question and I had to let the second know so he could actually change it.
The structure of the onsite was 3 coding meetings or calls (virtual onsite during covid), 1 call or meeting with a PM to speak about your skills , projects, previous experience and Googliness. Finally another call with another engineer for a Systems Question.
In general the experience was ok. However I prefer when I can meet with people from the team I am applying to.
regarding the recruiters, they are super helpful and will go with you through the process and will call you frequently before the onsite.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Dynamic programming and recursion. Something like this "You are given N numbers in the form of an array . You have to select K numbers from those numbers. You can only select numbers from either head or tail. After selection the number gets erased from the array. You want to maximize the sum of the numbers."
I applied through a recruiter. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Google (Singapur) in May 2020
Interview
The interview process was well laid out. From Telephonic connect with the HR team to the first round of discussion followed by onsite interviews, all was very well structured and expectations were well communicated.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
I was asked for several algorithm related questions revolving around Dynamic Programming, Complexity Theory, Bit Manipulation, System Design interviews, etc