Zeta

Role: SDE Intern

College: Not Specified (On-Campus Recruitment)

Interview Date: Not Specified

Interview Type: On-Campus, Internship

Result: Selected

Difficulty: Medium to Hard

Rounds: 3 rounds

Topics Asked: Data Structures and Algorithms, Binary Search, DBMS, Normalization, SQL, OOP, Encapsulation, Inheritance, Bug Fixing, Low-Level Design, Computer Networks, HTTP, HTTPS, Processes, Threads, Multithreading, TCP, UDP, Sockets

Experience:

Zeta recently visited the campus for recruitment, and the candidate's resume was shortlisted, leading to the subsequent stages of the hiring process.

Round 1: Online Coding Assessment

This round consisted of three coding questions with a time limit of 2 hours. The questions were:

• A basic array problem involving GCD concepts and operations.
• A problem related to Disjoint Set Union (DSU).
• A problem involving manipulation and operations on prefixes of given strings.

The candidate successfully solved two out of three questions.

Round 2: DS/ALGO Interview Round

This technical interview round assessed DSA skills. After introductions and basic questions about projects and challenges, the candidate was given a standard binary search problem to solve within approximately 10 minutes. After implementing an optimal solution, the interviewer asked for the low-level architecture (LLD) design of a library management system on a Google Doc. This involved discussing the system's flow and writing pseudocode. Following this, fundamental DBMS questions were asked, mainly focusing on normalization and SQL.

Round 3: Technical/Fitment Round

This round involved designing the low-level architecture (LLD) of Ludo. The discussion covered game rules, basic design flow, and constraints before coding. During coding, fundamental OOP questions were asked, including encapsulation and inheritance, and the candidate was prompted to identify and fix bugs. Limitations of the design and potential improvements were also discussed. The discussion then shifted to Computer Networks, covering how browsers work, what happens when a URL is entered, TCP, UDP, and sockets. Questions about processes and threads, along with synchronous/asynchronous behavior of multithreading, were also asked. The interview concluded after the candidate asked questions.

Overall Experience: Both interviews took place on the same day, and a final shortlist was released 2-3 hours after Round 3. A total of three students, including the candidate, were selected for the final offer.