Meta Data Scientist Interview Questions

Meta’s Data Scientist interviews target candidates who can turn large-scale product data into clear, measurable product decisions. Expect a blend of technical and product-focused assessments: Meta Data Scientist interview questions often probe SQL and Python data manipulation, statistical inference and A/B test design, metric definition and instrumentation, and product sense around engagement and growth. Distinctive to Meta is the emphasis on scale, experimentation, and the ability to communicate actionable insights to engineers and product managers; interviewers typically evaluate both analytical rigor and storytelling clarity. The process usually begins with a recruiter screen, moves to one or more technical screens (coding/SQL plus a product or metrics case), and culminates in a loop of interviews that combine analytics, research-design, and behavioral rounds. For effective interview preparation, prioritize timed practice on data manipulation problems, refresh hypothesis testing and power intuition, rehearse product-metric case studies aloud, and craft concise STAR stories that emphasize measurable impact. Complement technical practice with mock interviews and clear explanations of tradeoffs so you can translate analyses into product recommendations under time pressure.

617 Questions 1 Company07.06.2026
Showing 20 results
Role
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Write SQL for hashtag analytics and joins

Assume today = 2025-09-01. Schema and small sample data are below. Use ANSI SQL; explain any dialect-specific functions you choose. Where asked, expla...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
1
0
2 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Hard
Data Scientist

Clarify scope and align to mission

Clarify and Align: New Google Maps Feature to Boost Group Page Engagement Context (Completed) Assume "Group pages" are shared spaces in Google Maps wh...

Behavioral & Leadership
6
0
47 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Write SQL to localize anomaly and funnel

Given the schema and toy data below, write SQL to (a) validate instrumentation vs behavior change, (b) localize the 2025-09-01 Likes drop by app_versi...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
0
0
5 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Label new vs old users over time in SQL

Define users as “new” during the first 30 days inclusive after their signup_date, and “old” thereafter. Produce per-user, per-day labels over a window...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
0
1
5 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Write SQL for engagement and attribution KPIs

Using the schema and sample data below, answer the SQL tasks. Assume timestamps are UTC and comments with is_deleted=1 do not count. Schema: users(use...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
1
0
8 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Hard
Data Scientist

Brainstorm how to optimize email engagement

Lifecycle Email: Increase Incremental On‑Site Engagement You own lifecycle email for a large consumer app and are tasked with increasing on‑site engag...

Analytics & Experimentation
3
0
50 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Calculate posts per DAU by country today

Given two tables: - user_activity(user_id INT, activity_date DATE, country STRING, dau_flag TINYINT CHECK(dau_flag IN (0,1))) - composer(user_id INT, ...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
4
0
42 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute daily post success rate for last 7 days

You have a table composer(user_id INT, event STRING CHECK(event IN ('enter','post','cancel')), event_date DATE). Compute the post success rate for eac...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
7
1
45 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Write SQL to compute shop visibility share

Assume today is 2025-09-01. Compute the top 3 shops by average daily visibility share over the last 7 days (2025-08-26 to 2025-09-01, inclusive) for U...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
3
0
68 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Diagnose a sudden KPI drop and validate causes

A core KPI (comments_per_DAU) suddenly drops materially. Outline a structured root-cause analysis and validation plan. a) Scoping and sanity: Quantify...

Analytics & Experimentation
2
0
29 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Design and validate ad model launch

You are on the Ads team and just trained a new ad recommendation model meant to replace the current model in production. Design a rigorous plan to dec...

Analytics & Experimentation
2
0
33 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Write SQL with HAVING and efficient joins

You are given two tables. Schema - interactions(product_id INT, buyer_id INT, seller_id INT, interaction_date DATE, interaction_type VARCHAR, interact...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
0
0
5 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Hard
Data Scientist Locked

Define success metrics beyond time spent

This question evaluates a data scientist's competency in product analytics and experimentation, focusing on metrics design, cohort-based retention mea...

Analytics & Experimentation
2
0
23 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Produce dating profile funnel report by cohort

You work on a dating app. Produce a daily profile-funnel report for 2025-08-25 through 2025-09-01 inclusive, with one row per day, gender, and age_buc...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
1
0
9 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute French DAU video-call percentage yesterday

Compute the percentage of daily active users (DAU) from France who were on at least one video call yesterday (2025-08-31 UTC). DAU is defined as users...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
0
0
2 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute callers contacting >3 people last 7 days

Using the schema below, write a single SQL query to return the number of unique callers who started calls with more than 3 distinct other users during...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
0
0
4 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Implement randomized Quickselect without k-shift bug

Implement randomized Quickselect to return the k-th largest element (1-based k, 1 ≤ k ≤ n) from an unsorted integer array. Use an in-place partition t...

Coding & Algorithms
4
0
47 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute binary-tree diameter via return-only DFS

Given the root of a binary tree, compute its diameter defined as the number of edges on the longest path between any two nodes. Implement a DFS that r...

Coding & Algorithms
6
0
45 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Compute 95th-percentile call concurrency

Given N call sessions as half-open intervals [start, end) in UNIX seconds, design an algorithm to compute the 95th percentile of per-minute concurrent...

Coding & Algorithms
3
0
39 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
Meta logo
Meta
Medium
Data Scientist

Write SQL for 7-day WhatsApp call metrics

Today is fixed as 2025-09-01. Using PostgreSQL, write a single query that returns one row per UTC calendar date for the last 7 days inclusive of today...

Data Manipulation (SQL/Python)
0
0
4 people solved
Oct 13, 2025
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Frequently Asked Questions

How difficult are Meta Data Scientist interview questions?
Meta Data Scientist interviews are typically challenging because they test both depth and breadth: technical fluency, statistical thinking, product intuition, and clear communication. Expect medium-to-hard SQL and coding problems alongside statistics and experiment-design questions that probe conceptual understanding rather than rote formulas. Senior roles add system and measurement tradeoff discussions and leadership expectations. Interviewers evaluate correctness, clarity, assumptions, and business impact, so partial solutions can still score well if you surface limitations and next steps. Preparation should emphasize translating technical results into actionable product recommendations as much as solving the raw problem.
What is the typical Meta Data Scientist interview process and where does each topic show up?
The Meta Data Scientist process usually begins with a recruiter screen, moves to a technical screening (live SQL/Python or a take-home), and then a multi-round onsite or virtual loop of four to five interviews. SQL and data-manipulation tasks appear in screening and the analytics rounds. Experiment design and statistics show up in research-design and metrics interviews. Product-sense rounds evaluate metric selection, tradeoffs, and impact. Behavioral rounds probe collaboration, ownership, and influence. Coding or algorithmic questions may appear depending on role level, and senior interviews emphasize scaling, measurement validity, and cross-functional leadership.
How long should I prepare for Meta Data Scientist interviews and what should a timeline look like?
A focused preparation timeline of six to eight weeks often works well for experienced candidates, with longer ramps for those switching fields. Start by solidifying core SQL and Python skills and practicing timed problems, then layer in statistics, experiment design, and product-case practice. Midway, incorporate mock interviews and full-length loops to practice pacing, storytelling, and translating analyses to impact. In the final weeks, refine STAR behavioral stories, review past projects with clear metrics, and run targeted drills on weak spots. Regular feedback and simulated interview conditions dramatically improve interview-day composure and clarity.
What are the key subtopics I must master for a Meta Data Scientist role?
You should be fluent in SQL fundamentals—joins, aggregations, window functions, CTEs, NULL behaviour, and the difference between WHERE and HAVING—along with performance-aware query design. In statistics, master hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, power, bias versus variance, and common pitfalls in A/B testing and metric validity. Analytical skills include metric design, segmentation, funnel analysis, and root-cause diagnosis. Practical Python for data manipulation, clear code and algorithmic complexity intuition are useful. For senior roles, add measurement platforms, data pipelines, causal inference principles, and communicating tradeoffs to product and engineering partners.
What standout tips and common pitfalls should I know for Meta interviews?
Standout performance combines rigorous answers with business context: always state assumptions, define the metric you would optimize, and conclude with clear product recommendations. Verbally outline your plan before coding or analysis and validate edge cases and data limitations. Use concise STAR stories that quantify impact. Common pitfalls include failing to tie analysis back to user or business outcomes, ignoring confounders in experiments, overengineering solutions when a simple metric change suffices, and poor communication under time pressure. Practicing paced mock interviews and seeking targeted feedback on clarity and tradeoff discussion will mitigate these risks.

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