Interview Experiences

Real candidates, real loops: every round, what was asked, and how it ended.

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4457 stories

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HeadwaySoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Headway Software Engineer interview with a three-part virtual onsite

After an initial recruiter conversation, the process moved into a technical screen and then a virtual onsite. The recruiter call stood out because it walked me through what would happen next and helped set expectations for the final loop. The technical screen focused on live problem solving with algorithms and data structures. I was expected to finish the task and communicate clearly as I worked.…

Technical Screen0
BoxSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Box Software Engineer interview that grew to seven rounds

The process started out promising and turned into a long endurance test. I went through several rounds with a professional, easy-to-talk-to interview team. Around the middle of the process, I was told that I had cleared everything. The hiring timeline kept stretching after that. I then entered a "cooling-off" period of about four weeks with no communication. Just when I thought the process was ov…

Rejected0
RivianSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Rivian Software Engineer interview with robotics debugging

The process felt fairly straightforward from the beginning. The interviewers were friendly, and we spent a lot of time discussing my actual projects and what I worked on day to day. Early on, I realized the role had been described in a way that blended into a systems engineering focus in the autonomy space, and the questions matched that impression. One round focused on systems thinking and how I…

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PlaidAccount Executive
Reported May 2026

Plaid Account Executive interview ending with a panel interview

The early steps were remote, and the process eventually became a mix of Zoom and in-person conversations. It moved through multiple stages, ending with a panel interview. The atmosphere was smooth across the rounds. Everyone I met was polite and professional, and the staff communicated clearly about what came next. I never felt blindsided by the logistics or the structure, which made it easier to…

RejectedOther0
VantaAccount Executive
Reported May 2026

Vanta Account Executive interview with an AI note-taking setup

The Account Executive process felt miserable from the start and never recovered. I showed up late, then got distracted by messages during the interview. The interviewer seemed to be reading from a checklist. There was almost no curiosity about my answers, no real follow-up, and no acknowledgment beyond moving to the next question. The most jarring part was that they seemed to be using an AI note-…

Rejected0
Glean (CA)Backend Engineer
Reported May 2026

Glean (CA) Backend Engineer interview: rejection after system design

I interviewed for a backend focused role and was rejected after the system design round. The early stages weren't where the process ended. The later system design evaluation was the point at which I didn't make it through. The overall sequence matched what I'd heard from friends: a fairly consistent process that eventually led to the same system design stage. That round felt high stakes. The earl…

RejectedOther0
RivianSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Rivian Software Engineer interview: nearly a month waiting for feedback

My recruiter and the early rounds went smoothly. The recruiter was responsive and welcomed my questions, so the first part of the process was easy to navigate. After the second interview, the tone shifted because of what happened afterward. I waited almost a month to hear back about the rejection. When I asked for feedback, I didn't receive any, and no one gave me useful pointers about what speci…

0
MercorSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Mercor Software Engineer interview: 30-minute data structures and algorithms screen

My first step was a phone screen with the team. It was a tightly structured, 30-minute Q&A focused mainly on data structures, algorithms, and code optimization. What stood out was how closely it stayed to fundamentals and reasoning. I left feeling that it tested whether I could think through tradeoffs clearly and tighten up implementations under time pressure. Given the short format, it still fel…

0
ASMLSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

ASML Software Engineer interview: HireVue assessment and one-hour backend and Java discussion

My first step was a video assessment, followed by a more direct interview with team members. The video round felt like a standard HireVue-style screening. I had to record responses and keep my answers focused. After that, I had a one-hour conversation with two people, focused on backend work and Java. What I remember most about the hour was that it centered on what I could talk through, especiall…

OfferOnline Assessment0
Epic SystemsSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Epic Software Engineer onsite: evolving patient-database design and backtracking

I started the day with an online video overview that lasted about forty-five minutes. It covered what Epic does and the software it provides. After that, I moved into one-on-one conversations with engineers. One was a lighter discussion where I could ask questions and hear about their experiences. The next engineer conversation was more technical and felt like a system design prompt that kept bui…

Onsite0
Northrop GrummanSystems Engineer
Reported May 2026

Northrop Grumman Systems Engineer interview with panel questions

My process felt more substantial than many of the earlier easy screens I'd done. It combined technical and behavioral questions in a structured way. It started with a Microsoft Teams session where I answered questions in front of a panel. Some prompts followed the STAR format, while the technical questions connected to my past work. The technical portion included theory along with practical expla…

OfferOther0
DatavantSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Datavant Software Engineer, debugging a few-hundred-line codebase

I went through a focused process centered on debugging. It began with a recruiter screen and then moved to a technical round where I had to debug an existing codebase. In the setup I saw, it was on the order of a few hundred lines and included multiple nested classes. The expectation was straightforward, step-by-step debugging: I worked through the code until the tests passed. I made good progres…

RejectedOther0
Epic SystemsSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Epic Software Engineer, difficult assessment led to an offer

I started with a quick phone interview with an existing employee. It was mainly a fit check, and then I moved directly into scheduling an assessment. The assessment was genuinely hard, longer and more challenging than I expected, and it was the part that required the most effort. After finishing it, I made it far enough to receive an offer. I ultimately declined because a better opportunity came…

OfferOnline Assessment0
Micro1Backend Engineer
Reported May 2026

Micro1 Backend Engineer interview: AI-driven screen with Node.js and MongoDB

I went through an AI-driven process that still felt supportive, and it ended with encouragement to continue. During the initial technical screen, I discussed my backend experience with Node.js and MongoDB. The interviewer seemed satisfied but asked me to refine some technical details. I didn't receive an offer from this step. My takeaway was that strong backend examples can still earn genuine pos…

Technical Screen0
Lockheed MartinSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Lockheed Martin Software Engineer interview with a months-long virtual process

I interviewed for a specific program and was genuinely excited because the company was one of my top choices. The interview was virtual and included multiple interviewers, but the atmosphere was uneven and made it hard to feel comfortable. Some interviewers seemed disengaged. One reacted dismissively while I was answering and kept looking elsewhere, which immediately put me off. The full process…

Other0
Lockheed MartinSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Lockheed Martin Software Engineer interview about project work and resume experience

My first step was a conversation with a recruiter who set expectations and kept things simple. The recruiter asked basic questions about eligibility, went over my relevant experience, and introduced the business unit and the project work I'd be involved with. The atmosphere was calm, and it felt like the time was meant to help me get comfortable before moving on. After that introduction, the proc…

Other0
BairesDevSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

BairesDev Software Engineer automated testing with math and puzzle questions

Most of my time went into automated testing. I spent several hours answering a large set of questions and received no meaningful feedback afterward, which made the experience feel very impersonal. The math section started with easy questions and continued in much the same way. There were also puzzle-style items that felt more like filler than a reliable signal. The tone and relevance threw me off…

Online Assessment0
ASMLSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

ASML Software Engineer interview: HireVue, coding test, and senior-engineer discussion

My process was fairly compact. I started with a HireVue round where the system recorded my responses, although there was no strict time limit for each answer. It was a set of questions about me, and then the process moved quickly to a more traditional technical conversation. The second round included a group-style meeting with two senior engineers, along with a coding test. I was nervous about th…

Other0
Micro1Software Engineer
Reported May 2026

Micro1 Software Engineer interview: AI coding session with escalating follow-ups

My AI interview felt like a stressful, high-focus testing session. The system asked questions tied to a specific language area before moving into a coding exercise. The whole environment was recorded, including my webcam, microphone, and screen, so I felt like everything was being scrutinized. The questions began at a high level, focusing more on architecture and performance design than on writin…

Other0
ZscalerSoftware Engineer
Reported May 2026

Zscaler Software Engineer interview: online assessment, group discussion, and two interviews

My process at Zscaler followed a pretty standard structure. It started with an Online Assessment covering aptitude, coding, and communication. After that, I went through a Group Discussion round, followed by two interview rounds focused on knowledge, problem-solving, and teamwork. The overall difficulty felt about average. Even with the group setting, the process stayed straightforward. The inter…

Online Assessment0

What are interview experiences?

An interview experience is a candidate's own account of a hiring loop — not a question bank entry. It tells you the shape of the process: how many rounds there were, what each round actually tested, how long the gaps between them ran, and what the recruiter said at the end. That context is the part a question list cannot give you.

How to read them

Weight recent write-ups more heavily — interview loops change, often within a year. Read several for the same company and role rather than one: a single account tells you what one interviewer asked, while five tell you what the bar is. Note the outcome badge too, since a rejection write-up usually explains the gap far more precisely than an offer one.

Share your own

Every published experience earns 50 XP, and each of the first 3 likes it receives in a day earns you 10 XP more. Likes must come from established accounts; like-for-like swaps and likes from your own second account are not paid. Write it while the details are fresh — the round order, the exact prompts, and how much time you were given are what the next reader needs.

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