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Solve top-K and string rotation match

Last updated: Mar 29, 2026

Quick Overview

This question evaluates proficiency in selection and string algorithms—top-K selection (heap and selection algorithms), handling duplicates and large-scale inputs via streaming or external memory, and cyclic string rotation detection with minimal-move computation in the Coding & Algorithms domain.

  • Medium
  • TikTok
  • Coding & Algorithms
  • Software Engineer

Solve top-K and string rotation match

Company: TikTok

Role: Software Engineer

Category: Coding & Algorithms

Difficulty: Medium

Interview Round: Technical Screen

1) Given an unsorted array of integers and an integer k, return the k largest elements in descending order. Implement at least two approaches (e.g., a size-k min-heap and a quickselect-based method), discuss time/space complexities, and explain how you would handle duplicates and very large inputs (streaming or external memory). 2) Given two strings s and goal, you may repeatedly move the first character of s to the end of s. Determine whether s can be transformed into goal by any number of such operations. If yes, return the minimum number of moves needed; otherwise, return -1. Specify the algorithm, edge cases, and complexity.

Quick Answer: This question evaluates proficiency in selection and string algorithms—top-K selection (heap and selection algorithms), handling duplicates and large-scale inputs via streaming or external memory, and cyclic string rotation detection with minimal-move computation in the Coding & Algorithms domain.

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TikTok logo
TikTok
Jul 26, 2025, 12:00 AM
Software Engineer
Technical Screen
Coding & Algorithms
0
0
  1. Given an unsorted array of integers and an integer k, return the k largest elements in descending order. Implement at least two approaches (e.g., a size-k min-heap and a quickselect-based method), discuss time/space complexities, and explain how you would handle duplicates and very large inputs (streaming or external memory).
  2. Given two strings s and goal, you may repeatedly move the first character of s to the end of s. Determine whether s can be transformed into goal by any number of such operations. If yes, return the minimum number of moves needed; otherwise, return -1. Specify the algorithm, edge cases, and complexity.

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