Anuja Babhulkar

My Microsoft SWE Internship Interview Experience

Application Process

In July, I applied for the Software Engineering (SWE) internship Off-campus through the Microsoft Careers portal.

Online Assessment (OA) – September 5th

After resume shortlisting, I received the invitation for an online assessment. The OA had 2 questions — Leetcode medium to hard — and I managed to solve both the questions.

Interview Shortlisting – October 11th

I was thrilled to receive an email confirming that I had been selected for the interview round. The interview was scheduled for October 21st, and I had about 10 days to prepare intensively.

Technical Interviews – October 21st

Microsoft conducted two technical interviews on the same day, both focused on coding and problem-solving. :

Technical Round 1 (9:00 AM - 9:45 AM)

The interviewer started with a brief introduction and asked about my projects and previous experience.

I was given 1 DSA problem of medium-hard difficulty.

This problem was based on trees. I came up with a brute-force approach and explained it to the interviewer. Then she asked me to optimize it and code it out on a platform called codility.

Then, we had some follow-up questions like the edge cases and time complexity.

After this, there were a few questions on OOPS and DBMS.

Technical Round 2 (10:00 AM - 11:00 AM)

After 10 mins of my round 1, I received a selection email for round 2. This round also began with an introduction and a discussion on my resume.

I was asked a medium to hard level recursion and string-based DSA question. The interviewer focused on my thought process, efficiency, and edge cases.I came up with an Optimal approach and explained it to the interviewer Then he asked me to code it out and also dry run it. Towards the end, we discussed Operating Systems and DBMS.

Both interviewers were friendly and encouraged me. It was important to explain my thought process and write clean, efficient code.

Final Result – Selected!

The next day (22nd October), I received the confirmation that I had been selected for the Microsoft SWE Internship! .

Key Takeaways

Have a strong resume. Highlight relevant projects, skills, and experience.

Solve a variety of DSA problems along with CS fundamental subjects.

Practice mock interviews with your friends and communicate your approach clearly during coding rounds.