Interview Experience 🎯

Application Process

In November 2022, I applied for the Software Development Engineer role on the Bloomberg career portal for multiple locations. In December, I received an email saying that I was shortlisted for the interview at Bloomberg Frankfurt and scheduled my interview for January 20, 2023.

However, Bloomberg also visited my college for an on-campus recruitment drive for the Pune location on January 17, 2023, for a full-time role. This gave me another opportunity to apply. I'm excited to share my experience to help anyone preparing for an interview at Bloomberg!

Overview

The Bloomberg recruitment process followed these steps:

1. Screening test (coding + MCQs)
2. DSA interview (same day as the test)
3. System Design interview (after a week)
4. Managerial interview (final round)
5. Final selection ✅

Round 1: Screening Test

Platform: HackerRank
Mode: Offline (College labs)
Time: 1.5 hours
Difficulty: Medium—Hard 🟠

Since I was already preparing for the Frankfurt interview, I was well-prepared for the screening test. It consisted of:

• 4 coding questions (Two worth 50 marks, two worth 75 marks)
• 21 MCQs (Each worth 5 marks)

I solved:

• 1 question (75 marks) completely ✅
• 2 questions (50 marks each) completely ✅
• 1 question (75 marks) partially (4/13 test cases)
• A good number of MCQs ✅

Topics covered:

• MCQs: Data Structures, Algorithms, OS, DBMS, System Design (Load Balancers, Decoupling of services)
• Coding questions: Arrays, Strings, Recursion, Dynamic Programming, Sorting, Greedy Algorithms

Result: 25 students were shortlisted from 300 applicants.

Round 2: DSA Interview

Platform: HackerRank Code Pair
Mode: Offline (College)
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Medium 🟠

My interviewer was a Team Lead at Bloomberg Pune with 18+ years of experience in banks and hedge funds. After introductions, we moved to the coding question.

Coding Question

• Leetcode Medium level.
• Divided into two parts:
  • Used unordered map + unordered set for part 1.
  • Used unordered map + priority queue for part 2.

After solving, we discussed hashmap internal workings and collision resolution mechanisms. There were also a few resume-based questions.

Tips for DSA Round:

• Keep your concepts crystal clear.
• Think out loud and explain your approach.
• Don’t jump straight to coding—ask for clarifications.
• Cover edge cases.
• Be flexible in your approach.

Resources for DSA:

• Striver’s YouTube Channel (Highly recommend his Recursion & DP series)
• GeeksForGeeks & Leetcode (Practice questions)

Result: 11 students shortlisted for the next round.

Round 3: System Design Interview

Platform: HackerRank Code Pair Whiteboard
Mode: Offline (Bloomberg Pune Office)
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Medium—Hard 🔴

After a week, I had my System Design round with a panel of two interviewers (one offline, one online). The second interviewer was a Team Lead at Bloomberg Pune who previously worked in Bloomberg New York.

System Design Question

• Not a standard question like Instagram or a food delivery app.
• Asked to design a high-level system based on three components and a given database structure.

I designed a scalable system, but I felt the interviewers weren’t fully satisfied. Before the interview ended, I asked a few questions about Bloomberg’s work culture.

Tips for System Design:

• Ask questions first—don’t jump into designing immediately.
• Keep the interview interactive (treat it as a discussion).
• Be flexible—don’t try to force-fit a design pattern.
• Justify every component/service you add.

Resources for System Design:

• Gaurav Sen’s YouTube Channel (Excellent System Design playlist)
• Yogita Sharma’s YouTube Channel (Well-explained HLD & LLD concepts)
• Grokking Modern System Design Interview
• Arpit Bhayani’s YouTube Channel (Deep dive into System Design concepts)

Result: 7 students shortlisted for the final round.

Round 4: Managerial Interview

Platform: Zoom
Mode: Online
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Easy—Medium 🟢

The final interview had two parts (30 minutes each):

Part 1: HR Interview

Interviewer: Senior Recruiter (Bloomberg London)

• Questions about internships, resume, and Bloomberg.
• Asked some general HR questions.
• I asked a few company-related questions.

Part 2: Senior Manager Interview

Interviewer: Senior Manager (Bloomberg London)

• Focused on my projects & internships.
• Some technical discussions.
• I asked a few questions at the end.

Final Selection: 3 students were selected—I was one of them! 🎉

🎉 Conclusion & Tips

• Bloomberg gives plenty of time between rounds—use it wisely.
• Be confident and clear in your answers.
• Know your resume inside out—projects, internships, etc.
• If you don’t know an answer, be honest.
• Research the company & attend Pre-Placement Talks.
• Be patient—the process may take time, especially off-campus.

🚀 Thanks for reading! Best of luck for your interviews! ✌️