Software Development Engineer Interview Experience - Redmond, Washington
January 1, 2008
Positive ExperienceNo Offer
Process
The phone interview consisted of general questions and one semi-technical question about quickly finding a book in a library.
The on-site interview consisted of four interviews. All involved coding on a whiteboard and focused on data structures and algorithms. The questions were:
- Implementing a circular queue.
- Doing a topological sort.
- A brain teaser question.
- A graphics question on painting a bounded area.
Questions
Implement a circular queue in C. Pay attention to boundary cases. Also, be sure to allow for arbitrary expansion of the queue on demand.
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Interview Statistics
The following metrics were computed from 214 interview experiences for the Microsoft Software Development Engineer role in Redmond, Washington.
Success Rate
45%
Pass Rate
Microsoft's interview process for their Software Development Engineer roles in Redmond, Washington is fairly selective, failing a large portion of engineers who go through it.
Experience Rating
Positive75%
Neutral17%
Negative8%
Candidates reported having very good feelings for Microsoft's Software Development Engineer interview process in Redmond, Washington.
Microsoft Work Experiences
4.0
Microsoft is a pretty pleasant place to work
Software Development Engineer • Current Employee
Redmond, Washington, United States
August 28, 2013
Pros: Good balance between work and life, and have flexible work time. In general, it is not busy and good for people who want to work in IT but not be highly busy.
Cons: Too many meetings that do not make much sense.
The performance reviewing system is disgusting.
There is too much politics in teams.
5.0
Best tech company I have ever worked for
Software Development Engineer • Current Employee
Redmond, Washington, United States
October 28, 2015
Pros: Great working environment, loads of really smart people, and the work is really interesting.
I always thought Microsoft was this evil company growing up, but it is certainly not that way at all.
Cons: Although PMs are really important and contribute a ton to our product, sometimes I feel like there are too many.
4.0
Great company to work for, but not for all teams
Software Development Engineer • Former Employee
Redmond, Washington, United States
November 30, 2016
Pros: - Diversified working environment.
- Many interesting projects and teams inside the company.
- Some smart people and some good teammates.
Cons: - Too many reorganizations.
- Need luck to land a good team, manager, or project.
- Diversity is decreasing, replaced by politics or political correctness.
- Microsoft is also adopting open-plan offices, and some rude people have become annoying.
- 4.0Microsoft is a pretty pleasant place to workSoftware Development Engineer • Current EmployeeRedmond, Washington, United StatesAugust 28, 2013Pros: Good balance between work and life, and have flexible work time. In general, it is not busy and good for people who want to work in IT but not be highly busy.Cons: Too many meetings that do not make much sense. The performance reviewing system is disgusting. There is too much politics in teams.
- 5.0Best tech company I have ever worked forSoftware Development Engineer • Current EmployeeRedmond, Washington, United StatesOctober 28, 2015Pros: Great working environment, loads of really smart people, and the work is really interesting. I always thought Microsoft was this evil company growing up, but it is certainly not that way at all.Cons: Although PMs are really important and contribute a ton to our product, sometimes I feel like there are too many.
- 4.0Great company to work for, but not for all teamsSoftware Development Engineer • Former EmployeeRedmond, Washington, United StatesNovember 30, 2016Pros: - Diversified working environment. - Many interesting projects and teams inside the company. - Some smart people and some good teammates.Cons: - Too many reorganizations. - Need luck to land a good team, manager, or project. - Diversity is decreasing, replaced by politics or political correctness. - Microsoft is also adopting open-plan offices, and some rude people have become annoying.
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