Taro Logo

Software Engineer (Internship) Interview Experience - Serbia

March 1, 2024
Negative ExperienceGot Offer

Process

The process consisted of an OA (online assessment) and one round of three back-to-back interviews with different engineers from various teams.

The OA featured two relatively easy LeetCode questions: one easy and one medium.

The interviews followed a consistent pattern, covering:

  • General CV/competency-based questions
  • Behavioral questions ("Tell me about a time...")
  • A straightforward LeetCode medium problem

The emphasis was on starting from an initial solution, thoroughly explaining the thought process, implementing it, and, most importantly, identifying all edge cases and creating appropriate tests. All interviews strictly adhered to this process, with optimization becoming the focal point only afterward.

Given the time allocated to non-problem sections, quick implementation and optimization were necessary.

All interviews were conducted in the local language, transitioning to English only during the problem-solving section. Communication issues arose due to the interviewers' limited English proficiency, which might be an isolated issue local to the region.

Most interviewers proved challenging to engage with, ranging from awkward or ineffective communicators to downright intimidating or patronizing. Examples included chuckling at misspoken thoughts, behaving as if they would rather be anywhere but in the interview, cutting my questions short, and emitting an overall aura of arrogance.

A similar sentiment applied to the recruiter I interacted with. They were equally uninterested and gave off an impression that I should be grateful for even receiving an offer. It was one of the worst experiences I've ever had.

Questions

OA: Leetcode Easy and Medium

Interviews: Competency/CV + Leetcode Medium

Was this helpful?

Interview Statistics

The following metrics were computed from 32 interview experiences for the Microsoft Software Engineer (Internship) role in Serbia.

Success Rate

38%
Pass Rate

Microsoft's interview process for their Software Engineer (Internship) roles in Serbia is fairly selective, failing a large portion of engineers who go through it.

Experience Rating

Positive81%
Neutral13%
Negative6%

Candidates reported having very good feelings for Microsoft's Software Engineer (Internship) interview process in Serbia.

Microsoft Work Experiences