Software Engineer Interview Experience - Chicago, Illinois
February 1, 2020
Positive ExperienceGot Offer
Process
First, I had a non-technical phone screen with the recruiter. Then, I was invited to complete a comprehensive HackerRank challenge. This test, which was to be completed over 72 hours, assessed system design, data structures, and algorithms.
No single part of the challenge was exceptionally difficult in isolation, but it was quite challenging as a whole.
Optiver responded three days later with an invitation to interview onsite. I was very impressed with their expediency.
During the onsite, I participated in:
- Two whiteboard interview sessions
- A review of the coding challenge
- A discussion with the Head of Technology
The interviews were challenging and well-structured. Every question involved trade-offs in designing a complex system, requiring critical thinking about every decision made.
Questions
Design a custom protocol around UDP that satisfies certain guarantees.
Implement an algorithm to merge N sorted lists.
Was this helpful?
Interview Statistics
The following metrics were computed from 25 interview experiences for the Optiver Software Engineer role in Chicago, Illinois.
Success Rate
4%
Pass Rate
Optiver's interview process for their Software Engineer roles in Chicago, Illinois is extremely selective, failing the vast majority of engineers.
Experience Rating
Positive76%
Neutral20%
Negative4%
Candidates reported having very good feelings for Optiver's Software Engineer interview process in Chicago, Illinois.
Optiver Work Experiences
5.0
Rewarding place to work
Software Engineer • Current Employee
Chicago, Illinois, United States
September 26, 2017
Pros: - Intelligent and humble coworkers
- Great pay
- Engineers are promoted and paid based on merit. There is transparency regarding levels (junior, senior status, etc.), and your guess is likely correct about where others are.
- With everything in technology and trading constantly changing, there is much room for growth and taking on new responsibilities, even immediately after starting.
- Everything is solid, including culture in general, 401k, massages, breakfast, lunch, snacks, five weeks of vacation shortly after starting (which everyone actually takes), and yearly company trips.
- Useless meetings are cut short or cut out; there is little opportunity for being bored.
- Team leads aren’t simply middle managers; they’ve excelled at the role they are leading.
- Expectations are extremely consistent: focus on clean, simple solutions, own the stack, and grasp the feedback loop of development.
Cons: - Making significant changes that affect trading can be stressful, though this is largely mitigated by frequent releases and having a plan if your solution is broken.
5.0
Putting people around the problem
Software Engineer • Current Employee
Chicago, Illinois, United States
September 9, 2017
Pros: People figure out how to own and solve problems; they aren't told how to solve them from top down.
Great people (traders and engineers) to work with, a respectful environment even when chaotic, and smart people who leave their egos at the door.
High pay and benefits.
Work/life balance, even in senior roles.
Promotions and bonuses based on merit, not longevity or connections.
As an engineer, you have the resources to build really well-engineered systems.
Cons: - Very competitive industry; a solution that worked last year needs constant improvement to work next year.
- We are never done solving a problem; it's a moving target.
- It is hard to measure improvements to systems in a constantly changing market.
- Sometimes we decide to throw away code we worked hard on, which can be tough.
4.0
Good comp, be ready to work for it
Software Engineer • Current Employee
Chicago, Illinois, United States
December 20, 2023
Pros: Coworkers work very hard and are very smart. This may be a con if you want to get ahead or coast somewhere, as this is not that place.
Cons: Politics at many levels; promotions/leveling seem arbitrary.
Various senior hires made that get paid 2x or 4x what people who started out of college and have been working a few years make. These senior hires do not contribute 2x or 4x the value.
- 5.0Rewarding place to workSoftware Engineer • Current EmployeeChicago, Illinois, United StatesSeptember 26, 2017Pros: - Intelligent and humble coworkers - Great pay - Engineers are promoted and paid based on merit. There is transparency regarding levels (junior, senior status, etc.), and your guess is likely correct about where others are. - With everything in technology and trading constantly changing, there is much room for growth and taking on new responsibilities, even immediately after starting. - Everything is solid, including culture in general, 401k, massages, breakfast, lunch, snacks, five weeks of vacation shortly after starting (which everyone actually takes), and yearly company trips. - Useless meetings are cut short or cut out; there is little opportunity for being bored. - Team leads aren’t simply middle managers; they’ve excelled at the role they are leading. - Expectations are extremely consistent: focus on clean, simple solutions, own the stack, and grasp the feedback loop of development.Cons: - Making significant changes that affect trading can be stressful, though this is largely mitigated by frequent releases and having a plan if your solution is broken.
- 5.0Putting people around the problemSoftware Engineer • Current EmployeeChicago, Illinois, United StatesSeptember 9, 2017Pros: People figure out how to own and solve problems; they aren't told how to solve them from top down. Great people (traders and engineers) to work with, a respectful environment even when chaotic, and smart people who leave their egos at the door. High pay and benefits. Work/life balance, even in senior roles. Promotions and bonuses based on merit, not longevity or connections. As an engineer, you have the resources to build really well-engineered systems.Cons: - Very competitive industry; a solution that worked last year needs constant improvement to work next year. - We are never done solving a problem; it's a moving target. - It is hard to measure improvements to systems in a constantly changing market. - Sometimes we decide to throw away code we worked hard on, which can be tough.
- 4.0Good comp, be ready to work for itSoftware Engineer • Current EmployeeChicago, Illinois, United StatesDecember 20, 2023Pros: Coworkers work very hard and are very smart. This may be a con if you want to get ahead or coast somewhere, as this is not that place.Cons: Politics at many levels; promotions/leveling seem arbitrary. Various senior hires made that get paid 2x or 4x what people who started out of college and have been working a few years make. These senior hires do not contribute 2x or 4x the value.
Optiver Interview Questions
Explore Interview QuestionsTaro 75Google Interview QuestionsMeta Interview QuestionsAmazon Interview QuestionsApple Interview QuestionsNetflix Interview Questions
Explore Interview ExperiencesOpenAI Interview ExperiencesAnthropic Interview ExperiencesPerplexity Interview ExperiencesWindsurf Interview ExperiencesMistral AI Interview Experiences
