The interview process consisted of a 30-minute recruiter call, followed by a 90-minute HackerRank assessment with two problems. This was then followed by a 45-minute hiring manager call.

I answered both HackerRank questions. The first one passed all tests. For the second, I used a DFS approach instead of a BFS, which resulted in a timeout on a few test cases. I was scheduled for a hiring manager call afterwards.

During the call, the hiring manager spoke about the abundance of qualified applicants and emphasized that this position requires significant prior knowledge, hard work, and focus. Even at this early stage of the conversation, I formed a negative impression of the hiring manager.

After reviewing my resume and the job description, she stated that I would need to complete the HackerRank assessment to advance to the next steps. I mentioned that I had already completed it. She then checked her email to locate my submission and spent 5-10 minutes reviewing it during our call.

Although not explicitly stated, it's understood that they can see the time taken for the assessment. I proceeded slowly, confident I could finish within the allotted time, thinking there was no need to rush when I could complete the problems at a leisurely pace. However, points are deducted on HackerRank if you use all the allocated time, so it's advisable to speed up if you are keen on working there.

Following this, she discussed the various technologies and languages I should be interested in or explore further to progress. I reiterated my interest. Subsequently, I was ghosted. I received no follow-up email, no rejection email, and no further communication.

Two HackerRank questions were presented.

The first involved string manipulation through the implementation of a custom comparator to order strings in a specific way.

The second required a Breadth-First Search (BFS) traversal of a 2D matrix with memoization to find the shortest weighted path.