Name: Role-Specific System Design Focus
Uploaded: 2025-06-03T14:43:11+00:00
Duration: 2 min 50 s
Description: In this part of the system design section, we explore how ML system design interviews vary depending on the role and lev

Role-Specific System Design Focus

In this part of the system design section, we explore how **ML system design interviews vary depending on the role and level** we’re applying for. Knowing what’s emphasized helps us tailor our preparation strategically.

- For **product-focused ML roles**, we focus on modeling choices, feature engineering, and connecting ML decisions to tangible business impact.
- **ML infrastructure roles** emphasize architecture, scalability, reliability, and serving systems—including distributed training and feature stores.
- **Research-oriented roles** dive into experimentation frameworks, novel modeling techniques, and how to transition prototypes into production.
- In **ML generalist roles** (common at startups or smaller teams), we’re expected to demonstrate a balanced understanding across the full ML lifecycle.
- Importantly, **interview expectations are tied more to seniority level than company size**—a senior role at a startup may involve deeper system questions than a junior role at a large tech company.

Next, we’ll learn a system design framework that can flex across these scenarios and help us organize our thinking effectively.

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In this part of the system design section, we explore how ML system design interviews vary depending on the role and lev

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