instacart | Software Engineer | Interview Experience
Interview Date: Not specified
Result: Not specified
Difficulty: Not specified
Interview Process
The interview consisted of four questions, with the first three being straightforward and practical, commonly seen in interviews. The topics included banking systems, account opening, deposits, and calculating account expenditures (returning the top N accounts with the highest expenditures). The final question involved calculating cashback, which is credited 24 hours later, requiring an understanding of when to account for it.
The third question was the most complex, involving intricate logic that was prone to bugs. After finishing the first two questions in about 30 minutes, I struggled with the third question for a long time, ultimately resorting to excessive printing to identify a trivial bug. The last question had a time constraint of less than 10 minutes, and unexpectedly, my computer lost power with just under 5 minutes remaining. When I returned, I had only 1.5 minutes left to complete it. I managed to write most of the logic for the first function, but I didn’t have time to return and test it.
Technical Questions
- Banking System - Account Opening
- Deposits and Expenditures Calculation
- Cashback Calculation (Delayed Credit)
Tips & Insights
- Be prepared for practical questions that require logical reasoning.
- Keep an eye on time management, especially for complex problems.
- Make sure to test your code thoroughly to avoid simple bugs.