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Snap new grad / entry level interview, how to prep and what i wish i knew

pivot_pat · 5 replies

went through the Snap new grad SWE process this spring. it was honestly more intense than i expected for an entry level role, so writing this for anyone else going in.

application and screening: applied through the campus portal. OA came about 2 weeks later. two coding problems, 90 minutes. one was a graph BFS/DFS problem and the other was a medium-level DP. nothing wild but nothing trivial either. standard leetcode difficulty, medium range.

recruiter call: quick 20-minute check-in. they asked about graduation date, work auth, preferred teams (infra vs product). pretty friendly.

technical phone screen (45 min): one coding problem, shared IDE. was asked to implement a rate limiter (fixed window, then sliding window as a follow-up). if you haven't practiced that one, do it. also a few questions about time and space complexity.

virtual onsite (4 hours, 4 rounds): coding 1: two medium problems, trees + strings coding 2: one harder problem, had a graph component system design lite: they acknowledge this is lighter for new grads. i designed a simple URL shortener. they cared more about whether i could think through trade-offs than whether i knew the perfect answer. behavioral: STAR method, pretty standard. focused on teamwork, handling feedback, and a time you failed and what you learned.

my honest prep advice: leetcode mediums, grind blind 75, know the basics of system design (caching, databases, load balancing) even at a surface level. behavioral prep matters more than people think -- they asked follow-up questions on every answer, so generic answers fall apart fast.

timeline was about 5 weeks from application to offer. they move slower than i expected for a company that size.

and if you're a CS student: they seem to like candidates with internship experience but it's not a hard filter. two people in my cohort had no prior internship.

5 replies

jp_newgrad

the rate limiter question shows up so often in phone screens. fixed window then sliding window is exactly the pattern. i've seen it at three companies now. good to know Snap follows the same playbook.

content_cole

yeah once you've seen it a few times it's almost a gift question. the key is explaining your approach out loud before coding so the interviewer can redirect you early if you're going the wrong way.

pivot_pat

the fact that system design is lighter for new grads is underrated. a lot of people over-prepare for that part and spend time they should be spending on coding. URL shortener, chat system basics -- know those cold and you're fine for entry level.

bootcamp_bri

do you know if they accept bootcamp grads or is it CS degree only? asking for obvious reasons.

mobile_mara

i honestly don't know. my cohort was all CS degrees but that's not a great sample. recruiter would probably give you a straight answer if you ask.