Deutsche Telekom Interview Questions
& Process

My interview for the dual study program in Computer Science at Telekom was conducted online via Teams. Two interviewers were present, one from HR and one from the technical department. I started by introducing myself and explaining my reasons for wanting to pursue Computer Science and join Telekom. Following that, they asked about my motivation, my IT interests, and my programming experience. There were also some basic technical questions, like defining an algorithm. The atmosphere was relaxed and friendly. At the end, I had the opportunity to ask questions, for instance, about the structure of the dual study program. Overall, it was a pleasant conversation where I felt comfortable being myself.

The interviewer was late and took his time to start. He had similar experience and credentials to me. He asked basic questions, unusual for someone with 15 years of experience, perhaps more suited for a recent graduate. I shared my product opinions, which I believe were accurate, though subjective. The interviewer seemed uninterested throughout, only showing engagement when he thought I answered incorrectly, which lasted until I explained my reasoning. After the initial 10 minutes, I lost interest. It seems he and his boss, having worked together previously, might be hiring people they know. This is fine for team dynamics, but it felt like a waste of my time. I could have asked him similar questions and rejected him. Overall, a very disappointing interview.

The hiring process was misleading and a waste of time. My resume got shortlisted, I passed two technical rounds answering everything, but then got rejected in the manager round. The reason given was not exploring streaming, AI, and trending data systems, which weren't in the job description. It's weird because I cleared the technical rounds, showing my skills were good enough. I was asked an optimization question and gave multiple valid Spark optimization techniques, with no follow-up, so I thought it was fine. But assumptions are risky with this inconsistent process. Companies should be upfront about required skills to avoid wasting candidates' time and to seem professional.

It started with an HR screening where I talked about my salary expectations. The HR person said they couldn't meet it but offered less, which I was okay with after thinking about the role and tech. Then, there were 5 rounds: 3 tech interviews, a psychometric test, and an HRBP chat. I felt good about the tech rounds, they were interesting. I thought I did well. After finishing, HR said I passed and gave me an offer. But the salary was basically the same as my current fixed pay, way less than we talked about at the start. After almost 2 months, HR didn't keep their word. They tried to explain with variable pay, joining bonus, and retention bonus. But I wanted the fixed part to be what we agreed. When I brought it up, they said the offer was based on feedback, but they never gave me any details. Then HR just ghosted me. If they weren't going to offer what they first said, or if the job wasn't meant for that salary, they should have just told me upfront. It felt like a waste of my time. I'd tell others to be careful with this company because their HR process isn't clear or professional.