Engine Data Scientist Interview Questions
& Process
Real candidates share what happened, how many rounds they had,
and how the experience turned out.
Based on 5 interview experiences · FREE TO READ
Candidate interview experiences
First-hand accounts from people who interviewed at Engine.
Engine
Data Scientist
Senior Difficult Negative experience No offer 1 round
Interview process
Technical screen
Interview formats
Technical Coding
The interview process felt pretty unorganized. I've never experienced interviews where the interviewers seemed so clearly burnt out or overwhelmed. It appeared quite hectic, with many interviewers being new hires or having recently changed roles within the company. They seem to make their entire hiring decision based solely on whether candidates can answer a specific SQL question within 25 minutes, which was rather unusual.
Confirmed questions1 question
- Can you aggregate fields from these 3 tables to create new metrics, and combine the results of the aggregations into a single table?
Engine
Senior Data Scientist
Senior Average Negative experience No offer 3 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Technical screen Take home
Interview formats
Technical Coding
The recruiting process was pretty slow, with a couple weeks between each interview. I didn't hear back for about 3 weeks, and then got a call saying they didn't think I was quite "senior level" and that the salary would be about $50k lower. This was despite me answering questions well and showing I'd done similar work. The interviewer gave really good feedback, saying they "definitely want to move you forward." I asked the recruiter for clarification on why I wasn't seen as senior level after that good interview feedback. After about a week and a half, still no word. Basically, it feels like this team is unsure of what they need and is wasting people's time while they figure it out. Data scientists, save yourselves the trouble and steer clear of these bait-and-switch companies.
Confirmed questions2 questions
- Tell me about your experience.
- Solve this Leetcode-style problem.
Engine
Data Scientist
Senior Average Positive experience Decline offer 3 rounds
Interview process
Phone screen Technical screen Onsite
Interview formats
Coding Technical Behavioral
Started with a basic phone screen, then we did a paired coding test. The coding test was a standard shared coding exercise with some brain teaser questions. I usually don't love this format, but this one was collaborative and really focused on the approach and process. The third interview involved multiple interviews with different team members and stakeholders, and it was a great experience.
Confirmed questions4 questions
- A coding question using Python was asked.
- Questions about SQL were presented.
- A question on systems design, specifically in software engineering, was posed.
Engine Data Scientist Interview Questions
Quoted word for word from Engine interview reports.
“Solve this Leetcode-style problem.”
Read reports →“Can you aggregate fields from these 3 tables to create new metrics, and combine the results of the aggregations into a single table?”
Read reports →“Can you explain how you would create a ranking algorithm for hotel search results within a specific city?”
Read reports →“A coding question using Python was asked.”
Read reports →“Questions about SQL were presented.”
Read report →“A question on systems design, specifically in software engineering, was posed.”
Read report →“Questions related to general behavior and soft skills were included.”
Read report →“Tell me about your experience.”
Read report →Formats, difficulty and experience
Across all 5 Engine interview reports.