Firstup Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

HR responded quickly to my application and walked me through the whole thing: First, a screener to check who I am and my salary expectations. Then, two tech tests. The first was about data structures and algorithms, and the second was about systems design and architecture. After that, I interviewed with the line manager and then the department manager. Finally, they extended an offer.

Applied online. Got referred by a friend. First was a chat with Chris, who was very helpful and we connected well. He was professional and we talked about the company, goals, performance, and my experience. I really liked that. Second, I had a Testdome assessment with 6 questions, adaptable to my chosen programming language, progressing from easy to hard. While I'm used to coding in real-world scenarios, I sometimes blanked out on tests, but Chris was supportive about it. Third, I spoke with the tech lead. It was formal, professional, and focused on past experience, which I enjoyed. Fourth, there was a technical interview involving a scenario that went well, followed by a LeetCode challenge. I feel LeetCode doesn't truly reflect real-life experience; a company workflow assignment or a bug fix would be more appropriate to show what a typical day looks like. There were supposed to be 2-3 more stages, but I had Zoom issues during the LeetCode part and couldn't reconnect after writing pseudocode and starting the coding solution. It was my fault for using a slow internet provider. A downside is the interview process is very long; it's tough to do many stages when you already have a full-time job. I think I would have excelled and contributed a lot, but sometimes things just don't line up. Still, I had a good experience and wish the team success.

The hiring process starts with a recruiter call, then an online coding test that's timed for 1 hour and 30 minutes. If you pass that, you go through a set of standard software engineering interviews. The recruiter mentioned they aim for top talent and are open to hiring remote engineers, noting they can offer them lower compensation compared to engineers in San Francisco, and the interview process is challenging. While the interviews themselves weren't technically difficult, the online test had hidden checks that went beyond the basic problem statement, leading to a lot of time spent trying to figure out what kinds of inputs they might be using that weren't specified.