RealSelf Data Scientist Interview Questions
& Process

I applied online and got sent a case study to complete within 2 days. After submitting it, I was selected for a phone screening with the hiring manager, who was the lead data scientist. Although she seemed nice, she wasn't very engaged and even stifled a yawn while I was answering an open-ended question. She asked about the case study, but seemed uninterested in my responses. I thought I answered well, but got a generic rejection email two days later. Maybe she had a different perspective, or maybe it was her lack of interest. This happened after I'd already received two other offers, which I told them about. They still delayed the interview process significantly, making it feel like a formality. It was a red flag from the start, but I persisted. Ultimately, it was a waste of time and energy. Given this experience and reading about their recent layoffs despite good revenue, I wouldn't recommend interviewing with them.

Things moved fast. First, I had an HR screen where they asked a bunch of behavioral questions. Then, they sent me the benefits package and a take-home assignment. Like others mentioned, they always say the assignment takes about an hour, but it'll probably take a solid 3 hours. It's supposed to be 4 questions, but each has sub-questions, so it's really more like 12. Spending 3-4 hours on an assignment for a job I might not even get feels like too much. When she sent the benefits, I decided it wasn't for me. If you have a family, they only cover 75% of the cost. For single people, it's 100%, which is great. But for me needing family medical, they only cover 75%, making my monthly cost around $800. I don't get how a family plan costs $4000, typically it's around $2000 max, and even then 75% doesn't make sense. So, I need family medical for my family at a minimum contribution, and there's no way I'm paying $800 a month. I didn't even bother with the Excel test; it was a waste of time anyway.

I had a 3-hour onsite interview. I met with five people, and they asked me a bunch of behavioral and skill-based questions. We also spent some time at the whiteboard.