RTX BBN Technologies Software Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

I had a scheduled phone call. The interviewer asked about my resume projects and experiences, then explained the work at BBN and the internship structure.

I applied on their website. First, there was a 1-hour phone screen, then a take-home coding challenge. After that, I had a 6-hour onsite interview with more than 8 staff members. The onsite wasn't too hard, but I had a bad experience. Mostly it was behavioral questions and questions about my past work. One person gave me a whiteboard challenge that was pretty easy. Two others asked me some Java and CS questions, like about threading, classes, and jump tables. Towards the end, someone said they thought I didn't know how to code (ouch). One staff member had bad body language, putting their legs on the table. Even though they said they use whatever tech is best, nobody showed it. The staff lacked diversity, the building was gloomy, and I was ghosted after the long onsite. There were some nice staff members (5-6 out of 8), but the others really messed with my confidence and made me feel disrespected.

I found the Associate Software Engineer Data Sciences job online and applied. A week later, an engineer contacted me for a phone interview where two engineers talked about the role and asked about my past work. Following that, I was asked to submit code and writing samples. Another week passed, and HR requested my resume and scheduled an onsite interview. This turned out to be a whole day of interviews, from morning to mid-afternoon, with lunch included with some engineers. I was pretty stressed the night before and didn't sleep much. Waking up a bit late, I realized I needed copies of my resume for the 10 people I'd be meeting, so I quickly went to Staples, which made me late for my first interview at the Arlington office. The security was intense; I had to be escorted, fill out paperwork, and got a guest ID. My first meeting was with the same two engineers from the phone call. They asked about my experience again and wanted more details on a specific project. Then, I met with the head of security, who explained the need for a secret security clearance and the complicated process. I mentioned my concern about my mom not being a US citizen. Next, I met two research specialists, one in semantic web and one in sensors. They mainly discussed their work and gauged my interests, with problem-solving questions related to their research rather than direct technical ones. One asked about development methodologies, and seemed unfamiliar with Agile, suggesting they use waterfall. I noticed most interviewers were older, in their mid-40s to 50s, with the younger folks joining for lunch. These individuals were highly educated and experienced but, like the company culture overall, a bit uninteresting. This division focused on research, handing off solutions to the government and then other companies implementing them. I also spoke with HR about my salary expectations of $70000, which she considered 'a little high.' Ultimately, it wasn't the type of company I wanted to work for, so I'm okay with not getting the position.