The Trade Desk Data Scientist Interview Questions
& Process
Real candidates share what happened, how many rounds they had,
and how the experience turned out.
Based on 13 interview experiences · FREE TO READ
Candidate interview experiences
First-hand accounts from people who interviewed at The Trade Desk.
The Trade Desk
Data Scientist Intern
Intern Difficult Positive experience No offer 3 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Technical screen Technical screen
Interview formats
Coding Case
The interview process involved one Screen Call, then a Technical Interview, and finally a 2 hour case and coding interview. Communication from HR was minimal, mostly just for scheduling.
Confirmed questions2 questions
- Can you introduce yourself and describe a recent project?
- Could you tell me about a project you've recently worked on?
The Trade Desk
Staff Data Scientist
Staff Average Positive experience Accept offer 6 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Phone screen Take home Technical screen Onsite Background check Offer
Interview formats
Technical Coding System Design Behavioral Presentation Group
Came in via referral so maybe skipped a step. First, a recruiter chat. Then, a relaxed talk with the hiring manager. After that, got a take-home test. It was a colab notebook with data that seemed like real (but cleaned) data for the role. Had two main questions: one for data analysis (like detective work) and one for ML (predict a target column and validate). Finally, a 4-hour-long interview session: two DS interviews, one with a PM, and one with an Eng manager. Also had lunch in the canteen to meet team members and chatted informally with another senior engineering manager.
Confirmed questions8 questions
- Given the data we have, how would you approach solving business problem X?
- Considering we need a very low-latency response, what factors are important when using ML technique Y?
- Can you tell me about a project you've done before?
The Trade Desk
Data Scientist
Mid Average Negative experience No offer 7 rounds
Interview process
Recruiter call Phone screen Technical screen Onsite Panel Offer
Interview formats
Technical Coding Behavioral System Design
Started with a recruiter reaching out, then a casual chat with the hiring manager. The hiring manager initially said there would be one screening and then two more rounds. I passed the screening, which covered general AI/ML and some coding. Then the recruiter contacted me, and to my surprise, told me there would be four more rounds. These involved discussing solutions to problems from engineering, data science, and product management viewpoints, with open-ended questions. The final round was with the hiring manager, who was quite condescending, making remarks like 'I know better' or 'you probably won't be able to answer this.' This felt like a lack of maturity. After that, they ghosted me, ending any future collaboration possibilities.
Confirmed questions3 questions
- AI related quiz
- Easy/Medium leetcode like question
- Open ended questions to design ML based solutions
The Trade Desk Data Scientist Interview Questions
Quoted word for word from The Trade Desk interview reports.
“How does a NumPy array change based on the provided Python code snippet?”
Read reports →“Could you implement linear interpolation in Python?”
Read reports →“Can you explain the distinction between classification and regression?”
Read reports →“Can you provide an estimate for the number of people who would see an Ad?”
Read reports →“Considering we need a very low-latency response, what factors are important when using ML technique Y?”
Read report →“What was a key insight you discovered from the data?”
Read report →“How much of the engineering work on that project did you handle yourself?”
Read report →“Given the data we have, how would you approach solving business problem X?”
Read report →“What was your process for deciding who would work on which part of the project?”
Read report →Formats, difficulty and experience
Across all 13 The Trade Desk interview reports.