Embarking on the journey to secure a software development internship was an arduous and demanding
task for me. The thought of finally sharing my story, from "One day to Day one," fills my stomach
with butterflies. It may sound as though I consider the struggle monumental, as if I have achieved
the impossible. That's not entirely true, but for me personally, I have never experienced such
immense pressure and shed as many tears for anything in my life.
How did I prepare for this endeavor, you may wonder? Well, since my sophomore year, I engaged in
competitive programming on platforms like HackerRank, CodeChef, and Codeforces. I carried on with
this pursuit during the precious summer vacations of that same year. Those holidays hold great
significance in a person's life, I must say. If you prepare diligently, you stand a chance of
cracking it; otherwise, sadness and tears become constant companions.
I diligently completed Love Babbar's comprehensive set of coding questions, tackling around 10 to 15
each day, focusing on specific topics. InterviewBit aided me with questions tailored to specific
companies, while LeetCode proved to be an invaluable platform for acing coding rounds. Clearing
online assessments and coding rounds in itself posed a significant challenge. It is essential to
remember that mock interviews are immensely helpful. Seek assistance from friends and lend them your
support. Together, we can achieve greater things, as two heads are better than one.
I had the opportunity to participate in Google's online assessment, although my score wasn't
exceptional. Nonetheless, I believe they considered my academic performance, which led to them
extending an invitation for an interview. The first round went smoothly; the interviewer was
friendly and asked me questions related to arrays, sorting, and searching, specifically focusing on
height variations of ±1. Filled with confidence, I immediately called my family to share the good
news. I dialed Pranav's number, oozing with self-assurance, and assured him that I would undoubtedly
progress to the next round. And indeed, I did make it through.
The second interview proved to be more challenging. I faced a backtracking question, and, in my
opinion, I didn't perform up to par. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the other five
selected candidates outperformed me.
Verdict: Rejected.
Next in line was Arcesium. My hopes had nearly dwindled, but I went ahead with the first interview.
They presented me with a question combining graphs and dynamic programming. While I performed well,
I lacked the confidence to believe I would be selected. Over a meal with Pranav, I shared my story,
expressing my lack of hope, when suddenly a notification appeared, informing me about the next
round. The subsequent round delved into the Computer Science Engineering curriculum, covering topics
like object-oriented programming, database management systems, operating systems, and many others.
To be honest, my knowledge in those areas was limited, and the interview turned into a journey of
learning something entirely new.
Verdict: Rejected.
The story continued. Next up was Uber—a seemingly impossible chance. I participated in the first
round, alongside three candidates from IITJ in the hiring pool. I remember the spreadsheet, and how,
in the last 10 minutes, they shifted the time slot from Pranav to me. The first interview revolved
around system design, followed by a DSA question in the next one, testing my skills in finding the
longest increasing subsequence. I performed reasonably well, but I believed there were stronger
candidates from other IITs, which led to my non-selection.
Verdict: Rejected.
Ah, but it didn't end there. Next on the list was DPA, a surprising choice. The job role centered
around Data Science, a domain I had never envisioned for myself. During the interview, I
intentionally refrained from mentioning my knowledge of machine learning, instead focusing on
full-stack development and software engineering. Playfully, I stumbled through the simple questions
they asked, fully aware that I was not performing at my best.
Verdict: Obvious.
And finally, Warner Bros Discovery. The three interviews left me ecstatic, and I was somewhat
confident about securing a position in this company. And lo and behold, I did it!
Welcome to my portfolio!
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