Expedia Group interview experience Real time questions & tips from candidates to crack your interview

SDE - 2

Expedia Group
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3 rounds | 4 Coding problems

Interview preparation journey

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Journey
During my second year of college, during the lockdown, I started learning Data Structures and Algorithms through online platforms. I dedicated myself to preparing for full-time placements and internship opportunities. I devoted significant time to practicing a wide range of questions to enhance my problem-solving skills. Additionally, I focused on core Computer Science subjects like DBMS, OS, and CN.
Application story
I received an opportunity from Expedia on LinkedIn. With a referral, I applied, received positive feedback, submitted a tailored application, and had an initial phone screening with HR. This was followed by interviews, where I showcased my skills and enthusiasm.
Why selected/rejected for the role?
I performed well in the interview. I answered almost every question they asked very confidently. I cleared two rounds, but in the third round, I was rejected.
Preparation
Duration: 12 months
Topics: Data Structure & Algorithms, OOPS, Computer Network, DBMS, Operating System, Design Patterns, Solid Principles
Tip
Tip

Tip 1: Prepare a good resume that is ATS-friendly. This is the first step toward getting a chance for an interview.
Tip 2: Prepare all the technical fundamental core subjects, and solve lots of problems (15-20 questions from each topic). Additionally, having 2-3 projects on your resume is a must.
Tip 3: Try to set up mock interviews with seniors or friends before your actual interview.
Tip 4: Also, prepare solid principles, design patterns, and high-level system design.

Application process
Where: Campus
Eligibility: B.E./B.Tech/ME/M.Tech(E&TC & E&C)/CS/IT , 60% throughout Academics, with no breaks/Year down, along with 2+ year of experience in Backend Development (Salary: 25 LPA)
Resume Tip
Resume tip

Tip 1: Add at least 2-3 projects and try to provide links to your projects where you have deployed them or stored the codebase.
Tip 2: Do not write false information; you will get caught during interviews.

Interview rounds

01
Round
Medium
Online Coding Interview
Duration90 minutes
Interview date21 Nov 2024
Coding problem1

This round was online on HackerRank for 1 hour, where I received 20 multiple-choice questions on core computer science subjects like Computer Networks, Operating Systems, OOP, C++, Java, and one coding question based on DSA problem-solving.

1. Minimum Number of Platforms

Moderate
30m average time
70% success
0/80
Asked in companies
Paytm (One97 Communications Limited)MicrosoftMorgan Stanley

You have been given two arrays, 'AT' and 'DT', representing the arrival and departure times of all trains that reach a railway station.

Your task is to find the minimum number of platforms required for the railway station so that no train needs to wait.

Note :
1. Every train will depart on the same day and the departure time will always be greater than the arrival time. For example, A train with arrival time 2240 and departure time 1930 is not possible.

2. Time will be given in 24H format and colons will be omitted for convenience. For example, 9:05AM will be given as "905", or 9:10PM will be given as "2110".

3. Also, there will be no leading zeroes in the given times. For example, 12:10AM will be given as “10” and not as “0010”.
Problem approach

Approach:

Sort the arrival and departure times:

  • Sort both the arr[] (arrival) and dep[] (departure) arrays independently.

Use two pointers:

  • Use one pointer to iterate through the arr[] (arrival) array and another pointer for the dep[] (departure) array.
  • Compare the current train's arrival time with the earliest departure time.

Maintain a count of platforms needed:

  • If a train arrives before another departs, increment the platform count.
  • Otherwise, decrement the platform count when a train departs.

Track the maximum number of platforms needed:

  • Keep a variable to store the maximum count of platforms needed at any time.
Try solving now
02
Round
Medium
Telephonic
Duration60 minutes
Interview date23 Nov 2024
Coding problem2

This round was 60 minutes long, and there was one interviewer. He asked me to share my screen and turn on the video. Then, we had our introductions, and DSA questions were discussed.

1. House Robber II

Moderate
15m average time
80% success
0/80
Asked in companies
UberGoogleIntuit

Mr. X is a professional robber planning to rob houses along a street. Each house has a certain amount of money hidden.


All houses along this street are arranged in a circle. That means the first house is the neighbour of the last one. Meanwhile, adjacent houses have a security system connected, and it will automatically contact the police if two adjacent houses are broken into on the same night.


You are given an array/list of non-negative integers 'ARR' representing the amount of money of each house. Your task is to return the maximum amount of money Mr. X can rob tonight without alerting the police.


Note:
It is possible for Mr. X to rob the same amount of money by looting two different sets of houses. Just print the maximum possible robbed amount, irrespective of sets of houses robbed.


For example:
(i) Given the input array arr[] = {2, 3, 2} the output will be 3 because Mr X cannot rob house 1 (money = 2) and then rob house 3 (money = 2), because they are adjacent houses. So, he’ll rob only house 2 (money = 3)

(ii) Given the input array arr[] = {1, 2, 3, 1} the output will be 4 because Mr X rob house 1 (money = 1) and then rob house 3 (money = 3).

(iii) Given the input array arr[] = {0} the output will be 0 because Mr. X has got nothing to rob.
Problem approach
  1. First, I told him a brute force approach using recursion.
  2. Then, I told him the optimized approach using dynamic programming.
Try solving now

2. Two Sum

Easy
10m average time
90% success
0/40
Asked in companies
Hexaware TechnologiesFacebookAmazon

You are given an array of integers 'ARR' of length 'N' and an integer Target. Your task is to return all pairs of elements such that they add up to Target.

Note:

We cannot use the element at a given index twice.

Follow Up:

Try to do this problem in O(N) time complexity. 
Problem approach
  1. First, I told him about the brute force O(N^2) approach using two loops to figure out pairs.
  2. Then, I told him about the optimized approach using a HashMap with an O(N) time complexity solution.
Try solving now
03
Round
Medium
Video Call
Duration60 minutes
Interview date26 Nov 2024
Coding problem1

This round was based on system design. In this round, I first had an introduction, and then he gave me a problem statement to design a key-value store.

1. System Design

Design A Key-Value Store.

Problem approach

Tip 1: First, I discussed all functional and non-functional requirements.
Tip 2: Then, I had a discussion on the back-of-envelope calculation.
Tip 3: After that, I discussed the high-level design diagram. I also discussed the database, caching, API gateway, load balancer, and CDN.
Tip 4: I also discussed the APIs we will use and their design.

Here's your problem of the day

Solving this problem will increase your chance to get selected in this company

Skill covered: Programming

Which SQL keyword removes duplicate records from a result set?

Choose another skill to practice
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