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

GenAI Intern

Netapp

4 rounds | 7 Coding problems

Yatindra Kumar Srivastava

Fresher | Mar 2024

Selected

Interview preparation journey

Journey

I am a Master's student pursuing my M.Tech in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science at MNNIT Allahabad. Throughout my B.Tech, I focused on DSA and project development, though I prioritized GATE preparation towards the end. Upon starting here, I began solving questions on various platforms like Coding Ninjas, where people were sometimes surprised to see me solve hard questions on the first try, which helped me solidify my AI basics. NetApp visited our campus to hire interns for its GenAI team, and I saw this as the perfect opportunity to test my preparation. My Holi holidays were cut short due to the interview being scheduled close to the holiday, so I traveled back to college the night before. I couldn’t sleep at all and essentially went into the interview on no sleep. We were expected to reach the TPO office by 8 AM sharp, where interviews were conducted. Due to the number of students, my first interview round took place at 7 PM. There were three interview rounds: the first was a technical interview focused mainly on technical questions; the second was a managerial round, covering both technical topics and general questions about myself; and the third was the HR round. I cleared all three interviews and was one of the two people they hired as GenAI interns.

Application story

It was an on-campus application. NetApp visits our college to hire interns for its team from the M.Tech batch. I applied because it aligned with my career goals and aspirations.

Why selected/rejected for the role?

I feel like I was one of the best candidates in the lot, according to them. I was able to explain every detail of the two projects I had created, which were closely aligned with what we were expected to work on during our internships. I answered the questions with zeal and enthusiasm, which is why they liked me as a candidate.

Preparation

Duration: 3 Months

Topics: Data Structures, Algorithms, OOPS, Generative AI, Data Science

Tip

Tip 1: Be consistent with your preparation.
Tip 2: You’re never going to be fully prepared—just go and give it your best shot!
Tip 3: Try to implement what you learn instead of adopting the "I'll study everything first and then implement it all together" approach.

Application process

Where: Campus

Eligibility: 7.5 and above CPI, No backlogs (Stipend is 60000/- per month)

Resume tip

Tip 1: Try to tailor your resume to the job description.
Tip 2: Ensure you have a clear understanding of the content you include on your resume.

Interview rounds

Round

Medium

Online Coding Interview

Duration90 minutes

Interview date8 Mar 2024

Coding problem1

Timing: 4 PM to 5:30 PM
Environment: We were allowed to take it from our hostel rooms, albeit with two cameras—one that recorded our faces through our laptops, and the second through our phones, which recorded our surroundings to prevent any chance of cheating.

1. Coding Question

There were 3 coding problems: one was basic math, and its solution complexity was O(sqrt N). Anyone who has been solving problems can basically solve it in under 10 minutes at most. One question was related to trees, which took some time to solve, and the third was a graph question, for which I didn't have enough time.

Problem approach

The first solution was pretty intuitive. Anyone could have solved it if they had done some level of problem solving. The other two were of the type that if you had solved that problem or a similar one, you could solve it within fifteen minutes; otherwise, there would be enough time to fully solve just one. That's what happened to me.

Round

Medium

Face to Face

Duration30 minutes

Interview date28 Mar 2024

Coding problem4

My first round of interview was the Technical round. It was taken by the Tech Lead of our GenAI team.
He was a very knowledgeable person who was helping out people if they got stuck or told them what the concept was if they didn't answer it.
When it was my turn, he was very interested to know the depth of my knowledge in my answers and tried to check it at certain points.
He was very helpful and corrected me very politely if I mixed something up due to being anxious.

1. Technical Question

He asked me about working of ChatGPT, right from the first step of Tokenization to the last step, and a general idea of what those steps were.

Problem approach

Tip 1: If applying for an AI role/ company, having a good understanding of the working of ChatGPT is a must.
Tip 2: Follow the 7-video series of 3Blue1Brown to understand the above

2. Project Question

I had made a Movie Recommender system as my project, so I was asked how I made it and how it worked, in great detail. I explained every step.

Problem approach

Tip 1: Don't just copy projects from YouTube; try to understand what is being done, how it is being done, and why it is being done.
Tip 2: It's supposed to be your project, so try to have a good understanding of it, enough to be able to explain what is happening and where.

3. Project Question

I had made a Likeability Estimator as a project, so I was asked how I made it and how it worked, in great detail. I explained every step.

Problem approach

Tip 1: Same two tips mentioned above.

4. DBMS Question

How to calculate the balance from the debit and credit columns in MySQL?

Problem approach

Tip 1: Have a good command on SQL if you're going into Data centric companies.
Tip 2: Don't just understand the concepts of SQL, try solving questions based on it.

Round

Easy

Face to Face

Duration15 minutes

Interview date28 Mar 2024

Coding problem1

It was a Managerial round, taken by our Senior Manager here at NetApp.
It took place almost 15 minutes after my first round.
Our Senior Manager is a very well-mannered and well-versed person, and he was very generous in his evaluation.
He was pretty impressed by my work ethic and my interest in exploring various technology.

1. Project Question

She asked me about the projects I had done that were part of the curriculum and those that were not. I explained the projects I had made earlier when I was exploring other technologies or created a project out of interest.

Problem approach

Tip 1: Try to explain the work you put into making something by presenting it with enthusiasm.
Tip 2: Make projects about things you like too—something that is yours. It helps differentiate you from someone who has made an XYZ project just because it might land them a job.

Round

Easy

HR Round

Duration15 Minutes

Interview date28 Mar 2024

Coding problem1

I was able to answer the questions confidently, offering a unique take on some of them.

1. HR Question

The questions were general. They were more about who I am as a person and how I deal with adversity and similar topics.

Problem approach

Tip 1: Good English will always come in handy here.
Tip 2: Never mug up answers for tackling this round
Tip 3: Be confident if you've reached up to here, you're more likely to pass than to fail here.