Senior Software Engineer

When I interviewed at Paytm with three years of experience as a Java Backend Engineer, I realized that companies like theirs focus heavily on strong Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA) skills. I began preparing for DSA just 3-4 months before the interview, feeling a bit unsure at first. However, after a week or two, I became more interested in solving DSA problems. I covered basic questions on trees, singly linked lists, and arrays on coding platforms. During the middle of my preparation, I took a month-long break. When I started attending interviews, I felt like I had forgotten what I had learned over the past few months. That's when I realized the importance of continuous practice. I went back and practised the same set of questions again. Although I faced rejections in some of the initial rounds, after 4-5 interviews, I gained confidence and understood what companies were looking for. For system design, I studied a few use cases online, and my previous experience at my organization helped me understand the key considerations when developing an application from scratch. This comprehensive preparation paid off in the end.

I applied via LinkedIn, then I got a call from HR for an interview, and the HR scheduled a technical interview. Throughout each round, the HR was helpful, providing detailed information about every round in advance.

I cleared the first round, which was technical, but got rejected in the second round of LLD (Low-Level Design). However, the experience was valuable. I focused on improving the areas where I was lacking for my future interviews.