Shorthills interview experience Real time questions & tips from candidates to crack your interview
L3 Engineer
Shorthills
3 rounds | 8 Coding
problems
Selected Interview preparation journey
Journey
I started learning C and C++ during my fourth semester of college and then studied data structures and algorithms using C for six months. After an eight to nine month break, I resumed programming with Java and spent nine months studying data structures and algorithms with it. I also learned DBMS, OOPS, and OS and worked on some frontend projects using the React library. Although I had more experience with frontend development, I opted for a backend profile at Shorthills to expand my skill set. My journey in programming has taught me the importance of perseverance, hard work, and continuous learning.
Application story
It was an on-campus recruitment drive.
Resume shortlisting was there (based on CGPA).
Two technical rounds were there.
And finally a discussion with the company's co-founder.
Why selected/rejected for the role?
Industry experience was not required for the position, as stated in the job description.
While the entire preparation process could be completed in 2-3 months, I have already prepared so it was easier for me to get selected.
Preparation
Duration: 10 months
Topics: Data Structures, Java OOPS, DBMS, Javascript
Tip 1: Prepare well in advance of your interview.
Tip 2: Include only relevant skills and work experience on your resume.
Tip 3: Build an engaging Github profile.
Application process
Where: Campus
Eligibility: Above 5 CGPA
Tip 1: Ensure that you mention the skills relevant to the job description.
Tip 2: Keep track of the specific resume you submitted when applying and be familiar with the information you included in it.
Interview rounds
01
Round
Medium
Face to Face
Duration30 mins
Interview date20 Apr 2023
Coding problem3
The interview was scheduled remotely at 3 pm. The interviewer joined on time and he was helpful.
1. OOPs Question
what are virtual functions?
2. OOPs Question
Given Shape class is a base class, and the Circle class is a derived class that extends the Shape class. The Shape class has a method called draw(), which prints "Drawing a shape".The Circle class has a method called draw() as well, but it overrides the draw() method of the Shape class. The draw() method of the Circle class prints "Drawing a circle".In the main() method, three objects are created: s of type Shape, c of type Circle, and s1 of type Shape but pointing to an object of type Circle.
Problem approach
Basic concepts oops were used
3. OOPs Question
Explain 4 pillars of OOPS by giving proper coding example
Problem approach
Basic OOps concept were used
02
Round
Medium
Face to Face
Duration40 mins
Interview date21 Mar 2024
Coding problem4
The interview was scheduled remotely at 5 pm.
The interviewer joined 5 min late.
1. Segregate Odd-Even
Moderate
25m average time
75% success
0/80
Asked in companies
There is a wedding ceremony at NinjaLand. The bride and groom want everybody to play a game and thus, they have blindfolded the attendees. The people from the bride’s side are holding odd numbers and people from the groom’s side are holding the even numbers. For the game to start quickly, all the bride’s side people should come first, followed by the groom’s side people in the same order.
The attendees of the wedding with their numbers are given in the form of a Singly Linked List, arranged randomly.
A singly linked list is a type of linked list that is unidirectional; that is, it can be traversed in only one direction from head to the last node (tail).
Example:
The attendees holding numbers from 1, 4, 3 are shown:
As the organizers are busy, you have to arrange all the people by arranging the bride’s side people first followed by the groom’s side people sequentially.
Note:
For the above example 1 -> 4 -> 3, 1 -> 3 -> 4 is the only correct answer, i.e nodes should be grouped sequentially. Hence, 3 -> 1 -> 4 is the wrong answer as we have to preserve the same order.
Problem approach
During the interview, I provided my approach for sorting the given array using bubble sort, and the interviewer inquired about the time complexity of the algorithm. After mentioning the time complexity as O(n^2), I suggested an alternative approach using merge sort, which takes O(nlogn) time and O(n) space. The interviewer then hinted that the array only consisted of 0s and 1s, leading me to recall a two-pointer approach. However, I initially made a mistake by taking both pointers at the 0th index, which the interviewer corrected by advising one pointer at the 0th index and the second pointer at the last index. I was able to solve the problem using this approach. Then, the interviewer asked me to find another approach and mentioned that it was simpler. Finally, I was able to suggest an approach using only the count of 0s or 1s in the array.
2. DBMS Question
Explain the concept of primary keys and super keys in the context of relational databases?
Problem approach
Tip: Follow a guided learning path or watch a YouTube playlist to learn about Database Management Systems (DBMS). For example, you can refer to the guided path on DBMS available on Coding Ninjas or any other reliable source.
3. Project based questions
Can you describe one of your projects? Please share your screen and walk me through the code and how the project works.
Problem approach
Tip 1: Keep your projects deployed so that you can easily explain their workings without wasting time manually starting them on a local machine.
Tip 2: Create a list of lookup points for each project mentioned in your resume and read them before the interview to refresh your memory.
4. SQL Question
Differnce betwwen SQL and NoSQL.
03
Round
Easy
HR Round
Duration20 mins
Interview date23 May 2023
Coding problem1
The round was a discussion with the Co-Founder, scheduled for 9pm at night.
1. Basic HR Questions
What motivated you to choose the backend developer role as your top preference?
Can you tell me about your family background and your place of origin?
What was your JEE rank and what is your current CGPA?
Here's your problem of the day 
Solving this problem will increase your chance to get selected in this company
Skill covered: Programming
What is recursion?
Choose another skill to practice
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