GOOGLE * SWE SUMMER INTERN :

problem asked: GRAPHS
The graph was undirected and unweighted . I was given an illutrative example that showed the interlinked cities: It was said they X&Y can meet in some city and ride to the destination city i and i was supposed to return the city from where they can move together at minimum cost.

story time!!

my phone screening round on the 18th of October went smoothly. I received a mail on the 17th and had my initial screening round the next day. During the screening, I was asked about my projects, coding profile, and to rate myself in DSA (I rated myself 3.5-4). The discussion also touched on the level of problems I've solved and what I ensure about my code before submitting it (likely due to my accuracy being around 35%). My LeetCode profile was reviewed, and I was asked about relocation.
Later after 30mins my Interview Schecule was mailed to me.

What i feel about google is that they are super supportive. The team respects the candidates and treats them so well.
So i had 19-20-21-22 (4 days) to prepare for the FIRST INTERVIEW OF MY LIFE WHICH WAS AT GOOOOOGLE!!!!!!!
I asked for help from my teachers as well as seniors. but then i was told by a teacher("JAB PREPARATION NHI HOTI TOH BACHE GOOGLE JAISE COMPANIES ME Q APPLY KRTE HAI Bs PEER PRESSURE SE" ) he was not intending to hurt me , he asked me to study and prepare but ya this was harsh ; |
Dont worry i said him , (sir main fir bhi krungi, obio when the opportunity is for batch 2026 i cant be applying for it a year later when i wont be eligible for this internship role , why would i loose any chance in life)
Tbh i am very practical in my life, i never dreamt of joining google . so this was a chance to achieve a dream i never had but i dream i always wanted to have but my practical senses never allowed me .

i studied as much as possible;
Only after the interview , i can notice that i am capable of achieving so much more.
It allowed me to outdo myself:
THE DAY~ 23OCT: i joined at 11:53 and the meeting was supposed to start at 12:00pm but it started at 12:10, I warmly thanked the interviewer for this opportunity and introduced myself to him after he was done with his part of introduction. We had a very friendy chat, he asked me to have some water before we begun.
So i was given this problem statement;
The graph was undirected and unweighted . I was given an illutrative example that showed the interlinked cities: It was said they X&Y can meet in some city and ride to the destination city i and i was supposed to return the city from where they can move together at minimum cost.

So the moment i saw a graph :) . Actually I did not prepare graph very well. i just wished ki they wont ask me a graph problem in Round 1. but i was wrong. I was misguided by some people i see.... but that is my bad so yes i did prepare graph (wasnt confident about it) in the interview. I cross checked with the interviewer if i was right and i am understanding the statement.

Tbh i will say my interviwer was super supportive and i could see he wanted to help me reach the approach. He guided me as much he was allowed it. I tried alot to come up with some sort of solution but i was ummmm......... i could't code the part that i should have.
i was unable to provide something worth the solution. (Beleive me i felt the interviwer was so disappointed by me cuz ik he helped me and made sure i was comfortable enough to think clearer) but My preparation was not upto mark and i see alot of scope for improvement from my end.
Nobody else but just MEEEEEEEEEEEE. is responsible for this. I can still cry because i knew the algo.
i knew everything but i could not gather my intellegence in such a manner that my answer gets accepted.

At the end, He asked me if i had any ques. I smiled and said I had many prepared but...as i did not come up with a solution idk if the ques fits. H e encouraged me to ask the ques. So i asked him If i get this opportunity then how would it contribute to the organization. He said that he is not allowed to review me in the meeting and talk about it but he asked me indirectly to work harder :) and practise more. I told him i had prepared diff algorithms that is used in graphs but i see i was unable to implement it. But i ended him by sharing my idea that this little opportunity at Google has challenged me to work harder and i am very motivated about my career and it was a great time to interview with you sir i am way beyong fortunate to be here & I wish i get to see the positive outcome. He said he liked my positivity and the way i tackled the situation as well as my communication.
If it was anything else other than Graph, i bet i would have done so much better i wish i was prepared enough for topics like graph.
THIS WAS THE BEST OPPORTUNITY BUT AT THE WRONG TIME FOR ME :)
( i thank everyone for giving me this interview at google cuz i feel different after this.)
SO to others who are prepaing: i suggest please use a plain document and keep sure u prepare as much as you can Dont worry u will go through it. Keep trying and stay positive.