Hey everyone,
Just wanted to share my journey of interviewing with Google for the L3 position. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions, filled with excitement, nervousness, and a lot of self-reflection.
It all started when a recruiter reached out to me on LinkedIn. I felt incredibly lucky to get this opportunity, and I knew I had to give it my all.
The Beginning
Had my first conversation with the recruiter on 11th Nov 2024, and soon after, my phone screen was scheduled for 13th Dec 2024.
13th Dec 2024 – Phone Screen
I was given a graph problem and, with a few hints, managed to crack the optimal solution. I was so pumped when I got the call the very next day saying that I cleared it! My onsites were going to be scheduled next.
But then... ghosting. Weeks went by without any updates. The uncertainty was tough, but finally, my onsite interviews were set for the third week of Feb 2025.
Being a morning person, I requested morning slots on consecutive days. The final schedule was:
- 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th Feb 2025.
Preparation Mode ON
I gave everything I had to make this count. Read 250+ interview experiences, took 20+ mock interviews, and connected with amazing people through Leetcode and LinkedIn. The support I received was heartwarming, and it kept me in a really good state of mind going into the onsites.
14th Feb 2025 – Mock Interview
I wanted a mock interview before my onsites and thus requested the recruiter for the same. I got my mock scheduled on 14th Feb 2025 in the evening. The interviewer was from London, a Senior Software Engineer with 6 YOE at Google.
I was asked a pretty standard BFS question with three follow-ups. Graphs are one of my stronger areas, so I solved the first question pretty quickly. Then, the interviewer kept asking follow-ups, and I was able to explain and code all of them one by one. This went really well, and the interviewer even praised me for my speed and understanding of the question.
Self-rating: Strong hire.
This was the best thing that could have happened before my onsites. It gave me a huge confidence boost. All my interviewers for the onsites were Indian, and they were very friendly and supportive.
The Onsite Experience
17th Feb 2025 – First Onsite (DSA Round)
- Got a LeetCode Hard problem on streams.
- Came up with the optimal solution, and the interviewer seemed satisfied.
- But… I left a conditional bug in the code. Even after a hint, I couldn’t fix it. That moment still haunts me.
- I really thought this could have been a strong hire, but that bug might have cost me.
- Self-rating: Hire.
18th Feb’s interview got rescheduled to 21st Feb.
19th Feb 2025 – Second Onsite (DSA Round)
- Got a LeetCode Medium problem based on cyclic sort.
- Solved the better approach without hints, and with a couple of hints, I cracked the optimal one.
- Forgot the syntax for a custom comparator in a priority queue (CPP being my go-to language). That might have left a bad impression.
- Again, thought this could have been a strong hire, but those minor slip-ups made me doubt.
- Self-rating: Hire.
Rescheduling Woes
- 20th Feb – Googliness round got rescheduled to 3rd March.
- 21st Feb – Last DSA round was cancelled because the panel didn’t join (moved to 4th March).
At this point, I was a mix of frustration and nervousness. These delays meant I had to keep my momentum going for another two weeks!
3rd March 2025 – Googliness & Leadership Round
- The interviewer was super chill. That helped calm my nerves.
- Being my first-ever culture-fit round, I was a bit nervous initially.
- Struggled to frame my answers properly, but the interviewer encouraged me to relax and think through my responses.
- We wrapped up early and had a great chat about life at Google.
- Self-rating: Hire.
4th March 2025 – Final Onsite (DSA Round)
- This was the big one. I was SO excited and determined to get a strong hire.
- Got a problem: Find the sum of all subarrays where the difference is 1 or -1.
- Immediately recognized it was a DP problem.
- BUT… I messed up.
- Instead of starting with brute force, I zoned out and jumped straight into trying to derive a mathematical formula.
- Wasted 20 minutes trying to crack the formula.
- The interviewer gave me no hints (which meant they expected me to figure it out).
- With only 10 minutes left, I was told to at least code the brute force approach.
- Barely managed to complete it. Didn’t even get time to debug.
- Completely shattered.
- The interviewer even mentioned that I should work on handling pressure better.
- If I had just played it safe, started from brute force, and then optimized, I might have at least gotten a Lean Hire instead of what I feared was a No Hire.
- Self-rating: Lean No Hire.
The Aftermath
Within 3 hours of my last onsite, I got a call from the recruiter.
I missed it.
Had to wait two long days before we could finally connect. The anticipation was brutal.
When I finally got the call, the recruiter told me:
- I did really well in the Googliness round.
- My DSA performance could have been better.
- I didn’t make it to team matching.
It took me 2-3 days to truly process what had happened. The emotions were all over the place. Disappointment, regret, frustration. I kept replaying that last interview in my head, wondering what I could have done differently.
I had always imagined myself posing in front of the new Ananta Office in Bangalore, finally making it. That dream felt so close yet so far now.
But one thing I’ve realized is—I belong here.
I know I am good enough for top companies like Google. I just need to trust my instincts, manage pressure better, and keep improving.
This isn’t the end. I will make a comeback.
One day, I will convert this into an offer. Promise...