I am currently going through the long and intensive process for the Google L3 Software Engineer Role in the US and would like to share my experience so far. The process followed the two-round interview format. For L3 SWE, R1 consisted of one technical and one googlyness question, and R2 consisted of two technical questions.
Some info about me:
- T15 school
- 1.5 YOE at Amazon
- .5 YOE at medium-sized tech company following Amazon layoffs
- 811 LC solved (297/488/26), but over 6 years.
- Contest rating: 1694
March 1, 2026
Application submitted for the general Google L3 SWE Role based in the U.S.
March 10, 2026
I got an invitation to complete the Google Hiring Assessment. This was simply a set of questions asking how you would react to certain situations. I have no advice for this section except to answer confidently (Strongly Disagree / Strongly Agree) and to be consistent in your answers.
March 14, 2026
I was notified that I passed the GHA. Nothing else was sent and I was notified to continue waiting for the possibility of a recruiter reaching out.
March 31, 2026
I received an email to complete the Google Coding Assessment (GCA). To be honest, I don't even remember taking this assessment so I can't give any helpful details. I completed this the day of.
April 2, 2026
I had a recruiter reach out saying that I've passed the GCA. They asked me for interview availablity.
April 16, 2026
I was scheduled for R1 on this day which consisted of back-to-back Googlyness + Technical interviews. The interview got cancelled and the recruiter asked for further availability.
April 21, 2026
I was scheduled for R1 on this day which consisted of back-to-back Googlyness + Technical interviews. The Googlyness interview was a straightforward behavioral interview using STAR.
After doing the behavioral, I waited for the technical portion but the interviewer did not show. I messaged my recruiter and we needed to reschedule the technical portion.
Self Rating: H
April 28, 2026
I took the technical portion for R1 on this day. I do not remember the question too much but it was a simple medium-level hashmap question. It's not anything I've seen on LeetCode but should be easily solveable with LeetCode experience. I don't think I even got the optimal solution for this problem.
Self Rating: H
May 6, 2026
I was notified that I have passed R1. I was then asked to schedule a meeting with a second recruiter to discuss next steps.
May 19, 2026
I had a meeting with a second recruiter. We talked about what to expect in R2 and then asked for my availability.
June 1, 2026
I had my R2 on this day, which consisted of back-to-back technical questions. This round was in-person, so I flew to Mountain View the day prior.
The first question was a medium-hard graph problem which involved reachability. I solved it using 2D DP. I believe I got the optimal solution on this question.
Self Rating: H
The second question was a standard LeetCode matrix problem and I solved it using brute force. I only did the sub-optimal solution for this problem.
Self Rating: LH
June 24, 2026
My recruiter emailed me on this day and told me that I passed Hiring Committee. The next step would be to find a team to match with.
July 9, 2026 (Latest Update)
Still stuck in TM! Some questions I have:
- Any data points on what to expect here in terms of timeline?
- How can I increase my chances of getting matched?
- When should I start to get worried about not getting any matches?