Rejected by Google because of coding

Intel
V6ene

Go to company page Intel

V6ene
Apr 2, 2020 455 Comments

I had a good interview at Google but I was finally rejected. The main issue was coding, according to the recruiter.

I consider myself a good programmer, I've been coding since I was a teenager and I've written c++ (11/14/17) production code for years. One of the interviews was about coding a lot, and I think I did very well. Other two had a little of coding only.

Now, my ego is hurt. Honestly, I don't know how I could have done coding better in the interview.

I think I'll just move on, but I'd really like to know how they evaluated my coding skills.

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TOP 455 Comments
  • Keep your head high and keep trying. This is a much more random process than you think. Youโ€™ve seen clowns at work, right? They interview people.
    Apr 2, 2020 5
    • Can totally vouch for the "Not to mention clowns in the management, the more senior the more they shine." . Dealing with it right now. :-(
      Apr 3, 2020
    • Compass Digital Labs
      foodtech

      Compass Digital Labs

      foodtech
      Yup, seen this firsthand.
      Apr 3, 2020
  • Amazon
    MyPillow๐Ÿ˜

    Go to company page Amazon

    MyPillow๐Ÿ˜
    Coding rounds are really about communication. Perhaps your code was correct and optimal but you didn't interact with the interviewer? Anyone can memorize LC solutions with enough effort. You need to explain what you're doing, why, the tradeoffs and choices etc.
    Apr 2, 2020 28
  • Cadence
    user1835

    Go to company page Cadence

    user1835
    tldr; code quality and flow matter a lot

    I had quite a similar experience with my Google. Interviewer kept asking problems and I kept coding them. Interface was google docs and I had coded three problems in under 30 mins. I was super happy that I have definitely nailed it.

    Next day recruiter called and told that I have been rejected because my coding skills didn't match those for a staff engineer.

    I was taken aback because I had in my mind coded everything correctly, in really good time. Moreover the recruiter had clearly mentioned that interviewer was very happy with my communication throughout the interview.

    I messaged a friend in google also on a senior position. He too was surprised and he asked if I had the solutions still with me. Luckily I still had the google doc open in a tab. Although the access was gone I was able to extract the code using browser developer tools.

    As I copied the code and shared it to my friend, I realised what had been wrong. The code looked like what a guy just passed out from college would write. Code quality was terrible.

    There were long functions making code hard to understand. It was nowhere near what one would expect from someone with 8 years of experience. In my zest to code quickly I had completely neglected coding practices.

    I am not saying you would have made the same mistake. But at least in my case the biggest change I made in all my coding rounds is to emphasize on code quality even if it meant to overshoot slightly on time.
    Apr 2, 2020 10
    • Cadence
      user1835

      Go to company page Cadence

      user1835
      I actually only had a linkedin and github profile in the name of CV at that stage as I was yet to create a resume as such. But yes I was lucky that the two companies I had worked with gave me a whole rounded product development experience as we built and failed many products :)
      Apr 3, 2020
    • Workday
      rich.dryer

      Go to company page Workday

      rich.dryer
      When I was an interviewer at Google, I definitely evaluated code more than just whether or not it worked. Style matters.

      Speed also matters. I have a very simple question, but it has a very large number of follow-ups, and how many follow-ups we get through tells me at what level you are.

      Also, we were repeatedly told that we were to leave the candidate feeling like they did a good job, even if they didn't.
      Apr 3, 2020
  • Maybe you arenโ€™t as good as you think...? Just a guess
    Apr 2, 2020 3
    • Salesforce / Eng
      Ohano

      Go to company page Salesforce Eng

      Ohano
      @intel Maybe this was a good calibration? Time to study up
      Apr 3, 2020
    • New / Mgmt
      yolo2020๐Ÿฆ 

      New Mgmt

      yolo2020๐Ÿฆ 
      Itโ€™s not always about how good you are at something today. Work at it and get a little better every day.

      I was a disaster of an entrepreneur for 7 years before I made any money at it.
      Apr 3, 2020
  • Intel
    V6ene

    Go to company page Intel

    V6ene
    OP
    I see many answers questioning the validity of the interview process at Google. Have you guys worked there, or it is just what everybody says, even googlers?
    Apr 2, 2020 14
    • Nokia, this is hilarious. Google products have a great quality and their designs are outstanding! How many times you see gmail failed? What about youtube with billion hits every sec? Google is an pioneer. Know about their deep mind and how it beats world famous go player.You are free to blah blah whatever. No body cares!!
      Apr 3, 2020
    • Google
      ZHqa3o

      Go to company page Google

      PRE
      Microsoft
      ZHqa3o
      Being in Google doesn't automatically mean you are great.
      I've seen hoardes of idiots and very good designers, both in Google.

      Having a large graveyard isn't necessarily a bad thing. Especially with Google's graveyard, where most of the discontinued services are actually great, this doesn't indicate bad talent. Instead this indicates bad processes and misaligned performance metrics.
      Apr 8, 2020