I read a lot of these posts while preparing, so here's mine.
Background: 3rd year CSE PhD student working in distributed systems, interviewing for the SWE PhD Intern role for Summer 2027. I applied using a fellow alum’s referral.

Timeline: The recruiter invited me to the technical rounds on a Tuesday, and the interviews were the following Monday, so I had about 6 days to prepare.

Format:
Two 45-minute coding rounds, back to back with a 15-minute break, on the same Google Meet link
Coding in a Google Doc: no running code, no autocomplete, no syntax highlighting
Language was my choice; I picked Python

Round 1: a dynamic programming problem that involved an m x n grid. I was able to come up with the brute force approach instantly and proceeded to code it out. I was then asked to do it in O(1) for which I came up with a dynamic programming approach. I couldn’t however complete the working code but still the interviewer was completely satisfied and said that I know you would’ve been able to code it out had you a few more minutes but since we’re out of time it’s okay I got the complete idea.

Round 2: A non-LeetCode question but still I had to use recursive DFS to solve it so it was a tree problem but not like the usual leetcode questions you’d see online. For this round, I was able to come up with workable, bug-free code for both brute force and follow-up questions.

Anyone have experience with this round? Expected lots of DSA but I will be given this instead.

Not sure what to expect, whether it’s a bugfix, new feature, or start from scratch

Thx!

So Google is adhering to new German laws by posting the salary band for roles. But I want to know how fixed are these ranges?

For an example: Google Germany posted a Technical Program Manager role for 104-106 k EUR for what I assume is at L4. Is this low for this role in Germany? Anyone have experience for this type of role in Germany and what was the stock offer?

I gave r1 interview two days back..it went pretty well, solved both questions within time limit, answered LP questions and interviewer also agreed with all answers. It's been two days and haven't heard about next round. Can u tell me what to expect and when can I get information about next round, if there is going to be one.

Did anyone of y’all get your decision after giving the tech screen?

Hi all,

I’ve been fortunate to be called to interview for an EAM role at AWS. Can I ask if anyone has any tips or things I should do to prep?

Hi Everyone. I am a SWE with 9 YOE and I am looking for suitable team matches in EMEA. I have experience with distributed system and custom model inference. If anyone is interested, please DM me and I can share more details. Thanks!

I gave my 1st round of Google interview on 6th and after that been trying to reach out to my recruiter through email as well as phone but never responded back or picked up my call. The portal still shows this status, no rejection or anything as such. Is this normal, being unresponsive.

Hi everyone,

I recently received an offer from Google for an L4 Applied Solutions Architect role, but I’m concerned that my Google Stock Units (GSUs) are significantly lower than what others joining at the same level and in a similar role are receiving.

Here’s what happened:

• Initially, the recruiter told me that my stock grant would be around $20K. I pushed back, saying that it seemed low, and within a couple of hours, she came back with an offer of $28.5K in GSUs.
• At the time, I accepted the revised offer, assuming that this was probably the maximum they could offer.
• Recently, I spoke with a couple of people who joined Google in the last six months in the same role, and they mentioned receiving more than $50K in GSUs.
• My base salary, on the other hand, is roughly on par with what I understand Google L4 software engineers receive.

Given this information, I’m wondering whether my stock grant is significantly below the current range for this role and level.

I’ve also come across Reddit discussions suggesting that Google sometimes addresses compensation disparities during annual performance review cycles. However, I’m not sure how reliable that is or whether it would make sense to wait for my first review.

I’d appreciate advice on a few questions:

1. Should I try to renegotiate my GSU grant now, or wait until my first performance review? Is there a realistic chance of getting the grant adjusted after joining?
2. Since I’ve already accepted the offer, is it still possible to negotiate? Could reopening compensation discussions create any issues with the recruiter or jeopardize the offer?
3. How common is it for Google L4 employees to receive significantly different stock grants for the same role, especially when they join around the same time?
4. If I decide to negotiate now, what would be the best way to approach the recruiter without making the conversation awkward?

I’m excited about the opportunity and don’t want to risk the offer unnecessarily, but the difference between $28.5K and $50K+ is substantial.

Would really appreciate insights from current or former Google employees, especially those familiar with compensation negotiations for L4 roles.

Thanks!

Hi everyone! Has anyone recently had a final-round interview with Adobe? How long did it take for you to hear back after the interview?
I’d also love to hear about your overall experience as a candidate and any feedback you received throughout the process.
Thx!

Just got my dream internship offer at Apple for Summer 2027! Is anyone else interning at Apple next summer? Looking to see if there’s a gc or discord

I was a little excited after securing an interview at a FAANG, and i applied to 10+ positions in a really short period, could this affect this interview process?

I have an Amazon SDE1 Interview coming up at East Palo Alto next week and want to know if anyone recently appeared for an interview there?

Thanks!

I have my interviews scheduled in 2 weeks. I have never leetcode grinded before and to my luck I am travelling in those 2 weeks so my time studying is limited. I want to be as efficient with the time I have. I thought of doing blind 75 + google tagged question bank but I don’t think it will be possible. Any advice?