Scale Engineer

Software Engineer

Software EngineerSoftware Engineer IMedium

The Software Engineer I interview process at Coursera is designed to assess a candidate's foundational technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and cultural fit within the company. It typically involves multiple rounds, starting with an initial screening and progressing through technical assessments and behavioral interviews.

Rounds·3

Timeline·~14d

Experience·0 - 2 yrs

Comp band·US$85000 - US$110000

Interview time·135 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Problem-solving skills
  • Algorithmic thinking
  • Data structures knowledge
  • Coding proficiency
  • Ability to write clean, efficient, and maintainable code

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Review fundamental data structures and algorithms.
  2. Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank.
  3. Understand core computer science concepts (e.g., operating systems, databases, networking).
  4. Prepare examples for common behavioral questions using the STAR method.
  5. Research Coursera's mission, values, and recent projects.
  6. Familiarize yourself with the technologies commonly used at Coursera (e.g., Python, Java, JavaScript, cloud platforms).

Study plan

Fig · Study plan — 04 phases

01 / 04
01

Phase 01 of 04

Data Structures and Algorithms

Weeks 1-2: Data Structures & Algorithms fundamentals. Practice implementations and complexity analysis.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on core data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps) and algorithms (sorting, searching, recursion, dynamic programming). Practice implementing these from scratch and analyze their time and space complexity.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Write a function to reverse a linked list.
  • Given an array of integers, find the two numbers that add up to a specific target.
  • Explain the difference between a process and a thread.
  • Describe a situation where you had to deal with a conflict in a team.
  • What interests you about working at Coursera?
  • How would you design a URL shortener service?
  • Tell me about a time you failed and what you learned from it.
  • What are the advantages of using a NoSQL database over a relational database?
  • How do you stay updated with new technologies?
  • If you were given a bug report from a user, what steps would you take to diagnose and fix it?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

Mountain View, CA

Interview focus

Adaptability to new technologiesProblem-solving in a fast-paced environmentCollaboration and communication skills

Common questions

  • Tell me about a challenging project you worked on.
  • How do you approach debugging a complex issue?
  • Describe a time you had to learn a new technology quickly.

Tips

  • Highlight projects where you demonstrated quick learning.
  • Be prepared to discuss your thought process for problem-solving.
  • Emphasize teamwork and communication in your examples.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

Expand a step for evaluation criteria, sample questions, and prep notes.

Med

Technical Screening (Coding) · 45 min · Software Engineer

This round typically involves a coding challenge, often conducted via a shared online editor. The interviewer will present a problem and assess how you approach it, from understanding the requirements to implementing and testing a solution. They will be looking for your thought process, how you handle edge cases, and the efficiency of your code.

What they look for

Logical thinkingAbility to break down problemsProficiency in at least one programming languageUnderstanding of basic data structures and algorithms

Evaluation

  • Problem-solving approach
  • Correctness of the solution
  • Code efficiency (time and space complexity)
  • Clarity and readability of the code

Sample questions

  • Given a string, find the length of the longest substring without repeating characters.

    StringSliding WindowHash Map

  • Implement a function to check if a binary tree is a Binary Search Tree (BST).

    TreeRecursionBinary Search Tree

Prep for this round

  1. 01Practice coding on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or Coderbyte.
  2. 02Focus on understanding time and space complexity (Big O notation).
  3. 03Be prepared to explain your code line by line.
  4. 04Practice thinking out loud while solving problems.

Common rejection reasons

  • ×Inability to articulate thought process clearly.
  • ×Lack of fundamental data structures and algorithms knowledge.
  • ×Poor coding style or inability to write working code.

DSA

Coding questions at Coursera.

Frequently reported on Coursera loops

View all at Coursera

Other guides

More at Coursera.