Scale Engineer

Software Engineer

Software EngineerL5Hard

The Software Engineer L5 interview at Notion is a comprehensive process designed to assess a candidate's technical expertise, problem-solving abilities, system design skills, and cultural fit. It typically involves multiple rounds, including technical interviews, a system design interview, and behavioral interviews.

Rounds·4

Timeline·~14d

Experience·5 - 8 yrs

Comp band·US$140000 - US$180000

Interview time·210 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Problem-solving approach and analytical skills.
  • Data structures and algorithms knowledge.
  • System design and architectural thinking.
  • Coding proficiency and best practices.
  • Communication and collaboration skills.
  • Understanding of software development lifecycle.
  • Cultural fit and alignment with Notion's values.

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Review fundamental data structures and algorithms.
  2. Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or Coderbyte.
  3. Study system design principles and common architectural patterns.
  4. Understand distributed systems concepts, including concurrency, consistency, and fault tolerance.
  5. Prepare for behavioral questions by reflecting on your past experiences using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
  6. Research Notion's products, values, and engineering culture.
  7. Practice explaining your thought process clearly and concisely.
  8. Prepare questions to ask the interviewer about the role, team, and company.

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 20-30 problems.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on core data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps) and algorithms (sorting, searching, dynamic programming, graph traversal). Practice implementing these in your preferred language and analyze their time and space complexity. Solve at least 20-30 problems related to these topics.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Given a binary tree, find the lowest common ancestor of two given nodes in the tree.
  • Design a system to store and retrieve user preferences for a web application.
  • How would you design a rate limiter for an API?
  • Describe a time you disagreed with a teammate or manager. How did you handle it?
  • What are the trade-offs between SQL and NoSQL databases?
  • How would you optimize the performance of a slow database query?
  • Explain the concept of eventual consistency.
  • Tell me about a project you are particularly proud of.
  • How do you stay up-to-date with new technologies?
  • What are your thoughts on microservices vs. monolithic architectures?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

San Francisco

Interview focus

Deep understanding of distributed systems and concurrency control.Experience with building and scaling collaborative applications.Proficiency in data modeling and database optimization.Strong problem-solving and debugging skills in complex environments.Ability to articulate technical decisions and trade-offs clearly.

Common questions

  • How would you design a real-time collaboration feature for Notion?
  • Discuss the trade-offs of using different database technologies for Notion's data storage.
  • How do you ensure data consistency across multiple users in a collaborative environment?
  • Describe a challenging debugging experience you had and how you resolved it.
  • How do you approach performance optimization for a large-scale application like Notion?

Tips

  • Familiarize yourself with Notion's core features and architecture.
  • Be prepared to discuss your experience with real-time systems and collaborative tools.
  • Practice explaining complex technical concepts in a clear and concise manner.
  • Research common challenges in building collaborative software and how to address them.
  • Highlight projects where you've demonstrated strong ownership and impact.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

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

DSA

Coding questions at Notion.

Frequently reported on Notion loops

View all at Notion

Other guides

More at Notion.