# Software Engineer
**Role:** Software Engineer · **Level:** MTS2
**Company:** [Pure Storage](https://scaleengineer.com/companies/pure-storage)
**Difficulty:** Medium to Hard
**Salary:** US$110000 - US$150000
**Experience:** 2 - 5
**Timeline:** ~14 days
This interview process is for a Software Engineer position at Pure Storage, specifically for the MTS2 level. It is designed to assess a candidate's technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and cultural fit within the company.
Canonical: https://scaleengineer.com/interviews/pure-storage/mts2-software-engineer
---
## Overall evaluation

- Technical Skills
- Communication
- Cultural Fit

## Questions asked

- Given an array of integers, find the contiguous subarray with the largest sum.
- Design a URL shortening service like bit.ly.
- Tell me about a time you disagreed with a technical decision and how you handled it.
- How would you optimize a slow database query?
- Explain the concept of eventual consistency.
- Describe a challenging bug you encountered and how you debugged it.

## Preparation tips

### lists

- Review fundamental data structures and algorithms.
- Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or AlgoExpert.
- Study system design principles and common architectural patterns.
- Prepare for behavioral questions using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
- Research Pure Storage's products, mission, and values.
- Understand the specific technologies and domains relevant to the role.

### studyPlan

- {"title":"Data Structures and Algorithms","longDescription":"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 from scratch and analyze their time and space complexity.","shortDescription":"Weeks 1-2: Data Structures & Algorithms fundamentals. Practice implementations and complexity analysis."}
- {"title":"System Design","longDescription":"Weeks 3-4: Dive into system design concepts. Study topics like scalability, availability, reliability, databases (SQL vs. NoSQL), caching, load balancing, and microservices. Work through common system design case studies.","shortDescription":"Weeks 3-4: System Design principles. Study scalability, databases, caching, load balancing."}
- {"title":"Behavioral Preparation","longDescription":"Week 5: Prepare for behavioral interviews. Reflect on past projects and experiences, identifying examples that demonstrate leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, and conflict resolution. Practice articulating these using the STAR method.","shortDescription":"Week 5: Behavioral Interview preparation. Use STAR method for past experiences."}
- {"title":"Mock Interviews and Review","longDescription":"Week 6: Mock interviews and final review. Conduct mock interviews with peers or mentors to simulate the actual interview environment. Review any weak areas identified during practice and refine your answers.","shortDescription":"Week 6: Mock interviews and final review. Practice weak areas."}

## Location differences

- {"location":"USA","differences":{"tips":["Be prepared to whiteboard solutions for coding problems.","Have specific examples ready to illustrate your experience.","Research Pure Storage's values and culture."],"interviewFocus":["Emphasis on practical application of data structures and algorithms.","Understanding of distributed systems concepts.","Cultural fit and collaboration skills."],"commonQuestions":["Discuss a challenging technical problem you solved at your previous role.","How do you approach debugging a complex system?","Describe a time you had to work with a difficult team member."]}}
- {"location":"India","differences":{"tips":["Practice system design questions, considering various components and their interactions.","Be ready to discuss your contributions to past projects in detail.","Showcase your ability to think critically and articulate your thought process."],"interviewFocus":["Strong focus on system design and scalability.","Proficiency in specific programming languages relevant to the team (e.g., C++, Python).","Problem-solving approach and analytical thinking."],"commonQuestions":["Explain the trade-offs between different database technologies.","How would you design a system for real-time data processing?","Tell me about a project where you had to adapt to changing requirements."]}}

## Round 1: Data Structures and Algorithms
**Type:** Technical Interview - Coding · **Difficulty:** Medium · **Duration:** 45 min
Coding challenge focusing on data structures and algorithms.
This round focuses on assessing your core programming skills. You will be given one or two coding problems to solve, typically involving data structures and algorithms. The interviewer will evaluate your ability to write clean, efficient, and correct code, as well as your approach to problem-solving and debugging.
**Interviewers look for:** Ability to translate a problem into code.; Understanding of algorithmic complexity.; Clean and maintainable code.; Logical thinking and debugging skills.
**Evaluation criteria:** Correctness of the solution; Efficiency of the solution (time and space complexity); Code quality and readability; Problem-solving approach
**Common rejection reasons:** Inability to solve coding problems within the given time.; Poor understanding of fundamental data structures and algorithms.; Lack of clarity in explaining the thought process.
## Questions

- Reverse a linked list.
- Find the kth smallest element in a binary search tree.
- Implement a function to check if a string is a palindrome.

## Preparation tips

- Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode.
- Be comfortable with common data structures (arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, hash maps) and algorithms (sorting, searching, dynamic programming).
- Practice explaining your thought process out loud as you code.
- Write test cases for your code.

## Round 2: System Design and Architecture
**Type:** Technical Interview - System Design · **Difficulty:** Hard · **Duration:** 60 min
System design challenge focusing on scalability and architecture.
This round evaluates your ability to design and architect scalable and robust systems. You will be presented with a high-level problem (e.g., design Twitter's feed, design a URL shortener) and expected to discuss various aspects of the system, including data storage, APIs, scalability, and potential bottlenecks.
**Interviewers look for:** Ability to design complex systems from scratch.; Knowledge of distributed systems principles.; Understanding of various system components and their interactions.; Ability to justify design choices and discuss trade-offs.
**Evaluation criteria:** Scalability of the design; Reliability and fault tolerance; Trade-off analysis; Understanding of system components; Clarity of explanation
**Common rejection reasons:** Inability to design scalable and reliable systems.; Lack of understanding of distributed systems concepts.; Poor trade-off analysis in design decisions.
## Questions

- Design a system to count unique visitors to a website.
- Design a rate limiter.
- Design a distributed cache.

## Preparation tips

- Study system design concepts like load balancing, caching, databases, and message queues.
- Practice designing common systems like social media feeds, e-commerce platforms, or real-time services.
- Be prepared to discuss trade-offs between different design choices.
- Draw diagrams to illustrate your design.

## Round 3: Behavioral and Managerial Fit
**Type:** Behavioral and Managerial Interview · **Difficulty:** Medium · **Duration:** 45 min
Behavioral questions to assess cultural fit and past experiences.
This round focuses on your behavioral and situational responses. The interviewer will ask questions about your past experiences, how you handle specific situations, and your motivations. This helps assess your cultural fit, teamwork abilities, and leadership potential.
**Interviewers look for:** How you handle challenges and conflicts.; Your ability to work in a team.; Your motivation and passion for technology.; Alignment with Pure Storage's values.
**Evaluation criteria:** Communication skills; Teamwork and collaboration; Problem-solving approach; Cultural alignment; Past experiences and achievements
**Common rejection reasons:** Lack of clear communication.; Inability to provide specific examples for behavioral questions.; Poor cultural fit or lack of enthusiasm.
## Questions

- Tell me about a time you failed and what you learned from it.
- Describe a situation where you had to work with a difficult colleague.
- Why are you interested in working at Pure Storage?

## Preparation tips

- Prepare answers to common behavioral questions using the STAR method.
- Think about your strengths and weaknesses.
- Be ready to discuss your career goals and why you are interested in Pure Storage.
- Ask thoughtful questions about the team and the role.