Amazon Interview Experience for SDE1 (Off Campus)

Profile

2024 graduate with 1 year of experience in a service-based company

I recently interviewed with Amazon for the SDE-1 role and wanted to share my experience to help others who are preparing. I had applied multiple times before and given online assessments, but this time I got a direct call from the Amazon recruitment team. The HR also confirmed the job ID and interview style beforehand.

Round 1: Technical Interview

The interviewer introduced himself and asked for a short intro from me, then explained the interview format.

1. A collaborative coding doc was shared, and I was given a problem. It turned out to be the Sliding Window Maximum (disguised in a story style format, like Codeforces).
2. I quickly identified the problem, explained my approach and optimal solution, and then implemented the code.
3. A simple follow-up question was asked based on the same problem.

In between, the interviewer also asked behavioral questions related to Amazon Leadership Principles (LPs).

Tip: LPs can come up anytime, even in technical rounds. Be ready.

After 3 days, I got a mail confirming my Round 2. HR also called to finalize the interview slot.

Round 2: Technical Interview

This interviewer skipped introductions and jumped straight to the problems.

Problem 1: In a sorted array, where every element occurs twice except one, find the index of the single element. (Binary Search solution).

Problem 2: Course Schedule problem (Topological Sort).

After solving these, I was asked 2 LP-based questions related to my current company’s work.

The next week, HR confirmed that my Round 3 would be the Bar Raiser.

Round 3: Bar Raiser Interview

The interviewer joined late but started with a casual chat about my current role.

1. Then came 5–6 Bar Raiser questions. These were classic LP-style situational questions.
2. I answered them using real experiences from my work, framed with the STAR method.

Thankfully, I had prepared multiple stories beforehand (for ownership, dealing with conflicts, delivering under pressure, etc.), so I could adapt them easily.

This round went smoothly as well.

Final Verdict

I received a call from HR next week, and I was selected

My Tips for Future Candidates

1. Interviewers value clarity of thought more than just getting the right code. Talk through your approach, choice of data structures, and complexity analysis before typing.
2. Have 6–7 strong scenarios ready. You can often reuse stories across multiple principles.
3. Persistence is key. I applied to almost every Amazon opening, and after multiple tries, I finally got an interview call.

Writing this was something I always wanted to do after reading so many MAANG interview experiences myself. Hope this helps someone out there.

Keep grinding, your turn will come!