Amazon SDE-1 Interview Experience – March 2025 Hiring Drive
If you’re aiming for a Software Development Engineer (SDE-1) role at Amazon, this detailed interview experience from the March 2025 hiring drive can help you prepare better. Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of the process, questions asked, and the overall journey.
Application & Interview Invitation
After clearing the Online Assessment (OA), I received an email on 24th February informing me that my interviews were scheduled for 27th and 28th February.
Round 1 – Technical + Leadership Principles (27th February)
This round had two interviewers and was conducted on a live coding platform.
Leadership Principles
- First, I was asked about a time I received constructive feedback and how I acted upon it.
Data Structures & Algorithms (DSA)
- Problem 1: Hard sliding window problem (Advanced level)
- Problem 2: Tree-based problem similar to “Burn Binary Tree”
I faced a bit of difficulty in the first problem, but explained my logic thoroughly. The interviewers extended the session by 15 minutes to complete the second problem. I proposed a BFS-based solution, which was well received after some follow-up questions.
Just 2 hours later, I received an email for the second round scheduled the next day.
Round 2 – System Thinking + DSA (28th February)
This round started with a project discussion:
- Focused on why I chose NoSQL over SQL for my project.
- Follow-up questions tested my understanding of trade-offs.
DSA Problems
- Problem 1: String-based anagram search (Easy–Medium)
- Problem 2: 3D DP problem with matrix constraints (Medium–Hard)
For Problem 1, I optimized a brute force solution using sliding window technique.
For Problem 2, I walked through recursive logic and optimized it using dynamic programming (DP), which impressed the interviewer.
Later that day, I received a third round invite for 5th March, but it was rescheduled to 6th March.
Round 3 – Bar Raiser / Leadership Focus (6th March)
I expected a Hiring Manager but the interview was conducted by a Senior SDE (7+ years experience).
Leadership Discussion
- Tackled questions on challenging situations, critical feedback, and professional decisions.
DSA Problem
- An array problem that started simple but became complex with optimization constraints.
- While I proposed linear solutions, the interviewer expected a logarithmic approach that I couldn’t crack during the interview.
Post-Interview Status
Unfortunately, it’s been 4+ weeks with no update. I reached out to the recruiter, but haven’t received a response.
Final Thoughts
Amazon’s SDE-1 interview process is rigorous and focuses equally on:
- Leadership Principles
- Optimized DSA solutions
- Real-world system thinking