Akhilesh Kumbar
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Interview Experience with Oracle

Oracle

The Application Process

I applied for the Software Engineering Spring Co-op role at Oracle through their careers portal around the fourth week of September. After weeks of silence, I finally received an email from a recruiter in the second week of October to schedule a quick 30-minute call.

Initial Call with Recruiter

I immediately scheduled the call for the same week. This was a brief conversation where we discussed:

  • The role and my availability for the interview process.

  • My background and interests.

  • How my skills aligned with the position.

At the end of the call, the recruiter asked me to share my availability, and she scheduled my technical interview for the following week.

Interview Preparation

I received an email with:

  • Meeting links for both rounds.
  • Details on what to expect in the interview.
  • A PDF guide on how to prepare.

I had one week to prepare, so I focused on:

  • Revising Data Structures and Algorithms.
  • Reviewing Object-Oriented Programming concepts.
  • Leveraging my Cloud Computing knowledge (since I was taking a Cloud Computing course at the time). This turned out to be a huge advantage during discussions.

The Interview Day

The interview consisted of two back-to-back rounds, each one hour long.

Round 1: Technical Discussion and Coding Challenge

  • Conducted by a Staff Engineer.

  • Started with an introduction and discussion about the product I would be working on.

  • A deep dive into my resume, where the interviewer seemed particularly interested in one of my projects.

  • He asked me to explain my project in great detail, and I was able to answer all his questions. This lasted for about 30 minutes.

  • Next 30 minutes: Coding Challenge

    • I was asked to share my screen and open a Python interpreter (choice of language was flexible).
    • First question: LeetCode medium-level string manipulation problem. I solved and optimized it in 15 minutes.
    • Second question: LeetCode medium-level linked list problem. I solved it in 10 minutes.
    • Follow-up question: The interviewer tested my intuition and approach without requiring implementation.
    • The interviewer seemed very impressed, and we ended the round on a high note.

Round 2: Technical Discussion, System Design, and Problem-Solving

  • Conducted by a Principal Engineer.

  • Followed a similar pattern:

    • Introduction.
    • Deep dive into my resume.
    • High-level design questions based on my resume (this lasted about 25 minutes).

  • Problem-solving questions:

    • First question: A real-life problem similar to Buy and Sell Stock II (LeetCode Medium).

      • I took my time to understand the question.
      • Implemented the complete solution.
      • Answered detailed follow-up questions on time and space complexity

    • Second question: A system design scenario based on databases and querying.

      • It was a tricky but fun problem.
      • My knowledge of REST APIs and SQL basics helped me solve it.
      • The interviewer agreed with my approach, and we ended on another high note.

The Waiting Game & The Unexpected Outcome

After such a strong performance, I was very confident about receiving an offer. The recruiter had assured me that I would get my results within two days (the interview was on Friday, and the results were expected by Monday).

However, Monday came and went—no email.

  • I waited for three more days, still nothing.
  • I followed up with the recruiter, and she said the hiring manager hadn’t decided yet.
  • More days passed, followed by weeks, with continuous follow-ups.
  • This dragged on for almost a month.

At this point, I knew I was probably rejected, but I still had a tiny bit of hope because I had performed so well. I kept following up, wondering what went wrong.

Finally, on December 12, 2024, I received the dreaded email: rejected.

The Reason for Rejection

The reason they provided? They didn’t have a project that matched my skills.

Honestly, this was extremely disappointing. I had aced the interview, and yet the decision wasn’t based on my performance. It felt unfair, but sometimes in job hunting, even when you do everything right, luck doesn’t always work in your favor.

Final Thoughts & Takeaways

  • Give every interview your best shot – you never know which opportunity will work out.
  • Follow up with recruiters – but be prepared for delays and uncertainties
  • Even strong performances can result in rejection – hiring decisions aren’t always about skills alone.
  • Keep improving and moving forward – rejection is just another step toward the right opportunity.

While this experience was frustrating, it was also a learning experience. On to the next one!