Recently, I had the opportunity to interview for the role of Software Engineer at TCS Company. The interview process consisted of two rounds:
Round 1: Online Test at Offline Centers
The first round consisted of an online test conducted at designated offline centers. The test included aptitude and English questions, along with two coding questions, each with a separate time limit of 35 minutes. The coding questions were as follows:
- Cycle Detection in a Directed Graph
- Bounded Knapsack Problem
Candidates were required to solve these questions within the allocated time frame.
Round 2: Interview at TCS Gurgaon Office
The second round took place at the TCS office in Gurgaon and involved a panel comprising a technical interviewer, a manager, and an HR representative. Here’s a summary of the interview:
Introduction and Programming Language Preference:
The interview began with the candidate introducing themselves, followed by a discussion on their favorite programming language, which in this case was C++.
Polymorphism:
The interviewer queried the candidate about the types of polymorphism, focusing on runtime polymorphism. This was likely to assess the candidate’s understanding of object-oriented concepts.
Memory Management:
Questions related to memory management, such as dangling pointers, memory leakage, and segmentation faults, were posed. The candidate may have been asked to provide examples and code snippets to demonstrate their understanding.
Virtual Functions:
The interviewer asked the candidate to implement a virtual function and explain the difference between implementing it in a base class versus a derived class. This aimed to gauge the candidate’s grasp of inheritance and polymorphism in C++.
Class Basics and Pure Virtual Functions:
Questions about class basics, including concepts like shallow copy, deep copy, and pure virtual functions, were discussed. The candidate may have been expected to explain these concepts and provide examples.
Data Structures and Algorithms:
The candidate was given two basic DSA questions: implementing a linked list and performing insert and delete operations, as well as a program to swap two numbers without using extra memory.
Extracurricular Roles and Team Management:
The manager inquired about the candidate’s extracurricular activities and how they managed their team in those roles. This aimed to assess the candidate’s leadership and teamwork abilities.
HR Queries:
Finally, the HR representative asked the candidate about their willingness to relocate, which is a common consideration for job roles requiring relocation.
Overall, the interview covered technical concepts, programming skills, and personal attributes relevant to the C++ Developer role at TCS.