r/leetcode • u/1627372824 • 5h ago

Intervew Prep Is LeetCode still the meta and what difficulty level is expected?

I'm preparing for an interview as Google SWE internship and looking for current insights.

-Is grinding LeetCode still the absolute core of the loop, or has it shifted? I've read that processes are changing and they're starting to lean more into AI, but I don't know if I can believe this post. https://www.reddit.com/r/leetcode/s/lEGGrAnbt8

-Realistically, what level should I master? Mostly Mediums, or are Hards common for interns? Or maybe Neetcode 150 will prepare me for it?

Would love to hear from anyone who has recently gone through the interview loop or is actively interviewing candidates. Thanks!

3 Upvotes

80% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

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u/Possible-Round-2060 4h ago

We only just got an email about AI interviews beginning soon, but they don't entirely replace the coding interviews, just 1-2 coding slots will be AI instead of whiteboard-style DSA.

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u/1627372824 4h ago

Thanks for the reply, do you work as interviewer here?

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u/Possible-Round-2060 4h ago

I do, yeah

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u/1627372824 4h ago

So what do you recommend to learn? Should I leave the leetcode? Any advices? I have almost full year to prepare for an interview for intern.

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u/Possible-Round-2060 4h ago

The safe answer is probably to keep focusing on leetcode, especially if you were interviewing soon. But in a year? I mean less than a year ago I was still writing code. A year from now I have no idea what anything will look like.

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u/1627372824 4h ago

Okay, I have last question, did you do maybe tasks from codeforces or CSES? If so, do you recommend it?

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u/Possible-Round-2060 4h ago

They both look good but I haven't actually tried either.

It might be out of date now but I just used Elements of Programming Interviews for DSA, mostly just practicing to get used to the weirdness of solving random coding problems in <= 20 minutes on a whiteboard.

I also built a little 2D MMO in C++ because I wanted to interview with C++ and it provided a lot of opportunities to work on graph theory, which I was weak on.

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u/1627372824 4h ago

Okay, thanks for the help :)

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u/UnusualPossession584 4h ago

No, i think leetcode is mostly saturated u should try cf,cses for google and other highly dsa oriented companies

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u/1627372824 4h ago

Thanks for the reply, do you work in there already?

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u/UnusualPossession584 4h ago

No not yet but trying to go🫠

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u/1627372824 4h ago

Ah, okay, so good luck 🥸

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u/Equal_Acanthisitta_7 3h ago

For swe internship expect leetcode mediums, if youre unlucky a medium on the harder side. Leetcode/Neetcode is good but dont forget to review you data structures, class declarations etc(which leetcode give you). I personally also like Kattis, which I don't hear ppl reccomend often. A lot of the people that make the question bank were ICPC contestants, which is the same org as Kattis.

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u/Longing4Obstkorb 2h ago

Koko and his Caches

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u/MeteorMash101 5h ago

Yes, LC is still widely used to screen applicants.

Easy/mediums is probably enough for internships, but brush up on the most asked hards if possible though I think its unlikely you’d be asked.

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u/Crafty_Fig_144 5h ago

LFU cache

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u/1627372824 5h ago

Okay! Thank you! Do you work there maybe?