Microsoft Software Engineer interview: story-based medium-hard rounds

After clearing the OA, I had three technical rounds. The questions were story-based and ranged from medium to hard. Not every interviewer required me to fully execute code; some were more interested in whether I could explain an approach clearly.

The interviews were demanding because I had to stay precise about both the algorithm and my reasoning while the conversation moved quickly. I was trying to communicate a correct strategy, not merely calculate an answer.

I did not receive an offer. My honest takeaway was that coding speed was not the hardest part. Staying exact about the strategy at that difficulty level was.

Location: Bengaluru. Overall feedback: positive. Offer status: no offer.