Interview Experience for Senior Software Engineer, Infrastructure at Coursera

As someone who has interviewed for the Senior Software Engineer, Infrastructure position at Coursera, I can provide a detailed and comprehensive overview of my experience during the interview process, the role’s key responsibilities, and the types of questions I encountered. This position is critical for ensuring that Coursera’s infrastructure is scalable, reliable, and efficient, supporting the company’s rapid growth and the needs of millions of users worldwide.

Role Overview

The Senior Software Engineer, Infrastructure at Coursera plays a key role in designing, building, and maintaining the underlying infrastructure that powers the platform. This includes working with cloud infrastructure, distributed systems, and DevOps practices to ensure that Coursera’s systems are robust, scalable, and capable of handling large amounts of data and traffic. The role also involves collaborating with product and engineering teams to ensure that infrastructure solutions meet the needs of various applications and services.

Key Responsibilities:

• Cloud Infrastructure Management: Designing and managing cloud-based infrastructure, primarily using services such as AWS, GCP, or Azure.
• Scalability and Performance: Ensuring that the infrastructure can scale to handle millions of users and large volumes of data.
• Automation and CI/CD: Implementing and managing continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines to automate infrastructure management and deployment.
• Distributed Systems: Designing and building reliable, high-performance distributed systems that power the backend of the platform.
• Security and Compliance: Ensuring that infrastructure meets security standards and compliance requirements, such as GDPR or SOC2.
• Collaboration with Engineering Teams: Working closely with product and software engineering teams to provide infrastructure support and guidance for new features and services.

Interview Process

The interview process for the Senior Software Engineer, Infrastructure role at Coursera is thorough and multi-step. The process typically includes a recruiter screening, multiple technical interviews, coding exercises, and behavioral interviews. Below is a detailed breakdown of my experience:

1. Initial Screening (Recruiter Call)

The first stage was a screening call with a recruiter. This was a general introduction where the recruiter explained the role, Coursera’s mission, and the team structure. They also assessed my overall background, interest in the position, and alignment with the company’s needs.

Common Questions During the Screening:

• “Why are you interested in the Senior Software Engineer, Infrastructure role at Coursera?”

  • I shared my passion for building scalable and reliable systems and explained how Coursera’s mission to democratize education aligns with my personal values. I also mentioned my interest in working on infrastructure that supports high-traffic, cloud-based platforms.

• “Can you tell me about your experience working with cloud infrastructure, particularly with AWS or GCP?”

  • I discussed my experience in building and maintaining cloud infrastructure using AWS services such as EC2, S3, Lambda, and RDS. I highlighted my work in managing distributed systems and optimizing cloud resources for cost and performance.

Preparation Tip:

• Be ready to discuss your experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, etc.), infrastructure automation tools, and how you’ve previously worked to build scalable systems.

2. Technical Interviews (System Design and Infrastructure)

In the technical interviews, the focus was on assessing my knowledge of infrastructure, cloud architecture, and distributed systems. The interviewers asked me to design complex systems and evaluate trade-offs in infrastructure decisions.

Common Questions:

• “Design a scalable architecture for a video streaming service similar to Coursera. How would you handle millions of concurrent users?”

  • I explained how I would leverage a microservices architecture hosted on cloud platforms like AWS, using services such as EC2 for compute, S3 for storage, and CloudFront for content delivery. I discussed how I would ensure scalability by using auto-scaling groups, load balancing, and deploying the application across multiple regions for high availability.

• “How would you ensure fault tolerance and high availability in a distributed system?”

  • I discussed strategies for designing a fault-tolerant system, such as using redundant systems, load balancing, and replication. I also explained how I would implement monitoring and alerting systems to detect issues early, and how I would design the system to gracefully handle failures without service disruption.

Sample Problem-Solving Question:

• “You are building a distributed caching layer for a high-traffic application. What considerations would you make for scaling and fault tolerance?”
  • I explained how I would use caching solutions such as Redis or Memcached to store frequently accessed data. I discussed partitioning the cache across multiple nodes, implementing cache eviction policies, and ensuring data consistency. For fault tolerance, I would use replication and implement cache fallback mechanisms.

Preparation Tip:

• Be prepared for system design questions that involve scalability, high availability, and cloud architecture. Think through your designs and explain the trade-offs you make based on factors like performance, cost, and fault tolerance.

3. Coding Challenge (Technical Problem-Solving)

For this round, I was given coding problems to assess my problem-solving skills, algorithm knowledge, and ability to write efficient code. These questions focused on data structures, algorithms, and programming best practices.

Example Coding Questions:

• “Write a function to optimize the use of cloud storage in a distributed system. You have a system with multiple nodes and users storing large files. How would you approach the storage allocation?”

  • I described how I would implement a distributed file storage system, optimizing for storage costs by using tiered storage based on file frequency and size. I also mentioned how I would use cloud providers’ lifecycle policies to archive or delete older data to manage costs.

• “Write a Python script that automates the deployment of a containerized application to AWS ECS. Ensure it scales based on traffic.”

  • I wrote a script using boto3 (AWS SDK for Python) to interact with ECS, define task definitions, and set up auto-scaling policies based on CPU utilization. I also ensured the script allowed for easy rollbacks and deployment of new container versions.

Preparation Tip:

• Practice coding on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or Codewars to hone your problem-solving skills. Be sure to review cloud-related coding exercises, especially around automation, scaling, and containerization (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes).

4. Behavioral Interviews (Team Fit and Leadership)

The behavioral interviews were focused on assessing my fit with Coursera’s culture, how I handle challenges, and my approach to leadership. Interviewers wanted to understand how I collaborate with cross-functional teams, communicate complex technical ideas, and contribute to the organization’s success.

Sample Behavioral Questions:

• “Describe a time when you faced a major technical challenge in building a cloud-based infrastructure. How did you approach it and what was the outcome?”

  • I shared an example where I worked on optimizing a cloud-based storage system that was experiencing performance bottlenecks. I discussed how I used monitoring tools to identify the root cause, implemented performance optimizations, and tested the changes to ensure the system could handle higher loads without increased costs.

• “How do you manage competing priorities when working on multiple projects? How do you ensure your team stays focused on key deliverables?”

  • I explained how I prioritize tasks based on urgency and impact, aligning with both short-term goals and long-term objectives. I also emphasized how I maintain clear communication with stakeholders and ensure that my team understands the key priorities.

Preparation Tip:

• Reflect on your past leadership experiences and how you handle complex challenges in infrastructure. Be ready to talk about how you collaborate with cross-functional teams and ensure successful project delivery.

5. Final Interview (Cultural Fit and Alignment with Coursera’s Values)

The final interview stage involved interviews with senior leadership and team members. This round focused on ensuring alignment with Coursera’s values and understanding how I would fit into the team.

Example Questions:

• “How do you ensure that security is integrated into the infrastructure design process?”

  • I discussed how I prioritize security from the beginning, implementing encryption, access control, and regular security audits. I also mentioned how I work with security teams to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in the infrastructure, following best practices like the principle of least privilege.

• “Why do you want to work at Coursera, and how do you see yourself contributing to the company’s mission?”

  • I explained my passion for education and how Coursera’s mission to provide high-quality education to learners around the world excites me. I mentioned how I could contribute by designing scalable, secure, and cost-efficient infrastructure that supports Coursera’s rapid growth.

Preparation Tip:

• Be prepared to discuss your leadership style, your approach to infrastructure, and how you would align with Coursera’s mission of democratizing education. Show that you are proactive, collaborative, and solution-oriented.

Skills and Attributes Coursera Values

For the Senior Software Engineer, Infrastructure role, Coursera looks for candidates with:

• Deep Knowledge of Cloud Infrastructure: Expertise in designing and managing cloud-based infrastructure, particularly in AWS, GCP, or Azure.
• Scalability and Performance: Experience in building systems that scale efficiently and maintain high performance.
• DevOps and Automation: Strong knowledge of DevOps practices, including CI/CD pipelines, containerization (Docker), and orchestration (Kubernetes).
• Problem-Solving Skills: Ability to tackle complex infrastructure challenges and provide innovative solutions.
• Security and Compliance: Experience in ensuring that infrastructure is secure and compliant with industry standards and regulations.
• Collaboration: Ability to work with cross-functional teams, especially with software engineering, product, and security teams.