Interview Experience: Software Development Engineer II at Remitly

If you’re preparing for an interview for the Software Development Engineer II position at Remitly, here’s a detailed guide based on actual interview experiences shared by candidates who have gone through the process. This includes the interview structure, types of questions you might face, and tips for success.

Interview Process Overview

The interview process for the Software Development Engineer II position at Remitly typically involves several rounds designed to assess both your technical skills and your fit within the company’s culture. Expect a mix of coding challenges, system design, and behavioral questions.

1. Initial Screening (Phone Interview with Recruiter)

Duration: 30-45 minutes
Focus: The recruiter will assess your background, motivations for applying, and basic technical skills. You’ll also learn more about the role, the team, and Remitly’s mission.

Typical Questions:

• “Can you walk me through your resume?”
• “Why are you interested in working at Remitly?”
• “What programming languages and technologies are you most comfortable with?“

2. Technical Screen (Coding Interview)

Duration: 1 hour
Focus: This is a technical interview where you’ll be tested on your coding and problem-solving skills. You may be asked to solve a problem using a shared coding platform (like CoderPad or LeetCode).

Example Coding Questions:

• “Write a function to merge two sorted linked lists.”
• “Given a list of integers, find the maximum product of any two numbers.”
• “How would you implement a caching mechanism?”
• “Solve a problem related to binary search or dynamic programming.”

Tip: Practice coding problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or CodeSignal. Focus on solving problems efficiently, optimizing for time and space complexity.

3. System Design Interview

Duration: 1 hour
Focus: For a Software Development Engineer II role, expect a system design interview where you’ll need to design a scalable system or explain how you would approach a specific technical problem.

Typical Questions:

• “How would you design a URL shortening service like Bit.ly?”
• “Design a system for processing and storing high-volume transaction data in real-time.”
• “How would you scale a database to handle millions of records?”

Tip: The goal here is to demonstrate your understanding of system architecture, scalability, and trade-offs. Be sure to discuss concepts like load balancing, sharding, database indexing, and caching.

4. Onsite Interviews (Multiple Rounds)

Duration: 3-4 hours (broken into several sessions)
Focus: Onsite interviews at Remitly typically consist of multiple rounds with different interviewers, including both technical and behavioral questions. These rounds might include:

• One or more coding interviews (LeetCode-style problems)
• System design round
• Behavioral interview

You may also be asked to solve problems on the whiteboard or in a live coding environment. The system design round often involves large-scale problems related to Remitly’s financial services, and you may be asked to architect solutions considering various constraints.

Example System Design Questions:

• “Design a system to process international money transfers at scale.”
• “How would you handle transactions and retries in a distributed system?”

Tip: For system design, use the START framework:

• S: Clarify the requirements.
• T: Think about scalability and trade-offs.
• A: Architect the solution with components (databases, APIs, services).
• R: Discuss reliability and fault tolerance.
• T: Talk about testing and monitoring.

5. Behavioral Interview (Culture Fit and Leadership)

Duration: 1 hour
Focus: This round assesses your alignment with Remitly’s values and your ability to work in a collaborative, fast-paced environment. Be prepared to talk about your past experiences and how you’ve handled challenges in the workplace.

Typical Questions:

• “Tell me about a time when you faced a difficult problem at work and how you solved it.”
• “How do you handle tight deadlines and prioritize tasks?”
• “Describe a situation where you had to collaborate with a team to deliver a product or feature.”

Tip: Use the STAR method to answer behavioral questions:

• S: Situation
• T: Task
• A: Action
• R: Result

Key Skills Tested

As a Software Development Engineer II, you’ll be expected to have a solid understanding of the following:

• Programming: Strong knowledge of Java, Python, Go, or C++. Proficiency in algorithms, data structures, and problem-solving techniques.
• System Design: Ability to design scalable systems, understand trade-offs, and consider reliability and performance.
• Distributed Systems: Knowledge of distributed computing concepts, databases (SQL and NoSQL), and handling high-traffic systems.
• Cloud Infrastructure: Familiarity with cloud services like AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure.
• Data Structures & Algorithms: Expertise in fundamental computer science concepts like arrays, linked lists, trees, graphs, dynamic programming, and search/sort algorithms.
• Version Control: Experience with Git for code management and collaboration.

Example Behavioral and Situational Questions

Solving Technical Challenges:

Example Question: “Can you describe a technical challenge you faced and how you overcame it?”
Response:
“In my previous role, we had a performance issue with our database. The queries were becoming slower as the data grew. I worked with the team to identify bottlenecks, implemented indexing, and optimized the queries. We were able to reduce query time by 40% and improve the overall performance of the system.”

Collaboration and Communication:

Example Question: “Tell me about a time when you worked with a cross-functional team to deliver a project.”
Response:
“I worked on a project where we had to integrate a new payment gateway with our system. I collaborated with the product, design, and operations teams to define requirements, ensure smooth integration, and meet deadlines. We used agile practices, with weekly stand-ups to track progress, and successfully launched the feature on time.”

Handling Deadlines:

Example Question: “How do you handle tight deadlines and multiple tasks?”
Response:
“I prioritize tasks based on their business impact and deadlines. If I’m facing multiple deadlines, I break down each task into manageable sub-tasks and estimate how long each will take. I also ensure that communication is clear with stakeholders, so everyone is aligned on priorities. If any issues arise, I proactively raise them and adjust my schedule as needed.”

Final Preparation Tips

• Practice Problem-Solving: Solve LeetCode problems, focusing on algorithm design, time complexity, and edge cases.
• Understand System Design: Familiarize yourself with key system design patterns (e.g., microservices, CAP theorem, distributed systems). Study large-scale system architectures.
• Prepare for Behavioral Questions: Use the STAR or CAR method to structure your responses, focusing on past experiences that highlight your skills.
• Review Remitly’s Mission: Remitly focuses on providing financial services to underserved populations, particularly immigrants. Demonstrate your passion for their mission.