Adobe Software Engineer Interview Guide
The role of an Adobe Software Engineer
Software engineers put their knowledge of engineering, computer science, and math to work on writing, editing, testing, and debugging programs. Tasks vary depending on every company, but commonly the responsibilities include modifying, existing software applications, developing new software applications from the ground up, analyzing and designing full software systems, collaborating with software developers, designers, programmers, coders, and others to bring things together, and writing training manuals.
The following guide will take you through the interview process of an Adobe Software Engineer. For roles in the tech industry, see the Meta Frontend Engineer and Apple Software Engineer guides.
Adobe Software Engineer Interview Guide
Adobe's interview procedure begins with an online application on its careers page or via LinkedIn. It is also achievable with the assistance of a recruiter. During the procedure, you will go through the following stages:
- Phone screening
- Telephonic interview
- Technical take-home assessment
- Onsite interviews
Round 1
Overview
This is a typical phone screen that is intended to familiarize the candidate with the firm and the open position, as well as gauge their interest. The recruiter will inquire about your previous work experience as well as your domain knowledge. This is the time to emphasize all of your accomplishments and demonstrate to the interviewer how you can be an asset to the firm. This interview will last about 25-30 mins.
What the interviewer will assess
- Your eligibility for the role
- Your knowledge about the company
- Your past experience and success rate
- Your knowledge in the domain
Tips
- Take advantage of this opportunity to clear up any questions you have about how the role works.
- Make a point of organizing your previous achievements and emphasizing them when needed.
Interview Questions
- Why did you choose Adobe to work for?
- Why are you planning to leave your previous job?
- What personality trait are you most proud of?
- What is the main difference between a computer program and computer software?
- What do you think your life will look like in 5 years?
- What are your immediate and long-term aims?
Round 2
Overview
If you pass the phone screen, you will be following the process with this phone interview. A hiring manager will look further into your résumé to evaluate your leadership abilities, problem-solving style, and capacity to operate as part of a team. Further insights can be gained from the Tiktok Software Engineer and Patreon Software Engineer guides. Prepare to talk about previous projects you've worked on and describe the process and results. This interview will take about 30-45 mins.
It is also not surprising if the hiring manager expects that you demonstrate your understanding of Adobe's fundamental principles. They include being genuine, exceptional, innovative, and involved. Brush up on the work environment and culture before the call if you want to ace the interview.
What the interviewer will assess
- If you are well aware of their values and principles.
- Whether you possess leadership skills.
- If you can manage to work in cross-functional teams.
- Your problem-solving ability.
- Your cultural fit in the environment.
Tips
- Remember to use the STAR method when composing your response. Consider a past event, task, action, and outcome to help you formulate your reaction.
- Make sure to brush up on your Adobe expertise and practice some questions ahead of time. To stay one step ahead, conduct a study on the kind of technical questions that can be asked during interviews.
Interview Questions
- What do you understand by software re-engineering?
- Have you ever worked in any other domain than engineering?
- What are the most significant types of software?
- What do you think are the values of a good software engineer?
- What SDLC models are available?
- Tell me about a project you are most proud of.
- Do you understand the values and principles that Adobe upholds? Can you describe how you represent these values?
- What exactly are verification and validation?
- What are two tools you can use for keeping track of software requirements?
- Tell me about a situation when you had a feud with a colleague from a different team?
Technical Assessment
After the telephonic interview, you will be given a link to an online technical assessment, which normally consists of up to 65 questions divided into two sections:
- Aptitude and Logic
- Technical and Coding
The aptitude section, which includes IQ-style questions, assesses your mathematical and logic-based reasoning. Arithmetic algebra, profit-and-loss computations, and percentages are examples of quantitative problems, whereas riddles and data interpretation are examples of logic questions.
The HackerRank platform will be used for the technical coding section of the exam. To prepare, consider completing a few example coding problems on the site ahead of time. Expect to be tested on essential topics such as data structures, algorithms, and bit manipulation during the process.
Also, keep in mind that Adobe's preferred programming languages are C, C++, and Java, although you are free to take the test in any language of your choice. Furthermore, similar to the SAT, Adobe's technical assessment contains more questions than can be reasonably answered in the allocated time. Therefore, instead of being concerned about unanswered questions, concentrate on your speed and accuracy.
Round 3
Overview
After passing the technical testing, you will be called in for an onsite interview. A typical onsite includes accommodation, daily meal reimbursement, and transportation to headquarters. However, because of the pandemic, final-round interviews are being performed remotely, as the entire worldwide team is working from home. There will be a series of interviews, each lasting approximately 45 minutes.
There will be four rounds of technical interviews and one final round with HR. Each round is an elimination round, therefore, if you are dismissed early, you will not receive an offer.
The technical rounds typically consist of:
- Two rounds of coding
- A system design interview
- An object-oriented design interview
What the interviewer will assess
- Your core knowledge in the field
- Your coding skills
- Your efficiency in various programming languages
- Your behavioral and situational approach
Tips
- The interviews will primarily consist of whiteboard coding, so be prepared to describe your thought processes, such as why you chose a specific programming language, the options discarded due to that choice, and the problem's outcome.
- The final round of HR questions is behavioral and situational in nature. While Adobe emphasizes cultural fit, behavioral questions are typically kept for the final round. They will strive to get additional personal information about you, such as what you value and the type of employee you are. Prepare to explain how you handle disagreement, what you envision yourself accomplishing in five years, why you want to work at Adobe, and what distinguishes you as a candidate.
Interview Questions
- Tell me about some of your most recent goals and how you achieved them.
- Tell me about a time when you required feedback from a client but they were not very interactive.
- How would you generate a list of unique terms from a string containing several repeated words?
- Tell me about a time when you put an idea into action and how it went.
- In C++, what is a data breakpoint? How do you put one to use?
- What has been your most notable achievement or failure?
- What do you know about a virtual machine?
- What would a coworker say about you?
- Create a software to determine whether a binary tree is a BST tree.
- How will you delete a node from a linked list?
- What language do you prefer to write programming algorithms in?
- Tell us how you dealt with last-minute adjustments to deadlines or project scope.
- What methods are there for estimating software projects?
- Create a software that computes the nth term of the Fibonacci series.
- How can project execution be measured?
- Describe a time when you used analytics to help you improve or modify a process.