SanDisk

Role: Embedded System Developer / Firmware Developer

College: AI College (CGPA eligibility above 7.5; CS, EEE, EC branches allowed)

Interview Date: March 13, 2021 (Experience from September 2020)

Interview Type: On-Campus, Full-Time

Result: Selected

Difficulty: Medium

Rounds: 4 rounds (Selection Round + 3 Interview Rounds)

Topics Asked: Aptitude, Operating Systems, C/C++ Output, Electronics, C Coding, Computer Architecture, Data Structures, Projects, Managerial, HR.

Experience:

This interview experience for an Embedded System Developer role at Western Digital (SanDisk) was shared by a candidate who got placed in September 2020. The process included a selection round and three subsequent interview rounds. The college eligibility criteria included a CGPA above 7.5, with CS, EEE, and EC branches being eligible.

Selection Round (Online Test - 45 minutes for 45 questions): This was an MCQ-based round.

• 15 medium-level Aptitude questions.
• 15 Operating System questions.
• 10 C and C++ output-based questions.
• Questions on Electronics, including network and gate concepts.

Round 1 (Technical - Hands-on Coding in C): This round involved hands-on coding in C, given the embedded system developer role.

• The first question required finding the maximum product of any two integers in an array in O(n) time using only one for loop.
• Another simple coding question was asked.
• A puzzle question was also part of this round (e.g., a problem involving three people moving across a side with time constraints).

Round 2 (Technical): This round focused on Operating Systems and Computer Architecture.

• Questions on Mutex and Semaphores.
• Discussions on interrupts in computer architecture.
• "What is structure padding?" was a specific question.
• "What is volatile memory?" was another question.

Round 3 (Managerial/Technical): This round involved a manager and included questions about the candidate's projects, further questions on operating systems, and discussions on coding approaches rather than direct coding.

HR Round: This was a casual and friendly HR round. The HR asked about strengths, weaknesses, 5-year career plans, and general career aspirations. The interviewer and candidate even conversed in Kannada, indicating a very comfortable environment.

The candidate was ultimately selected for the role. A key piece of advice given was to cultivate a learning attitude and confidence, as companies value the ability to learn and grow.