TIAA

Role: Software Developer (On-Campus)

College: Not Specified

Interview Date: Not Specified (experience from 2022)

Interview Type: On-Campus, Full-Time

Result: Selected

Difficulty: Easy to Medium

Rounds: 3 rounds

Topics Asked: Aptitude (English, Analytical, Quantitative), Technical MCQs (Java, C++, OOPs, DS, DBMS), Coding (Time conversion, Array comparison, Two-pointer/Map for sum K), Projects, Java OOPs, DBMS (SQL queries, WHERE vs HAVING, SQL vs NoSQL), Problem-solving approach, Behavioral (Hobbies, Dream company, TIAA knowledge, Certifications, Work-life balance, Growth).

Experience:

This candidate shared their on-campus interview experience from 2022 for a software developer role, which resulted in their selection along with 7 other students.

Round 1: Aptitude Test and Coding Round (Online - Proctored)
The test had two parts. Part 1 was a Cognitive and Technical test (60 Questions – 60 Minutes) with no negative marking. It covered four sections: English Usage (meaning of words/phrases, reordering sentences, error spotting), Analytical Reasoning (blood relations, directions, mirror images, number patterns), Quantitative Aptitude (speed-distance-time, probability, simple/compound interest, ratio/proportion, profit/loss, Venn diagrams), and a Technical section (Java, C++, OOPs and data structures, DBMS queries, guess the output of code). Part 2 was a Coding test (2 Questions - 30 Minutes). Question 1 was easy: given hours, minutes, and seconds, return time in seconds. Question 2 was also easy: given two arrays and a number K, count numbers in array 1 smaller than K and numbers in array 2 greater than K, then return the maximum of these two numbers. A tip given was to solve questions as fast as possible, as submission time was a deciding factor. Submitting Part 1 was compulsory to attempt Part 2.

Round 2: Technical Interview (Online on Zoom - 60 mins)
The interview started with an introduction and a discussion about projects, where the interviewer checked the candidate's depth of understanding of the technologies used. Java-related OOPs concepts were discussed. The candidate was asked to share their screen and code a solution to print all pairs from an array that sum up to K, explaining both the two-pointer method and using a map. A DBMS query was posed: "Print salaries of all employees who live in Pune." Questions also covered when to use HAVING and WHERE clauses and if they can be used together, and how to decide between SQL and NoSQL databases. The interviewer inquired about reference materials used when stuck on a problem. The candidate also asked questions about work-life balance and growth. The interviewer was described as humble and provided hints when needed.

Round 3: Managerial Round (Online on Zoom - 30 mins)
This round began with an introduction. Questions included hobbies (with follow-up cross-questions), "What kind of company do you want to work for?" (aiming to understand the candidate's dream company), and what the candidate knew about TIAA (followed by the interviewer explaining the company and its work culture). Certifications completed by the candidate were also discussed. The interviewer was described as "very chill," and the interview process felt smooth. The results were announced after 4 days, with 8 students from the college being selected.