Software Engineer applicants have rated the interview process at Cognizant with 2.7 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 69% positive. To compare, the company-average is 69.3% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Software Engineer roles take an average of 9 days to get hired, when considering 267 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Cognizant overall takes an average of 17 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Cognizant as a Software Engineer according to 267 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 25%
Skills test: 18%
Phone interview: 12%
Background check: 12%
Personality test: 8%
Presentation: 8%
IQ intelligence test: 7%
Group panel interview: 7%
Drug test: 2%
Other: 2%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -
I applied through college or university. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Cognizant (New York, NY) in Feb 2018
Interview
Interviewed at a campus recruiting event, moved on to a pair programming interview then a technical interview via Skype.
The interview process was very disorganized and I was even double booked for an interview. At every step, I was promised that I would hear back from HR but had to reach out to my HR contact with multiple calls and emails. Overall, the interview process was unnecessarily long, it took me over 2 weeks to hear back to schedule my 2nd interview.
Interview questions [2]
Question 1
How does a React parent component pass data down to child components?
Great interview experience. The interviewers were friendly, professional, and supportive. Whenever I couldn't answer a question, they patiently explained the expected approach and concepts, making the discussion comfortable, informative, and encouraging throughout.
I applied online. I interviewed at Cognizant (Chennai) in Jun 2026
Interview
only one round of technical interview for senior position, and hr execution was not proper, they didn;t connect when needed and no proper negotiation of salary either since shortlisting for interview
The interview was primarily technical, concentrating on C#, .NET, SQL, and API concepts. Questions tested understanding of core principles and practical application. The process was straightforward, professional, and focused on technical depth.