Software Engineer, PhD applicants have rated the interview process at Google with 3.5 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 62% positive. To compare, the company-average is 61.5% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Software Engineer, PhD roles take an average of 47 days to get hired, when considering 13 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Google overall takes an average of 38 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Google as a Software Engineer, PhD according to 13 Glassdoor interviews include:
Phone interview: 37%
Skills test: 27%
One on one interview: 17%
Background check: 10%
Personality test: 7%
Presentation: 3%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -
I applied through a recruiter. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Google in Oct 2014
Interview
Screen interview consisting of a programming exercise. The format of the interview was as follows:
- 45 minutes
- a programming exercise
- the code was written in a shared Google Doc
The interviewer made comments and provided hints to clarify what whey wanted me to code.
Once the code was finished, I was asked about the complexity (big O) of the coded algorithm.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
For me the hardest part was to get over the Google Doc format (no syntax highlighting or code completion) and starting the code from scratch, which is not generally what I do on my day to day basis.
I applied online. I interviewed at Google in Dec 2025
Interview
One or two rounds of virtual interviewing including behavioral, research discussion, and technical interview. Then was flown out to one of their campuses for two in-person interviews including a technical interview and a research discussion. I was rejected after this phase but the next steps would have included meetings with team leaders for team placement.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
In-person technical interview problem involved clever usage of hashmaps and hashsets.
I applied online. The process took 6 months. I interviewed at Google in Jun 2025
Interview
Smooth and nice. Interviewers were listening and engaging.
The recruiter is helpful and informative.
First round: One phone interview.
Second round: Three technical interviews and one BQ interview, scheduled over two days, all remote.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Got one question on mono-stack, one on binary search, one on binary tree traverse, and one one dynamic programing
I applied online. I interviewed at Google in Feb 2024
Interview
The interviewer called while I was working on a Google Doc. Initially, I was stuck. During the conversation, he provided helpful hints, and at the end, I was allowed to ask any questions.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
It was very much similar to LeetCode Random Pick with Weight