In the technical round, I faced a challenging A/B testing question regarding YouTube thumbnails that pushed my analytical skills. I was also asked to discuss metrics for evaluating user engagement, which had me thinking on my feet. The behavioral section was tough, but I found the principles I studied on PracHub to be incredibly relevant. The overall experience was intense and demanding, yet I received an offer in the end. Ultimately, I decided to decline, as I felt it wasn't the right fit for my career goals.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Design an A/B test to evaluate the impact of a new YouTube homepage thumbnail design on user watch time. How would you choose the success metric, sample size, and handle novelty effects?
I applied through an employee referral. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Google (London, England) in Dec 2012
Interview
There was an online form to return, but it seems that it is MUCH better if there is a current Google employee to do a recommendation. An HR person is assigned and moves the process along. The first step is a phone interview with a technical person. The interviewer asked three technical questions. The second was trivial, the other two were not. A problem was that the interviewer was looking for a specific right answer, rather than a right answer.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Are you willing to spend 2 months in California being trained?
It was all good, the interviewer was very nice. Technical questions were a bit challenging but overall it was good. The hiring manager was looking for some hands on experience
I applied online. I interviewed at Google (Mountain View, CA) in Apr 2026
Interview
Got email from the HR and scheduled 2 virtual onsite interviews. It went well. I went through another 3 rounds of VO. My packet was submitted to the committee. They do not like it and gave me another round of VO. In the 6th round VO, my application got rejected. It was a total waste of time for everyone.
