Senior Software Engineer Interview Preparation Hub
This comprehensive guide is designed for Senior Software Engineer roles, with a focus on Full-Stack, LLM Systems, and Cloud Infrastructure.Table of Contents
LLM & AI Systems
50+ Qs: RAG, Agents, Transformers, and Evaluation.
System Design
50+ Qs: Scalability, CAP, Consistency, and Design Cases.
GCP Cloud
50+ Qs: Compute Engine, GKE Autopilot, and IAM.
Docker
50+ Qs: Containerization, Layers, Networking, and Security.
Kubernetes
50+ Qs: Orchestration, GKE, CNI, and Troubleshooting.
CI/CD & Testing
50+ Qs: Pipelines, GitOps, Blue/Green, and DevSecOps.
Databases
50+ Qs: SQL, NoSQL, B-Trees, and Isolation Levels.
REST & APIs
50+ Qs: gRPC, API Gateway, and Distributed Patterns.
JavaScript
50+ Qs: Event Loop, Prototypes, Closures, and DOM.
React
50+ Qs: Fiber, Hooks Internals, and Performance.
Node.js
50+ Qs: Runtime, Streams, Cluster, and Worker Threads.
Python
50+ Qs: GIL, Memory Mgmt, Asyncio, and ML.
Overview & Strategy
Target Role Expectations
- Experience: 8+ years total, 2+ years in LLM systems.
- Key Skills: Production LLMs, GCP/Kubernetes, High-Scale System Design, Technical Leadership.
- Preparation: 650+ Deep Dive Questions across 13 topics.
- Interview Rounds: Technical Screen, System Design, LLM Specific, Behavioral/Leadership.
Critical Focus Areas
Priority 1: Mastery (70% Effort)
- LLM Production Systems: RAG, Agents, Eval pipelines.
- GCP & Kubernetes: Cloud Run, GKE, Networking.
- System Design: Distributed systems, Scalability.
Priority 2: Proficiency (20% Effort)
- Full-Stack (React/Node): Performance, patterns.
- Databases: Optimization, Sharding.
- Security: IAM, CI/CD gates.
Priority 3: Conversational (10% Effort)
- Leadership: Mentorship, Process.
- Soft Skills: Communication, Cross-functional work.
Study Plan
4-Week Intensive
| Week | Focus Area | Activities |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LLM & AI | LangChain, RAG architecture, Agents, Eval metrics. |
| 2 | System Design | Scalability patterns, Caching, 5 Classic Design Problems. |
| 3 | Full-Stack/DevOps | React/Node deep dive, CI/CD pipelines, Terraform. |
| 4 | Mock & Review | Mock interviews, Behavioral stories (STAR method). |
Behavioral & Leadership
Don’t forget to prepare for the leadership round.Leadership & Behavioral
STAR Method, Mentorship, Conflict Resolution, and questions to ask.