I applied through a recruiter. I interviewed at TikTok
Interview
Around early Feb, I received interview invitation. The position is machine learning engineer. Here is my timeline.
Feb 12 1st tech round
Feb 18 2nd tech round
Feb 26 HM round
Feb 27 got rejection
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Given N i.i.d. Gaussian random variables, what is the distribution of their linear combination?
Surprisingly straightforward — I expected a tougher challenge for a machine learning role. After a quick recruiter screen, the first technical round focused on implementing K-means clustering, which felt familiar. Handling edge cases for empty clusters was tricky, though. What really helped me prep were the algorithm explanations on PracHub, which gave me confidence going in. The final interviews were a mix of problem-solving and behavioral questions, and in the end, I received an offer that I accepted. Overall, it was a decent experience.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
implementing K-means clustering from scratch and handling empty cluster edge cases
three rounds, each has coding + ml basic + resume related questions
understand all the details in resume is important, since might go very deep down the project you have worked on
The first round was mainly a CV walkthrough.
The second round focused in depth on one specific project.
Both rounds also included LeetCode medium-level problems.
The third round was with the hiring manager with both project and problems for their business.