Microsoft · Software engineer · SDE / SDE II
Recruiter / Hiring-Manager Screen
Conversational phone or Teams call
What they actually ask
The question shapes this round uses. Larpy does not read these out. It builds each one from your own resume, because the generic version is the one you have already rehearsed.
- “Tell me about yourself and the projects you've worked on.”
- “Why Microsoft, and why this team?”
- “What are you looking for in your next role?”
- “Walk me through a recent project you're proud of and your specific contribution.”
What this round is judged on
- Motivation · genuine interest in Microsoft and the team
- Background fit · experience maps to the role and level
- Communication · clear, structured self-summary
- Level calibration · scope of past work matches the target level
Where this round sits
Microsoft’s published process. Lime marks the stage this round runs.
- 01Recruiter / HM screenthis round
- 02Online assessment (Codility) and/or technical phone screen
- 03Onsite loop
- 04As Appropriate (AA) round
- 05Debrief / hiring committee
What happens in each stage›
- Recruiter / HM screen
- 20-30 min phone or Teams call on background, motivation, team fit, and level calibration; light or no technical content.
- Online assessment (Codility) and/or technical phone screen
- 60-90 min auto-graded coding assessment (2-4 problems) and/or a ~30-45 min shared-editor coding screen with 1-2 easy-to-medium problems.
- Onsite loop
- Four to five back-to-back ~1-hour interviews: 3-4 coding rounds plus 1-2 design rounds (design standard at SDE II and above), with behavioral questions woven throughout.
- As Appropriate (AA) round
- Final interview with a senior leader (often a skip-level) to close doubts and sell the candidate; common but not universal, varies by org, level, and region.
- Debrief / hiring committee
- Interviewers submit written hire/no-hire feedback; a debrief reconciles it, then offer and negotiation.
Sources
Built from what Microsoft publishes about its own process and from real interview data. No leaked question lists. The questions you get are generated against your own resume, so they are not from anyone else's interview.
Overall hiring stages and official interview-prep framing.
Official mission statement and stated corporate values used in the behavioral round.
SDE ladder and internal level codes (SDE 59, SDE II 61, Senior SDE ~63/64, Principal up to 67).
Algorithm topic priorities and difficulty framing for the coding rounds; 403'd the bot but human-readable.
Sources last checked . Hiring loops change, so this date is the honest limit on everything above.
Other Microsoft rounds
- Behavioral / Values (Growth Mindset)
A STAR-driven conversation, often with your resume in hand, that also appears woven into coding rounds
- Design Round (OOD / System Design)
A spoken, whiteboard-style discussion with no coding
- Technical Phone Screen (Coding)
A ~30-45 min shared-editor session over Teams
- Onsite Coding Loop
A ~45-60 min live pair-programming round in a shared editor