I applied online. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Goldman Sachs (New York, NY) in Feb 2010
Interview
My interview was part of a recruiting event that consisted of a set of presentations on a Thursday night, followed by interviews all day Friday starting at 9 a.m. I was there until 4:30 p.m. and had 9 interviews (3 each for 3 different groups). The middle group was in the NYC office, while the other two were in the Jersey City office. 3 of the 9 interviews were with two people; the rest were one-on-one.
Of the 9 interviewers, almost all asked technical questions. They were all C++/Java focused (they allowed me to pick which language to answer for) and the usual expected questions - what data structures to use in certain scenarios, writing pseudo code for example problems, etc. All SQL questions were extremely easy, involving only inner joins on a single field. I was also asked to describe in detail the algorithms and data structures used to create me projects at previous internships.
One of the interviewers grilled me on teamwork experience, how I dealt with bad team mates before, etc. Pretty sure he didn't like me, but that's the beauty of having 8 other interviewers.
One of the interviewers did exclusively logic/trick questions. The ones supposed to be designed to see how you "approach the problem". I forget the first question but I had read the same question on a site the night before and so I feigned concentration and subsequent "aha" before answering. The second question was one I'd never heard before, and I didn't know how to approach it. She gave me a hint, but that still didn't help, so then she gave a second hint and I was able to solve it; she gave a follow-up question, and since I knew the approach I was able to do it in 10 seconds. I personally don't see the value in these types of questions since they are usually trick questions that you'll never get unless you've heard it before.
Overall, I would say I felt like I answered about 75-85% good enough. During the process, I was constantly told that there was not an expectation for me to know every answer, that they were just trying to poke around and understand the breadth and depth of my knowledge. Every interviewer except for the one who grilled me on the team work was very polite and I felt comfortable and non-threatened by their questions. I wasn't afraid to be wrong, and I got the sense that they almost wanted to see me succeed. It was overall a very positive experience. Honestly I wasn't expected an offer because I didn't think 75-85% was good enough for this company, but I apparently made a good impression since I got offers from all three of the groups.
Interview questions [2]
Question 1
How to remove a node from a singly-linked list when only given the pointer to the node
I applied through a recruiter. The process took 5 weeks. I interviewed at Goldman Sachs in Mar 2010
Interview
Our Core developers all have at a minimum a bachelor's degree in computer science and experience using several different programming languages, including Java, C and C++. Candidates should be familiar with basic database concepts and have the ability to construct simple SQL queries. In addition to stellar programming abilities, successful candidates will have strong analytical, organizational and problem-solving skills. Candidates should demonstrate a true affinity for building quality software, effective communication skills, as well as a team spirit. Finance experience is desirable but not required.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
If the risk-free rate increase, will it impact the ROI?
I applied through college or university. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Goldman Sachs (Jersey City, NJ) in Jun 2010
Interview
You are expected to have solid programming and database knowledge. They test you most on your logical thinking skills. I also had a few algorithm questions and was asked to write pseudo-code for the same. Overall, it was a difficult but fruitful experience.