On-campus · Jun 2026
SDE at Natwest
Hi, my name is Priyanshi, and I hail from Delhi. I have been offered intern at BlackRock and FTE in Natwest.During my years in college I have been part of many societies and I have participated in various cultural and sports events.Other than that I have made some projects in Machine learning and Deep learning and all these skills were required by me for cracking all the interviews.
- Outcome
- Selected
- Rounds
- 3
- Format
- Virtual
- Panel
- Technical panel
What was the procedure of the placement that took place? (Shortlisting criteria, coding or aptitude test, number of interviews)
First the shortlisting came, and about 150 people got selected. For girls, the internal CG cut was relatively less, around 6 or 7, and for boys, it was comparatively higher, about 8.5. So only one boy got shortlisted for the final round, and the rest were majorly girls.
What was the difficulty level of the interview? (1- very easy, 10-very difficult)
3, which makes it relatively easy
Tell us about the written/online test. (Aptitude, Coding, Test Platform, etc)
The coding test was divided into the MCQ part and the coding round. It was further divided into six sections, it consisted of aptitude, quantitative and qualitative, and 2 coding sections. The first round was a 2-hour test, it contained MCQ as mentioned, and two coding sections comprising 3 questions. The coding questions were relatively simple. There were some technical questions and some questions related to English(grammar and comprehension). The coding questions were mostly from Data Structures and Algorithms, comprising arrays, stacks and queues. The MCQs also contained questions related to OS and DBMS.
Tell us about the interview round 1 including the questions that were asked.
The interview was quite easy to pass, if you have done some amount of coding, or even no coding also, but you know the core subjects and the theory of everything, your resume thoroughly, and you have decent communication skills, then it is easy to crack the interview.
Tell us about the HR interviews, if any, specifying the number of rounds and questions asked.
Questions related to the nature of the organisation you applying for, and where you see yourself in the next 5 years, were asked. The trick is that you have to be honest and genuine and work with good communication skills. You need to keep in mind that you should never share your future plans of education with an organisation(higher studies) since it can be a potential risk . Your standard answer should be something like this organisation will give me an opportunity to learn a lot, and I wish to get updated day-by-day through the company, but not mention your future plans, like those related to higher studies.
What were the key factors of your selection?
I think confidence and being thorough with my resume were two important factors that resulted in my selection. Good communication skills also played an important role, and with Natwest, it was not about deep diving into coding, but knowing your core subjects well. Core subjects include Data Structures and Algorithms, Operating Systems, DBMS and Computer Networks(the first three are very important).
What are the things students should focus on, in order of priority?
At the end of the day, it’s how well you present the amount of knowledge you possess. Presentation and good communication skills are very important. You need to learn how to build yourself up from the knowledge of the core subjects you have.
According to you, what role do extracurricular activities as well as participation in societies play?
They play a very important role, they give you a platform where you can interact with your seniors so that you can learn from them and also a platform to enhance your communication skills. Along with that, they help you to socialise and inculcate leadership qualities, in short, they make you a better version of yourself.
Were there any companies you got rejected from after appearing for their interview? If yes, then tell us about your rejection story and what do you think were the reasons for your rejection?
Yes, I did get rejected. The major factor in the rejection was my not knowing my resume very well. Although, there is also a bit of luck which works out here.
What message would you like to give to your juniors regarding the stress they go through during placement season?
You should always maintain your cool. The more prepared you are, the less you stress. Start doing DSA from the second year. Keep the core subjects for the last 1 month you have, as you can manage them a bit later too.
