Understanding the Microsoft Interview Process

Do you know that starting from a fresher to an experienced professional, most young minds are driven to join Microsoft?

Microsoft has a team of more than 181,000 full-time experts so if you are willing to join this army, all you need is excellent preparation and drive to join the team! 

To give your preparations a head start, you need to know how Microsoft interviews are conducted.

This article will explain stepwise procedures of the process that will help you to prepare for your upcoming interviews and have an amazing Microsoft interview experience. 

Another important question in the minds of candidates is how much time will it take to complete the interview process at Microsoft?

The answer to this question lies in the first section so let’s have a look at how much estimated time it will take for you to complete the whole Microsoft process! 

How long does the Microsoft Interview process take?

Microsoft rewards your patience and efforts! 

Selecting experts is not an easy task for recruiting managers. The time taken to complete the hiring process at Microsoft depends on your mode of application as well. 

If you are appearing directly for the interview through an online platform or their website, the process might get completed within 2-3 weeks. 

However, in case you have applied in the campus placement drive, it might take a little longer to process your application. Such applicants may have to go through a process that will be completed thoroughly in about 1-2 months.

Now let’s have a glance at how your application will proceed in the hiring process at Microsoft! 

Stages of the process

The overall process is divided into five main stages. Each phase of the interview will evaluate you on different parameters and domains. 

The interview process at Microsoft is then divided into the following steps/stages:

First step: Phone screening 

Difficulty level: Intermediate

The first step of this process is a phone screening for all the candidates. Although, based on your profile, experience, and resume the time of this stage might vary. 

During the phone screening stage, the recruiter will ask you detailed questions about details listed on your resume. It will include your personal information, career objective, and other information. 

Once the Recruiter understands your profile thoroughly, he/she may ask you a few behavioral questions as well. 

In this type of question, you have to exhibit your communication skills, general knowledge, and common sense. 

You will be given around 45 mins to showcase your interest in joining the company. 

In the case of developers, engineers, or higher executive posts, this call might take a longer time than usual. If you are applying for the post of developer or engineer, be ready for some basic technical questions as well. You can be asked about the basics of programming languages or .NET, and other simple concepts of computer science. 

Make sure you give your best during this stage as the first impression should be an everlasting one! 

Once you clear your phone screening, you will enter the next phase i.e. phone interview

Second step: Phone Interview

Difficulty level: Intermediate 

In this phase, every task given to you over call will be technical. So, be prepared for it. 

The recruiter will give you a few topics for discussion that will be discussed during this call. Since higher officials are involved in this step, make sure you keep your answers short, correct, and statistically sound. Think before stating any fact in front of the interviewers. 

In the case of developers or engineers, you might be asked to elaborate on certain algorithms. The recruiter will provide you with a problem statement that needs to be solved. He/she will further ask you to simply present an algorithm or approach through which you can resolve the problem. 

The developers or engineers on the other end might ask about some basic concepts like data structures, search arrays, etc while on call. 

Third step: Onsite Interview

Difficulty level: High

The next step is to appear for the on-site Or in-office interview. In this phase, the candidates for non-developer posts are directly asked a few behavioral questions followed by some logical problem statements. 

However, the whole process is carried out in 4-5 rounds within a span of one or two days only. You will have to appear for back-to-back interview rounds with Microsoft experts. 

Make sure you are well prepared for this phase in particular. 

Your return home might be decided in this round as well. So, be particular and be ready to face difficult questions. 

Fourth Step: HR Interview

Difficulty level: High to intermediate

The second last stage of your interview will be face-to-face interaction with the HR manager. In this round, you will be evaluated for your leadership skills, management skills, and other similar soft skills. The key to this interview round is to be confident and know your strengths.

Make sure you prepare various HR round questions to get an idea of how the questions are framed and what approach you can follow to answer them. 

Fifth Step: Getting Hired

Difficulty level: Low

The final step is getting hired! 

Once all your interviews and rounds are completed, you will get a call or mail as a confirmation. This result will be calculated on your overall performance throughout the process and don’t forget to send a follow-up mail to the company.

After getting the call or mail, all you need is to get ready and join the job of your dreams! 

Winding up

The key to having a worthy Microsoft interview experience lies right in your preparation technique. Ensure that you analyze the hiring process at Microsoft closely and prepare for your interview adequately. 

You can also check the Oracle interview experience of candidates to learn more.