Cisco Meraki Interview Experience for SDE Internship 2023

I had applied for this internship through Cisco Meraki Careers. Later I got a mail, asking me to provide the slots to schedule my interview. All the rounds were conducted virtually on the Webex platform. There were total 4 rounds- 3 technical rounds and 1 HR connect. 

*** Meraki mainly focuses on Networking concepts so ensure that you are well aware of it ***

Technical Round 1: IP Subnetting ( 1 hr )

This round was mainly designed to assess my skills on bit shifting and matching. Initially, the interviewer talked about Meraki and its products. Later, I was given a link to write the code on coderpad platform. I have preferred to code in Cpp. There’s already some code written in it and we just need to write our logic in the given function. The question was on IP Subnetting. Given a host address, say 192.126.63.2/24 and two host addresses 192.126.63.1 & 192.126.63.7 of A & B respectively. I have to check whether A and B belong to the given network or not. This was my first time coding a networking-based question and I had never dreamt of it. Using the theoretical knowledge, I gave my solution and started writing the code. Unfortunately, it didn’t pass the test cases given by the interviewer. Then, he started giving me hints and after thinking for a while, I modified my code. This time out of 5 test cases, 4 had been passed. The interviewer then checked my code and gave me feedback. We ended our discussion as time was up. 

After round 1, I understood the type of questions they might ask in further rounds. Since I had 1 day time to prepare for my 2nd round, I ensured that I cover each and every detail of the networking concepts.

Technical Round 2: Network Address Translation ( 1 hr 5 min )

This round was designed to assess my ability to quickly understand the existing code and modify it, my ability to write the logic for a given requirement, and my ability to use ideas from existing code to develop new features. The interviewer started off by briefing about Meraki. Then, a link was sent to start coding on coderpad platform. I had preferred Cpp to write the code. In this question, there were two tasks. One is about firewalls and the other on NAT(Network Address Translation). The first task was quite easy. There was some in-built code, I just needed to check whether to allow the data to pass through the network or not via a firewall. All the test cases were passed and the interviewer was satisfied.

In the next task, there were two subtasks. One is to create a NAT table and the other is to check whether the destination’s IP address is the same as the router’s IP while transmitting the response from the internet to LAN. If it is not the same, we should drop the packet i.e. we must return false. In this task, I managed to come up with a logic using the in-built code. I explained him and he said I was right. Then, I started writing the code, and partial test cases were passed. Then, the interviewer helped me in analyzing my mistakes and I was able to rectify them. In doing so, the result was better than before. Finally, we wrapped up the interview by asking a few questions about Meraki work culture and the type of work.

Honestly speaking, I didn’t expect Round 2 to be the coding completely. But the interviewer was really helpful. Using my theoretical knowledge of Firewalls and NAT, I was able to write the code. In fact, I felt that I performed well in round 2 compared to round 1.

Technical Round 3: Demo + Experience ( 1 hr )

This round was completely managerial-based. We started the interview by introducing myself. Then, he gave a demo on Meraki like what it does, its use, its benefits and about Meraki Dashboard. Then, he asked me about my projects and the reason why I have chosen that tech stack. Next, he asked me to explain my freelancing project followed by some managerial-based questions. Then, he asked about my experience with the past 2 rounds and the reason why I want to join Meraki. Finally, we concluded the interview by asking few questions about Meraki.

This round was not much satisfying as the previous one for me. Though it’s completely non-technical, I still had a fear that I may not make it to the next round. After 3 days, I got a call from Cisco HR team asking me to join the HR Connect call on the Webex platform.

HR Connect ( 30 min )  

In this round, the interviewer asked me to introduce myself followed by a brief on my projects. Then, he asked me about Cisco, it’s the acquisition of Meraki, and its competitors. He also asked about my strengths and my higher education plans. We concluded the interview by asking a few questions about relocation and the duration of the internship.

Verdict: SELECTED

This interview was surely a different one compared to my past interviews. I would have never imagined myself writing code for networking-based concepts. I am happy that I made it till the last round and got selected as a Software Engineer Intern at Cisco Meraki. I would like to thank GeekforGeeks for sharing the informative content and helping me to prepare for my interview.

TIPS:

• Be strong with the basics. I would recommend using GFG for most of the networking concepts and other CS fundamentals.
• Be confident and think aloud. 
• Ask questions at the end to show your interest in the company and job.
• Use the STAR model to explain your projects.
• Practice questions on GFG platform.