PDT Partners is a renowned quantitative investment firm with a strong 30+ year track record, known for its excellence and high employee retention rate. The firm prides itself on an intellectually extraordinary and diverse community.

As a Software Engineer at PDT, you will be instrumental in developing and maintaining the technology that supports all aspects of the trading lifecycle. From building trading systems and risk controls to post-trade technologies, your role will be pivotal. You'll collaborate closely with internal end-users, ensuring efficient and effective solutions using C++, Python, and Java.

PDT values creativity and problem-solving through collective thinking, offering the autonomy to tackle challenges independently. For those with the right talent, PDT provides excellent growth opportunities and a chance to make a direct impact on the company's success.

Learn more about the interview process and tips for success with Interview Query’s comprehensive guide.

Submitting Your Application

The first step is to submit a compelling application that reflects your technical skills and interest in joining PDT Partners as a Software Engineer. Whether you were contacted by a PDT recruiter or have taken the initiative yourself, carefully review the job description and tailor your CV according to the prerequisites.

Tailoring your CV may include identifying specific keywords that the hiring manager might use to filter resumes and crafting a targeted cover letter. Furthermore, don’t forget to highlight relevant skills and mention your work experiences.

Recruiter/Hiring Manager Call Screening

If your CV happens to be among the shortlisted few, a recruiter from the PDT Talent Acquisition Team will make contact and verify key details like your experiences and skill level. Behavioral questions may also be a part of the screening process.

In some cases, the PDT Software Engineering hiring manager may be present during the screening round to answer your queries about the role and the company itself. They may also indulge in surface-level technical and behavioral discussions.

The whole recruiter call should take about 30 minutes.

Technical Virtual Interview

Successfully navigating the recruiter round will present you with an invitation for the technical screening round. Technical screenings for the PDT Software Engineer role usually are conducted through virtual means, including video conference and screen sharing. Questions in this 1-hour-long interview stage may revolve around software design, core engineering principles, and practical programming challenges in C++, Python, or Java.

You may also be given a take-home coding or algorithmic assignment to assess your problem-solving skills and technical acumen. Your ability to work with low-latency systems or trading technologies might be put to the test, along with any prior experience in related fields.

Onsite Interview Rounds

Followed by a second recruiter call outlining the next stage, you’ll be invited to attend the onsite interview loop. Multiple interview rounds, varying with the role, will be conducted during your day at the PDT office. Your technical prowess, including software development, system design, and possibly financial systems, will be evaluated against other finalists.

If you were assigned take-home exercises, a presentation round may also await you during the onsite interview for the Software Engineer role at PDT Partners.

Quick Tips For PDT Partners Software Engineer Interviews

You should plan to brush up on any technical skills and try as many practice interview questions and mock interviews as possible. A few tips for acing your PDT Partners interview include:

• Understand the Financial Market Context: Knowledge of financial systems, trading environments, and low-latency requirements can significantly boost your performance in the technical interview.
• Collaborative Approach: PDT values creativity and collective problem-solving. Be prepared to demonstrate your ability to work collaboratively on complex issues during your interviews.
• Master Core Technologies: Ensure you're proficient in C++, Python, and Java, as you'll likely face coding challenges or technical discussions involving these languages during the interview process.

Typically, interviews at Pdt Partners vary by role and team, but commonly Software Engineer interviews follow a fairly standardized process across these question topics.

• Write a function precision_recall to calculate precision and recall metrics from a 2-D matrix. Given a 2-D matrix P of predicted values and actual values, write a function precision_recall to calculate precision and recall metrics. Return the ordered pair (precision, recall).

• Write a function to merge two sorted lists into one sorted list. Given two sorted lists, write a function to merge them into one sorted list. Bonus: What's the time complexity?

• Write a function perm_palindrome to determine if a permutation of a string can be a palindrome. Given a string str, write a function perm_palindrome to determine whether there exists a permutation of str that is a palindrome.

• Write a function to return any subset of numbers that sum to zero without containing the number zero. You are given a list of integers called numbers. Write a function to return any subset of numbers where the elements sum to zero and that does not contain the number 0. If there are no combinations of elements that sum to zero, return an empty list.

• Write a function to sum two strings representing numbers without converting them to integers. Given two strings, num_str1 and num_str2, write a function to sum the two strings together without directly converting them to integers. Return the output in string format.

• What metrics determine ride demand and supply in a ride-sharing marketplace? You work as a data scientist on a ride-sharing marketplace. Identify metrics to determine ride demand at any point. Also, specify metrics to identify high demand and low supply, and how to set a threshold for excessive demand.

• What testing strategies and metrics would you use to measure the success of Facebook stories without A/B testing? You are working on Facebook's stories and need to measure their success. Standard A/B testing is not an option. What alternative testing strategies and metrics would you use?

• How would you rank Twitter users by influence? Given 100 Twitter users, what metrics would you use to rank each user by influence? How would you quantify a Twitter user's influence?

• What does the distribution of time spent per day on Facebook look like? Describe the distribution of time spent per day on Facebook. What metrics would you use to characterize this distribution?

• Show that if (f_X) is a strictly decreasing function, then (m \geq \mu). Given a continuous random variable (X) with probability density function (f_X(x)), mean (\mu), and median (m), prove that if (f_X) is strictly decreasing, then (m \geq \mu).

• What is the probability of getting a pair in a hand of (N) cards from a 52-card deck? You are drawing (N) cards without replacement from a standard 52-card poker deck. Each card is unique and belongs to one of 4 suits and 13 ranks. Compute the probability of getting a pair (two cards of the same rank) in a hand of (N) cards.

• When would you use a bagging algorithm versus a boosting algorithm? Compare two machine learning algorithms and explain the scenarios where you would prefer using a bagging algorithm over a boosting algorithm. Provide examples of the tradeoffs between the two.

• How would you design an ML system to extract, transform, and store data from APIs for downstream models? As a machine learning engineer for a large bank, you have access to Reddit and Bloomberg APIs. Describe how you would design an ML system that extracts data from these APIs, transforms it, and stores it in a format usable by downstream modeling teams for various applications like risk assessment, credit decisions, and marketing.

What is the average salary for a Software Engineer at Pdt Partners?

Q: What is the focus of the Software Engineer position at PDT Partners?
Software Engineers at PDT are responsible for building and maintaining the technology that enables all parts of the trading life cycle. This includes developing trading systems, risk controls, and post-trade technologies. The role involves collaborating with internal end-users to understand and anticipate new features and requirements, and engineer efficient solutions.

Q: What skills and experiences are relevant for this role?
We are looking for individuals with significant experience in programming languages such as C++, Python, or Java. Experience working directly with users or clients, capturing requirements, and designing complex software systems is highly valued. Familiarity with trading systems, financial data, low-latency systems, or roles adjacent to data science or research is a plus.

Q: Why should I consider joining PDT Partners?
PDT Partners has a stellar track record of over 30 years and a reputation for excellence. Our goal is to be the best quantitative investment manager in the world, measured by the quality of our products. With a high employee-retention rate, we offer a close-knit, down-to-earth, and diverse community. PDT values creativity, energy, and problem-solving through collective thinking, providing fantastic growth potential for the right talent.

Q: What is the interview process like at PDT Partners?
Interviewing at PDT focuses on finding great people who can build long-term, varied careers with us, rather than filling a specific role. The process is collaborative and aims to assess your technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and how well you can contribute to our close-knit community.

Q: What are the compensation details for the Software Engineer position?
The salary range for this role is between $160,000 and $200,000, exclusive of any potential bonus amounts. The agreed-upon salary for a candidate can depend on multiple factors, including years of experience, level of education, skill set, and other external factors.

If you're excited about joining a highly collaborative team that values creativity, energy, and problem-solving, PDT Partners could be the perfect place for you. As a Software Engineer at PDT, you'll have the flexibility to tackle challenging problems with independence and agility, making a direct impact on the bottom line. With our stellar 30+ year track record and high employee-retention rate, PDT offers both fantastic growth potential and a close-knit, intellectually extraordinary community. If you want more insights about the company, check out our main PDT Partners Interview Guide, where we have covered many interview questions that could be asked. At Interview Query, we empower you to unlock your interview prowess with a comprehensive toolkit, equipping you with the knowledge, confidence, and strategic guidance to conquer every PDT Partners interview challenge. Good luck with your interview!