RBC Software Engineer Interview Questions + Guide in 2024

RBC (Royal Bank of Canada) is a prominent global financial institution with a rich history and an unwavering commitment to client service and innovation. As one of the largest banks in the world, RBC offers diverse opportunities across various finance and technology sectors.

This guide will help you navigate the interview process, providing insights into common RBC software engineer interview questions and valuable tips to ensure your success. Let’s get started!

The interview process usually depends on the role and seniority. However, you can expect the following on an RBC software engineer interview:

Recruiter/Hiring Manager Call Screening

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

Sometimes, the RBC Software Engineer hiring manager stays 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 invite you to the technical screening round. Technical screening for the RBC Software Engineer role is usually conducted virtually through video conference and screen sharing. Questions in this 1-hour long interview stage may revolve around general programming concepts, data structures, and problem-solving skills.

You might face questions such as:

• Write a function that combines k sorted lists into one sorted list.
• Discuss a project listed on your resume and the challenges you faced.
• What types of programming languages are used in your current project?

Google Meeting Interview

You will be invited to a Google meeting interview with two technical engineers if you pass the technical virtual interview. This interview is split into two parts: one technical coding question and the other focused on discussing a problem and its solution with the engineers.

Technical questions you might encounter:

• Write a function to compute the Fibonacci sequence in C.
• Explain the role of libraries in software development.

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 will be conducted during your day at the RBC office, varying with the role. Your technical prowess, including programming and problem-solving capabilities, will be evaluated against the other candidates throughout these interviews.

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

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

1. Would you suspect anything unusual about the A/B test results with 20 variants?

Your manager ran an A/B test with 20 different variants and found one significant result. Would you consider this result suspicious?

2. How would you set up an A/B test to optimize button color and position for higher click-through rates?

A team wants to A/B test changes in a sign-up funnel, such as changing a button from red to blue and/or moving it from the top to the bottom of the page. How would you design this test?

3. What steps would you take if friend requests on Facebook are down 10%?

A product manager at Facebook reports a 10% decrease in friend requests. What actions would you take to investigate and address this issue?

4. Why might job applications be decreasing despite stable job postings?

You observe that the number of job postings per day has remained constant, but the number of applicants has been steadily decreasing. What could be causing this trend?

5. What are the drawbacks of the given student test score datasets, and how would you reformat them for better analysis?

You have data on student test scores in two different layouts. What are the drawbacks of these formats, and what changes would you make to improve their usefulness for analysis? Additionally, describe common issues in “messy” datasets.

6. Create a query to find the number of rows resulting from different joins between ads and the top 3 ads.

Allstate is running N online ads ranked by popularity in the ads table. Create a subquery or common table expression named top_ads containing the top 3 ads by popularity. Return the number of rows resulting from ads INNER JOIN top_ads, ads LEFT JOIN top_ads, ads RIGHT JOIN top_ads, and ads CROSS JOIN top_ads. Include a join_type column in the output with values inner_join, left_join, etc., for each respective join type.

7. How would you evaluate whether using a decision tree algorithm is the correct model for predicting loan repayment?

You are tasked with building a decision tree model to predict if a borrower will pay back a personal loan. How would you evaluate if a decision tree is the right choice for this problem?

8. How does random forest generate the forest, and why use it over logistic regression?

Explain how a random forest algorithm generates its forest of trees. Additionally, why might you choose random forest over logistic regression for certain problems?

9. When would you use a bagging algorithm versus a boosting algorithm?

Compare two machine learning algorithms. In which scenarios would you prefer a bagging algorithm over a boosting algorithm? Provide examples of the tradeoffs between the two.

10. How would you justify using a neural network model and explain its predictions to non-technical stakeholders?

If your manager asks you to build a neural network model to solve a business problem, how would you justify the complexity of the model and explain its predictions to non-technical stakeholders?

11. What metrics would you use to track the accuracy and validity of a spam classifier for emails?

You are tasked with building a spam classifier for emails. After creating a V1 of the model, what metrics would you use to monitor its accuracy and validity?

12. Is this a fair coin based on 10 flips resulting in 8 tails and 2 heads?

You flip a coin 10 times, and it comes up tails 8 times and heads twice. Determine if this is a fair coin based on the results.

13. How would you write a function to calculate sample variance for a list of integers?

Write a function that outputs the sample variance given a list of integers. Round the result to 2 decimal places.

14. How would you find the median of a list where more than 50% of the elements are the same?

Given a list of sorted integers where more than 50% of the list is the same repeating integer, write a function to return the median value in (O(1)) computational time and space.

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 RBC software engineer interview include:

• Know Your Resume: The interview process focuses significantly on your resume and previous projects. Make sure to be well-versed with what you have listed and capable of discussing any topic you have mentioned.
• Practice Coding Problems: Brush up on general coding problems, preferably using Interview Query, and be familiar with common algorithms such as combining sorted lists or computing the Fibonacci sequence.
• Stay Positive and Ask Questions: During technical interviews, interviewers often provide hints if you get stumped. Embrace this collaborative spirit and don’t hesitate to ask clarifying questions to better understand the problems.

What is the average salary for a Software Engineer at Rbc?

What kind of experience and skills are required for the Senior Software Engineer position at RBC?

Candidates should have a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related fields, and at least 2 years of relevant work experience. Proficiency in languages like Java, JavaScript, C#, PHP, Objective-C, Python, Ruby, and tools like Salesforce Automation, Jenkins, and Mulesoft is required. Additional certifications in Salesforce are also crucial.

How does RBC support diversity and inclusion in the workplace?

RBC is committed to building inclusive teams and an equitable workplace. The company actively takes actions to tackle inequities and systemic biases to support diverse talent, clients, and communities. They also provide accommodations during the recruitment process for various abilities.

Navigating the interview process at RBC for a Software Engineer position reveals a thorough yet welcoming approach. Technical interviews are mainly focused on resume details and past projects, paired with coding challenges similar to those found on platforms like LeetCode. Applicants can expect friendly interviewers who are supportive and provide hints when needed. Additionally, successful initial interviews lead to a second-round that dives deeper into coding proficiency and problem-solving skills.

If you want more insights about the company, check out our main RBC Interview Guide, where we have covered many interview questions that could be asked. We’ve also created interview guides for other roles, such as software engineer and data analyst, where you can learn more about RBC’s interview process for different positions.

Good luck with your interview!