HSBC Internship Interview Experience 4 Rounds | ₹50K Stipend

I appeared for HSBC’s on-campus internship process, which had four rounds. The experience was a mix of English and aptitude questions, coding, technical discussions, and HR questions. Each round covered something different, so it wasn’t just about solving DSA problems.

I was selected for the summer internship, with Pune or Hyderabad as the possible locations and a stipend of ₹50,000.

Round 1: Behavioural and English Assessment

The first round was mainly about English communication and understanding questions correctly. Most questions came in audio format, so I had to listen carefully before answering.

The questions covered:

• Listening comprehension and paragraph-based questions.

• Puzzles and pattern-based reasoning.

• Basic grammar, including prepositions.

• English language and verbal aptitude.

This round was more about comprehension, accuracy, and logical thinking than technical knowledge.

Round 2: DSA and Coding Assessment

The second round was an online assessment that covered coding, debugging, and working with data. There were a few different types of questions, so I had to switch between programming concepts and practical problem-solving.

Some of the topics included:

• DSA: Reversing a linked list and searching in a Binary Search Tree (BST).

• Debugging: Finding errors in a given piece of code and figuring out how to fix them.

• SQL and Python: A task involving an Excel sheet and concepts related to SQL and Python.

• AI assistance: An AI assistant was available during the assessment.

The round tested basic coding skills, the ability to understand existing code, and familiarity with data-related tasks.

Round 3: Technical Interview

This round started with an introduction and a discussion about my projects and DSA preparation. The interviewer also asked a couple of logical reasoning and pattern-based questions.

Question 1: Day-of-the-Week Pattern

I was given a question based on the sequence of weekdays, such as Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and so on. The pattern continued over a period of two weeks, and I had to work through the given conditions to figure out the required day.

Question 2: Number Pattern

The interviewer gave me the following sequence:

24, 45, 56, 67, 78

I had to look for the pattern in the numbers and work out the required result. The interviewer indicated 78 as the relevant answer.

Apart from these questions, the discussion around my projects and problem-solving approach was also important. I had to explain my thinking rather than just jump to an answer.

Round 4: HR Interview

The final round was more conversational and focused on my background, previous experience, and expectations from the internship.

Some of the questions I was asked were:

• Tell me about yourself.

• What do you remember from the presentation session conducted about a month earlier?

• Have you done any internships before?

• What are your expectations from HSBC?

This round was a chance to talk about my experience, explain my interests, and share what I was looking for from the internship.

Final Outcome

I’m happy to share that I got selected for the HSBC summer internship with a stipend of ₹50,000. The available locations were Hyderabad and Pune.