CrackingWalnuts
Checked 3 August 2026. NVIDIA does not publish its interview structure. Everything on this page is commonly reported by candidates, so treat it as a guide rather than a specification.
| Round | Duration | What it tests |
|---|---|---|
| Recruiter Screen | 30 min | Background, team fit. |
| Technical Phone Screen | 60 min | Medium algorithm. C++ encouraged for systems teams. |
| Coding Round 1 | 60 min | Algorithm or data structure. Performance discussion expected. |
| Coding Round 2 | 60 min | Different problem space. Often systems-flavored. |
| Domain Round | 60 min | Team-specific depth (CUDA, compilers, ML infra, networking). |
| Light System Design | 60 min | One end-to-end design conversation. |
| Hiring Manager | 45 min | Project ownership stories and team fit. |
IC2 is the mid level. Engineers with 2 to 5 years of experience.
The bar is "owns features end to end, knows the team's domain at working depth, ships with quality". NVIDIA is a systems and hardware company, so the domain round, not the coding rounds, is what separates a hire from a pass at this level.
The loop adds a domain round and a light system design round. The domain round is the differentiator vs IC1.
Targeted guidance per round in this loop. Each section links to the matching track on the site. There is no shortcut list, the bar moves loop to loop, so build the pattern recognition and the stories from real practice.
Work the pattern templates until the recognition is instant. Trace one mock problem per pattern. Practice stating time and space complexity out loud before you write code.
NVIDIA IC2 (Software Engineer, Mid) has 2 design rounds: Domain Round (60 min): Team-specific depth (CUDA, compilers, ML infra, networking).; Light System Design (60 min): One end-to-end design conversation.. Bar is a clean end-to-end design at modest scale, with a sensible API and one trade-off discussion. Pick problems from the track at the scale this loop tests and rehearse the structure: requirements, numbers, high-level design, data model, API, deep dive on one part, trade-offs.
Junior bar. You now have real production work. Stories should center on features you owned, bugs you debugged, and how you collaborated with senior engineers. Skip multi-team and multi-quarter scope; that comes at Senior.