If you have an interview scheduled with Affirm, the financial technology company transforming consumer finance, congratulations! Landing an interview is an exciting milestone. Now you want to make sure you’re fully prepared to ace each step and stand out among the competition.
This comprehensive guide will walk you through what to expect during Affirm’s interview process the types of questions asked and expert tips to help you master your upcoming interviews. Let’s dive in!
Affirm Company Overview
Affirm is a financial services company founded in 2012 by Max Levchin. Their aim is to provide transparent and honest financial products to consumers. Their core offerings help consumers easily split purchases into simple monthly payments with no hidden fees or penalties.
Affirm partners with over 12000 retailers to offer their financing services online and in-store. They also have a special partnership with Shopify merchants. Some key facts about Affirm
- Processes over 3 million loans annually
- Serves over 14 million customers
- Employs over 2000 people
- IPO’d in 2021 at $12.7 billion valuation
Affirm is a high-growth company operating in the exciting fintech space. Joining their team means the chance to make a real impact while developing new skills.
Affirm’s Interview Process
Affirm’s hiring process consists of:
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Recruiter Screen (30 mins) – Discussion about your background interests experience.
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Technical Phone Screen (1 hour) – Coding challenges testing fundamentals.
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Onsite Interview (4 hours) – Coding, system design, and behavioral interviews.
The process typically takes 1-2 weeks total. Affirm aims to provide candidates a streamlined experience while still evaluating capabilities from multiple angles.
Technical Phone Screen
This 1 hour phone interview focuses on core computer science fundamentals. You’ll be asked coding questions on topics like:
- Arrays
- Strings
- Hash maps
- Recursion
- Trees
- Stacks
Expect medium difficulty algorithm questions similar to LeetCode. Brush up on these data structures and be ready to write clean, efficient code.
Onsite Interview Format
If you pass the phone screen, the onsite interview is your time to shine. It consists of:
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1 hour Coding – Algorithms or object-oriented design.
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1 hour System Design – Design components like databases, APIs, services.
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45 mins Behavioral – Questions about your experience, approach to work.
While you’ll interview with various employees, your main point of contact will be the hiring manager for the role’s team.
What to Expect: Coding Interview Questions
Coding questions test your programming abilities and problem solving skills. At Affirm you may encounter:
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Array manipulation algorithms – reversing, sorting, rotating.
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String parsing and manipulation – vowels, palindromes, compression.
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Tree traversals – preorder, inorder, postorder, level order.
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Hash maps – frequency counts, lookups, collisions.
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Object-oriented design – classes, inheritance, encapsulation.
Practice medium LeetCode problems. Understand time/space complexity tradeoffs. Test your code thoroughly.
What to Expect: System Design Interview Questions
In system design you’ll conceptualize large-scale systems like:
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Designing a payments platform.
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Building a credit scoring algorithm.
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Creating a subscription management system.
Focus on:
- Requirements gathering
- High level architecture
- Component design – databases, services, APIs
- Scalability and reliability
Communicate your ideas clearly. Ask clarifying questions.
What to Expect: Behavioral Interview Questions
Behavioral questions evaluate your soft skills, attitude, and past experiences. Some examples are:
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Tell me about a time you faced a conflict at work. How did you handle it?
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When have you gone above and beyond to delight a customer?
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Describe a mistake you made. How did you resolve the situation?
Use the STAR method – explain the Situation, Task at hand, Actions you took, and Results achieved. Emphasize teamwork, leadership, and problem solving.
Tips to Ace Your Affirm Interview
Here are some top tips to stand out during your Affirm interview:
Practice Mock Interviews – Simulate the coding, system design, and behavioral interview formats. Get feedback to improve.
Review Core CS Concepts – Solidify foundations like data structures, algorithms, OO design.
Research the Role – Understand day-to-day responsibilities. Show enthusiasm for the work.
Highlight Relevant Experience – Customize your stories and examples to the role.
Ask Good Questions – Inquire about challenges, growth opportunities, company culture.
Send Thank You Notes – Follow up with a thank you email to your interviewers.
Master the Interview – Get the Job
With diligent preparation, you can master Affirm’s interview process and land your dream job. Assess your skills, fill knowledge gaps, practice frequently, and demonstrate your passion. You’ve got this! We wish you the very best with your upcoming Affirm interviews.
Step 1: Recruiter Call
Affirm’s recruiter call lasts 30 minutes, and it’s more about prep for the hiring process than anything else. Someone might ask you why you want to work for Affirm and then talk about the job you are applying for.
At this point, it’s very important not to say how much you want to be paid or where you are in the process with other companies. We wrote an in-depth post about negotiating salaries that tells you exactly what to say if recruiters make you name the first number.
Affirm’s Interview Process for Software Engineers: 3 Steps
Mid to senior-level engineers interviewing at Affirm can expect the following process:
- Recruiter call (30 minutes)
- Technical phone screen (1 hour)
- Onsite (4 hours)
The hiring process at Affirm is a mix of different types of interviews. You will be interviewed by a hiring manager from the organization you are interviewing for as well as engineers from other departments within the company.
The entire process can be completed within 2 weeks. You’ll be asked to give three different times when you’re free, so you can approach it more or less aggressively.
Conflicting Product Requirements: Product Manager Mock Interview (with Affirm PM)
FAQ
How hard is it to get hired at Affirm?
How long does it take to hear back from Affirm?
How hard is the interview process at affirm?
Interview question is not hard, lc medium. Phone screen coding question will be checked by colleagues globally I applied online. I interviewed at Affirm in 2024-03-01 The interview process was a bit extensive, starting with a 30-minute screening call, followed by another 30-minute call with the hiring manager.
What should I know before interviewing at affirm?
When it’s time to interview, you’ll be able to demonstrate your interest in the role, thoughtfulness, and intellectual curiosity (a core trait at Affirm). There’s truly no downside for anyone. Company history You should have a general understanding of the company, such as company size and age, locations, business model, and CEO.
What is the affirm hiring process?
The Affirm hiring process typically consists of multiple stages, including an initial call with a recruiter, followed by interviews with the hiring manager and other team members. Candidates may also be asked to complete a technical or case study assignment.
What is affirm & how does it work?
Affirm is a leading financial technology company that has revolutionized the way consumers access credit and make purchases. Founded in 2012 by PayPal Co-founder Max Levchin, Affirm has quickly gained recognition for its innovative approach to providing transparent, flexible, and consumer-friendly financing options.
