I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Microsoft
Interview
First, the recruiter will send you an email if there is some interest. It may take a month or two.
Second a call with some initial questions such as previous experience, relocation, salary expectations, and so on.
Third you will have an interview with a design manager. You will be asked to talk about yourself, some portfolio works, why do you want to work on microsoft, and you will be able to ask some questions too.
Fourth, if there is an interest, you will be asked to do a design exercise. It looks like a short exercise but it is not. And they expect you to think about every detail despite stating that you could use 8hrs to do it.
Fifth, they will review it , and if they find it interesting you either go to present it on site or on a skype call with 4 team members. They ask you some questions regarding the exercise and portfolio.
Sixth you get an email with the outcome - yes or no.
HR rounds first, and then comes the hiring manager round with portfolio review.
HM is nice, not too many and difficult questions.
But I think I interviewed too late, I got rescheduled on time, and waited for three weeks to interview.
I applied through other source. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Microsoft (Redmond, WA) in Dec 2025
Interview
I interviewed with the hiring manager directly, and the following week, I was scheduled for a 1-hour portfolio presentation and 4 back-to-back individual interviews. The process was direct and quick.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
In what way have you directly influenced a project, and what was the outcome?
Focused portfolio review with a panel, followed by a set of interviews focused in behavioural questions - it can be a long day(s) but fairly simple considering there is no design exercise or take home
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Asked specific OKRs and lessons learned for each portfolio case study
