Google 2026 New Grad R1: Swim in Rising Water and 40-Minute BQ

Role: Software Engineer, New Grad
Result: Passed R1
Report time: January 2026

Coding: minimax path through a height grid

Given an m × n grid of distinct heights, find a path from (0,0) to (m-1,n-1) that minimizes the maximum height encountered along the path.

The candidate used Dijkstra's algorithm. The interviewer asked whether DFS could also solve it and requested the resulting time complexity.

A commenter noted that the task is the same family as LeetCode 778, Swim in Rising Water, and suggested an alternative Union-Find approach that activates cells in increasing height order until the endpoints connect.

Practice: Swim in Rising Water

Behavioral interview

The behavioral round lasted about 40 minutes. Remembered questions included:

• What would you do if one teammate took all the credit?
• How do you work with someone who is difficult to get along with?
• Describe a multitasking experience.
• How do you respond to an unreasonable request?
• What would you do in a company with a weak or unhealthy culture?