Freddie Mac software engineer candidates report a recorded video screen, then conversational interviews built around resume deep dives, light coding or CS fundamentals, and why Freddie Mac.
$113K
Avg. Base Comp
$130K
Avg. Total Comp
2-4 rounds
Typical Rounds
2 months
Process Length
Candidates describe the Freddie Mac software engineer process as conversational rather than a coding gauntlet. Several report opening with a recorded HireVue-style video screen of mostly behavioral questions, including "Why Freddie Mac?", strengths, and a time you faced a challenge. Later rounds are with team members, a hiring manager, or in one report the VP and head of department.
The most consistent theme is the resume deep dive. Candidates say interviewers probed projects and internships, asked why they chose certain tools, and sometimes went into technologies that were only tangential to their resume. One candidate was asked about Java versions and Spring Boot. Another was asked about Java, Python, APIs, AWS, databases and data structures. Be ready to explain trade-offs behind each project, not just what you built.
Technical depth varies. One candidate faced an easy-to-medium LeetCode-style problem in a Zoom with a hiring manager and engineers, and did not receive an offer. Others reported no live coding. Reported fundamentals include caching, strings versus tuples, object-oriented programming with project examples, and designing a scalable backend for high traffic.
Expect company questions too. Candidates were asked what Freddie Mac does, how it makes money, and why they want to work there. Outcomes were mixed, with both offers and rejections, so prepare for both the conversation and a modest coding problem.
Synthesized from 11 candidate reports by our editorial team.
Had an interview recently?
Share your experience. Unlock the full guide.
Real interview reports from people who went through the Freddie Mac process.
What caught me off guard was how little of this felt like a quiz. The process started with a recorded video screen, followed by a phone call with HR. The technical interview with the team was where the real conversation happened. They covered Java, Python, APIs, AWS, databases, data structures, and system design, but the questions kept branching off whatever I had just said, so it never felt like a checklist.
Almost everything on my resume got looked at. They asked about my projects and my internship experience, and when I mentioned a tool or approach, they followed up on the reasoning behind it. They also asked about technologies and concepts that weren't on my resume at all, so I couldn't rely on the bullet points I'd listed. Teamwork and leadership came up as well, along with a direct question about why I wanted to work at Freddie Mac and how I decide which tools or technologies to use for a given problem.
The final round was with the VP and the head of the department. Overall it felt more like a long, friendly discussion than an interrogation, but the follow-ups meant I had to think on my feet the entire time. I did not receive an offer.
If I were preparing again, I would spend less time memorizing definitions and more time being able to explain every project and internship on my resume in depth, including the trade-offs behind each decision. I would also review concepts adjacent to my stack, since the team was willing to go past what I had listed.
Prep tip from this candidate
Be ready to defend every project and internship on your resume with follow-up depth on your tool choices and trade-offs, since the questions kept probing from there. Also review concepts adjacent to your listed stack, because the team asked about technologies that were not on the resume.
Share your own interview experience to unlock all reports, or subscribe for full access.
Sourced from candidate reports and verified by our team.
Topics based on recent interview experiences.
Featured question at Freddie Mac
How would you approach taking over and assessing an existing machine learning model?
| Question | |
|---|---|
| Customer Review and Rating System | |
| Alternative Vendor Tradeoff | |
| RAG Strict Source Control | |
| Your Strengths and Weaknesses | |
| 2nd Highest Salary | |
| Closest SAT Scores | |
| Employee Salaries | |
| Subscription Overlap | |
| Empty Neighborhoods | |
| Top Three Salaries | |
| Monthly Customer Report | |
| Merge Sorted Lists | |
| String Shift | |
| Rolling Bank Transactions | |
| Customer Orders | |
| Comments Histogram | |
| Top 5 Turnover Risk | |
| Like Tracker | |
| Random SQL Sample | |
| Weighted Keys | |
| Flight Records | |
| Prime to N | |
| Largest Salary by Department | |
| Upsell Transactions | |
| Top 3 Users | |
| Raining in Seattle | |
| Over-Budget Projects | |
| Slacking Employees Salaries | |
| First Touch Attribution |
Synthesized from candidate reports. Individual experiences may vary.
Many candidates report starting with a recorded video interview with no live interviewer. One reported format is five questions with short prep time for each. Questions are typically behavioral and company-focused, such as why Freddie Mac, strengths, a challenge you faced, and what the company does. Practice concise, specific answers.
Some candidates report a recruiter or HR phone call after the video screen, described as standard, covering the role, company basics and background. Not every candidate mentions this step, so it may vary by team or level. Have a short summary of your experience and a clear reason for wanting Freddie Mac ready.
Candidates report a Zoom or in-person conversation with a hiring manager and team members. It centers on projects and internships, tool choices and reasoning, and fundamentals such as OOP, caching or data structures. One candidate reports a LeetCode easy-to-medium problem. Others report no live coding, so be ready to explain your thinking aloud.
Some candidates describe a final round with a team member, the hiring manager, or in one report the VP and head of department. Topics reported include teamwork, conflict resolution, why Freddie Mac, how you choose tools, and a high-level scalable backend design. Prepare polished behavioral stories and a clear high-level system design answer.
