I just took a student through a few days ago. Point72 26NG OA, with three questions, has a very "classic" distribution of questions:
One partial exchange greedy, one number theory approximate statistics, and one budget allocation greedy. The overall difficulty is not too high, but you have to think fast enough after reading the questions, otherwise the time is still a bit tight. We used Python to implement the whole thing this time, all AC.
Point72 OA Interview Overview｜Process and Format
Point72's New Grad OA usually consists of HireVue platform + self-developed assessment system, and the overall process is very standardized, but the pace is relatively tight. Here's the full process review of 26NG's latest round
Test Invitation & Platform Information
Receive links via email from Point72 or third parties such as HackerRank / Codility / Pymetrics.
Topics need to be completed within the time limit, and you cannot go back and make changes after submitting. Generally a window of about 5-7 days is given for completion.
test structure
OA has a total of 3 programming questions with a rough difficulty distribution:
- Question 1: Greedy for arrays or strings / Simulation (lots of logical details)
- Question 2: Number theory or combinatorial topics (often factorial, approximate, and modular operations)
- Question 3: Budget / Optimization type greedy questions (biased logic and implementation)
The overall time is about 90 minutes, and the number of questions is moderate, but the reading is heavy.
Programming Environment
Use an online IDE (Python, C++, Java, etc.) that supports multiple runs of test cases.
But be careful: the test data range is large, and brute force methods usually do not pass all the tests.
Scoring mechanism
Each question is scored by the number of test cases passed, and the total score determines whether or not you move on to the next round.
Officially, no scores will be displayed, but pass rates and times will be recorded.
Follow-up process
After passing the OA, you will usually go to one or two rounds of Technical Interview (Coding + Problem Solving), and then to Behavioral Interview or Hiring Manager Round.
The whole process takes about 2~4 weeks.
Q1: Maximize Weighted Sum with Limited Adjacent Swaps
Given an array
arr, each adjacent pair can be swapped at most once, meaning each element can move left or right by at most one position.
You need to maximize the sumΣ arr[i] * (i+1).
This is an interesting problem, limiting each element to be exchanged at most once looks like dynamic programming, but it's really a localized greedy problem.
Sweep from right to left and swap if the number on the right is bigger and neither position has been swapped yet.
This allows larger numbers to be moved as far to the right as possible (since the weight is i+1, the more to the right the greater the weight).
The idea is simple but the implementation should be careful not to duplicate the exchange.
Complexity O(n), very stable.
Q2: Count Solutions of (x - M)(y - M) = M²
Let
M = N!. You need to count the number of positive integer pairs(x, y)satisfying(x - M)(y - M) = M².
Return the result modulo 1,000,007.
This question is a number theory set question as soon as you look at the equation.
Let's rewrite it as (x - M)(y - M) = M^2, it can be found that the number of solutions is equal to M^2 The number of positive approximations of the
That is, to calculate (N!)^2 How many factors.
The key is in the breakdown N!:
if N! = ∏ p^{e_p}That. (N!)^2 = ∏ p^{2e_p}The approximate number of digits is ∏ (2e_p + 1).
Just enumerate the prime numbers using the Echidna sieve + the factorial decomposition of the statistical exponents and finally take the modulus.
The overall idea is pretty standard, but note that MOD is 1,000,007, not the common 1e9+7.
Q3: Maximize Upgrade Profit within Budget
Each upgrade
IcostsupgradeCosts[i]and gives a profit of2^i.
Given a totalbudget, choose upgrades to maximize total profit modulo 1e9+7.
The key point in this question is that the gain 2^i is super-increasing (i.e., the highs are much larger than the sum of all the lows).
Therefore the optimal strategy is to be greedy from high to low:
Buy it if you can afford it, skip it if you can't.
This is actually a simplified version of the "weights backpack".
Once the idea is clear, the code is very short, one AC at a time.
FAQ｜Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: Is Point72's OA difficulty high among quantitative companies?
Actually, it is not particularly high. Compared to the more mathematical tests like Citadel and Jane Street, Point72's OA is more on the side of algorithmic logic, focusing on clear thinking and implementation efficiency. If you can master the common greedy, number theory, and bitwise arithmetic question types, you can basically pass the test.
Q2: What types of questions do I need to prepare for a similar OA?
It is recommended to focus on brushing up on these categories:
- Greed + Mock questions (like Q1 / Q3)
- Basic number theory (approximate numbers, factorial decomposition, modulo operations)
- Common Array Transformation Logic Questions
When we coach students, we also do special training for companies such as Point72, Two Sigma, and Hudson River to cover these core types of questions.
Q3: Is there enough time to do OA? Can I cut the question in advance?
The time limit is usually 90 minutes for 3 questions, which is very tight.
The biggest fear is not that the questions will be difficult, but that they will be slow to read and stuck to realize.
Our voice assistant system is designed for this kind of scenario, students can directly receive instant prompts when they encounter a stuck point in their thinking, so they don't have to waste time trying to get it right over and over again.
Q4: Can I prepare for Point72 even if I don't come from a quantitative background?
No problem at all.
Many non-mathematical background students (e.g. pure software engineering direction) can easily pass through systematic training + practical simulation. The key is to understand the logic behind the ideas rather than memorizing the questions.
Q5: What is Programhelp's helper service like?
We offer a full suite of untethered remote collaboration support, including:
- OA ghostwriting service
- VO real-time voice prompts
- Proxy Interview Service
- Simulate real-world environments in advance
- Multi-session company oriented question bank training
The service process is secure and hidden, helping you to take OA / VO in the shortest possible time.
