[New Grad] LG Electronics — Coding Test + 1st/2nd Interview (Rejected) Recap (2022 H2)

📅 LG Electronics 2022 H2 new-grad recruitment recap — Gasan R&D Campus, H&A division, master's/PhD-level R&D track. Result: rejected on 2022-12-15. I left both interviews thinking I'd done well; the deciding factor was role-fit misalignment.

Timeline

Position preferences

1st choice — AI Control Intelligence (data analysis, cycle analysis) 2nd choice — SW R&D (system control algorithms, AI-based algorithms, motor control, autonomous driving) 3rd choice — Content Server Development (backend)

I framed my master's research (fluid simulation + reinforcement learning) plus my IT transition intent, betting choices 1–2 on AI/SW and putting backend as fallback.

Aptitude + Coding test (2022-11-05)

A. Coding test (10:00–12:00)

Platform: Programmers, Language: Java, 3 problems.

Q1 — Math pattern (7 min)

Quotient/remainder rule discovery. - Result: 100/100.

Q2 — Simulation (1h)

Game server character-creation rules · CRUD · duplicate prevention. - Result: 100/100.

Q3 — Search (partial)

DFS / BFS exhaustive search. - Out of time, partial credit.

Two perfect + one partial → passed.

B. Aptitude (13:20–15:00)

LG aptitude is lighter than most chaebols. Reasoning · language · numerical mix. Doable without dedicated prep.

Result: passed both.

1st interview (2022-11-17)

Master's/PhD R&D track means research-presentation-centric. LG provides the PPT template — 6 pages including cover.

Panel: team-leader researcher + senior researcher + HR.

Presentation — Master's research

I framed it around 4 keywords: mechanics · AI · data analysis · IT.

Applied RL to fluid simulation to discover new control strategies and build a generalizable model.

Squeezed into 6 pages. Panel seemed genuinely interested.

The decisive moment — role misalignment signal

Panel: "Have you done hands-on experimentation? CAD experience?"

I had done both (I'd built my own apparatus + done CAD in the lab), so the answers landed. But the question itself was a signal — they were envisioning me for a more traditional R&D track (hardware · experiments · CAD), not the SW positions I'd ranked first.

So I asked directly: "Can I still go into the SW positions I ranked first?"

HR: "Depending on company circumstances, you could naturally end up in a different role."

That sounded reassuring in the room. Reflecting later, it meant "we decide, not you."

Result: passed 1st interview. Got the health check notice — read that as a good signal.

2nd interview (2022-12-06) — Executive + English

A. Executive interview

Prepared a position around LG's DX (digital transformation) + Object Collection lineup vs. Samsung Bespoke competition, pricing strategy, and IT/AI's role in consumer-convenience systems.

I left thinking it had gone well. But the CAD-style questioning from the 1st interview came back in a different form:

Executive: "If your preferred SW positions don't materialize due to company circumstances, how would you feel about that?"

That's when I knew I was being rejected.

B. English interview

1:1 over Zoom with an American native interviewer. OPIc-level is enough — self-intro, motivation, basic topic discussion.

Went fine.

Final result

Rejected on 2022-12-15.

The hunch was right. I performed in the interviews themselves, but the role-fit gap decided it. Either SW R&D openings were scarce, or my background (mech eng + AI master's) looked more useful in traditional R&D from the company's side.

Takeaways — from a master's/PhD new-grad perspective

• Research-presentation PPT: 6 pages max. Cleanly separate what I did vs. what the team did.
• CAD/experiment questions: even for SW track, a master's+ background gets pulled toward traditional R&D. Be ready to answer.
• Role-misalignment signal: when HR says "depending on company circumstances," your 1st/2nd preference is not guaranteed. Pin them down in the room if you care.
• Executive interview: pre-research the business strategy + competition. But don't waver on your own values.
• English interview: OPIc IM2–IH is enough.

No regrets — it was a useful check on whether the company fit my career goals. Good luck if you're on the same path.

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📦 Migrated from my own Korean blog (my own writing). Original: taehyuklee.tistory.com/5