Ask HN: My applications for FAANG dev roles are rejected immediately
Like many, I've always wanted to interview at a top-tier tech company, but for some reason I've found myself unable to even get as far as an interview with any of them. Applying directly to the likes of Facebook and Google either results in a rejection email a day or two later, for roles in several cities/countries, or sometimes no response at all.
My CV is fairly straightforward. I joined a startup straight out of uni, where I became the sole developer and ended up being handed the lead dev title and having to build a team of three. We were acquired 18 months later for the platform we had built. After the acquisition, I have worked at a handful of digital agencies in a mid-level and senior capacity, and I now work at a consultancy firm that deals with early-stage startups. I have also contributed to open-source, either through my own projects or via PR's on others, and have given a handful of talks at local user groups.
On paper, you'd think I'd be worth at least a glance, but over the past decade I've applied a handful of times to FAANG, Twitter, GitHub, and Microsoft, and 80-90% of the time I am rejected outright within the week. A few weeks ago, I decided to try all at once, and was rejected by Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Microsoft within 72 hours.
It genuinely feels like I'm on a blacklist, and although I would love to work for one of the big firms I have no intention of spending the next decade applying to places that don't want me.
I thought I'd reach out to HN to see if you have any advice for me on either how to get an interview at one of these companies, whether a blacklist is even a thing, or whether my experience is even that uncommon.
3 comments
[ 3.4 ms ] story [ 16.8 ms ] threadIf you could not get interviews with that particular company I would be worried. At times they will interview anybody with a pulse.
The other companies on your list all have more people who want to work for them then they could possibly hire so they can filter for a profile for people who are at different career stages and if you don't fit that profile you don't get through the screen. The hiring manager is filling up a platoon of two squads and is not so interested in anything about you that makes you hard to evaluate.
(Microsoft|Google|Facebook) are not startups and they may not find your startup experience useful. In software they are what Nestle or Kelogg are to food and they don't look at product development in the way a startup does at all.
I have seen solid performers in large companies who do well with structure (where the solidity of process means you can go to an atm 24-7 most places and expect to get money) just not be able to cut off chunks of our startup mountain into units of work they can do. Salesforce.com sends fresher salespeople to a gala conference in their home city. They will get sales training and a proven playbook. In our startup you are going to write the playbook.
If you want to get into that kind of shop and you are an oddball at all your best bet is the "aqui-hire" but the person who succeeds at that often can't stand to stay.
Amazon certainly have that reputation, but there has been a time where many of the other companies have had a similar reputation. I applied to Google, Twitter and Facebook during the time where they were pushing to hire more employees than ever before, and even then I couldn't get past the initial screen.
Regarding my focus on startups, that was mainly to highlight that my experience isn't purely Web Dev at digital agencies. To be perfectly honest my main reason for working for a FAANG-level company isn't because I'm in love with them, or because I want to work for a big company. It's mostly because the interview process is challenging, and because it's an opportunity to work with the top tier of talent on hard problems.
You're right, though. Some of those companies have a reputation for aggressive hiring, and the fact that their recruiters seem to want nothing to do with me indicates that there is a problem. I have absolutely no problem getting interviews anywhere else in the UK. Hell, Reddit offered me an interview a number of years back, so it's not a location thing. You say my startup experience isn't relevant to them, but if Google will fall over themselves to hire CS grads to graduate schemes or recent graduates with a few years experience for interviews, why can't I even get the time of day from a FAANG recruiter?
The whole situation has really soured my opinion of these companies, which is a real shame because I would love to work for them. Ultimately, there's only so many times you can be rejected before you become resentful.
but in my case I know what the issues are.