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Ask HN: What tech companies are most like grad school?

8 points by jnbiche ↗ HN
Very subjective, but at which companies is work closest to a grad school experience?

Things like some or all of the following (and perhaps other characteristics I'm neglecting):

* have the "feel" of a college campus

* deal with math- and CS-heavy projects

* promote continuing education

* collaborate with academia

11 comments

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gamechangr
Obviously...Google. You should think about including (not Google) in your title.
emptytheory
I'd imagine the experience, even within the company, would depend on the position.
fsk
As a recent grad working at Google, it's probably a lot like being a janitor at NASA. Some really cool stuff is going on there, but you're still just a janitor.

Google has a couple interesting projects, but most people are doing the grunt work associated with keeping a large corporation running.

jnbiche
Yes, I thought Google was an obvious one but didn't want to bias the question.
temporary_art
I've heard great things about Two Sigma, they sell themselves as having a very academic environment (lots of PhDs, tech talks, etc.).
RhysU
I started there a few months back having just finished graduate school. I wouldn't call it 1:1 with graduate school. I like it far better, and I enjoyed graduate school.
jnbiche
Can you share what interviews are like for positions like data analysis or data visualization? Algorithm heavy? Will studying for a Google-style interview leave me adequately prepped?
jnbiche
Wow, thanks for that. I had not heard of them. They even have positions advertised in my area of expertise (which is not even directly related to finance).
GFK_of_xmaspast
The thing about being a graduate student is they work you like a dog and pay you peanuts, it's not a kind of environment I have any desire to go back to.
indubitably
I'd rather know which company is _least_ like grad school, because this.
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