FANG dream job hunt
Hi Ladies/ moms, Just as every engineer has this dream to get into FANG companies, I started preparing for Senior Software Engineer interviews end of 2017. Being a working mom of a first grader and kindergartener, I used to prepare in the evenings and weekends (with husband taking care of the kids related activities and other chores). My preparation was on and off based on how things were busy at home/ work/ kids. I interviewed onsite at Facebook, LinkedIn, Google and Netflix. After the onsite’s the feedback I received was that I did well in behavioral, system design. However needed to get better at coding. Honestly, with kids growing up, I find that it wouldn’t be fair on my part to lock myself in a room and leetcode evenings/ weekends. Whenever the kids see me with a notepad and laptop - they usually say mom is again back to doing her homework. Should I look into switching to management or technical program management? I find that I would be unable to devote more time towards leetcode/ though I am interested to - I don’t think my family can go through this again. Also, my interests are to build systems to scale. Have over 9 years of experience and a Masters in CS. Any thoughts - anybody on the same boat?
TC pls
If you value time with your family I wouldn't recommend FANG
FAN
Switching to eng management is a good option, given that you're good in system design. You manage building systems in scale which is your interest. The trick is that eng manager interview still requires leetcode for fang.
I'd humbly suggest that a palatable wlb is more likely as an engineer. Setting boundaries is generally easier
Are you saying managers have good WLB? Why is this a bad option for OP?
PM me for Apple referral if interested
Good question. Some of the companies you mention have too much bias against people like you. Make sure those kids grow up in a household where they get that affection up until 8 or so.
lol, she didn’t pass interviews, and you call that bias? Are you that dumb?
It doesn't end after leetcode. Even if you pass the interviews, are you certain that you can keep up with really smart people working long hours? Getting the job is just the start. Working and doing well will probably take more effort. If you're fine with that, then keep trying. Passing interviews have a lot to do with luck, so you might get lucky taking another shot at it.
If it wouldnt be fair to lock yourself in a room leetcoding evenings and weekends would ot be fair to be away at the office during those same times (or locking yourself away working from home)? That would be the expectation at many of those companies you mention. You have to decide if you want to make that sacrifice. You could think about switching into management. Many of those companies also require coding interviews for management. Ive read fb and Netflix specifically call it out. Amazon typically doesn't require coding per-se. Microsoft is mixed. Some do and some dont. I'm not sure about TPM interviews in these companies in general, but there is no coding in ms ones for sure. Those roles may have less continuing demands on your time than sde roles. If it important that you spend as much time as possible with your family they may be a better choice
The more time you take off, the more you forget. You have an entire year to get better. Spend a couple hours every week to leetcode new problems and keep yourself sharp. Every now and then, look back at what you’ve done to refresh your memory. Just be persistent. You don’t have to kill yourself. You will get there if you keep making strides.