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CS PhD here with 5 years YOE (3 years before + 2 years after PhD + 3 internships) Today, I was on the phone with a recruiter from Facebook to get my phone interview results. The feedback was positive, however, the targeting level was not. She mentioned that I need 3 years of YOE to be qualified for L5 and my pre-phd experience doesn't count. This was not the first time I heard this but for some reason, it really got me bad this time. This means that if I had applied 8 years ago before starting my PhD, when I had a masters and 3 YOE, I would have been qualified to interview for L5. It's really stupid but I feel terrible when I think about it. I went through hell to get my PhD and it seems like I'm not even at the same level as before my degree. This is a very humbling moment for me as I am in my mid-30s and my peers at the same level have just finished their undergrads. I hope everyone considering a PhD just knows the consequences after their degrees. Just know that you're wiping out your YOE and master's degree and not gain anything workwise. Just do it if you really like to do it and don't care about the consequences.
She is just one recruiter. If she doesn't value you. Go somewhere you will be valued. You don't have to listen to her.
The recruiter was actually supportive, the HM rejected my level. And I can't get my head around the logic behind this rule. Is it because they assume you have forgotten the concepts during the phd?
It's not like I was disconnected from the industry, my phd was relevant and I had internships too 🤷
PhD isn’t just about getting into Facebook broh.
There are lots of roles where phd is preferred. You have an advantage on these roles.
Does the role require a PhD?
This sucks. I knew a few PhDs who had it difficult in the beginning, but ended up doing better later in the industry because they had more leadership qualities and could engage the business better than just developers or tech leads. You may not get to work on something research oriented, but your leadership skills from the PhD and education do have value.
Can you be more concrete on what you mean by leadership qualities/skills from PhD? I want to believe you — I have a fresh physics PhD, 0 YOE — but struggle to feel that I have an edge as a leader. I did lead a big project with many members as the main focus of my PhD but it wasn't in a "professional" industry context. So I struggle to see how that is relevant. Maybe a bit but not a lot.
People with PhDs have usually very high curiosity and go to the deep root of problems to deliver insights. I knew one such guy who started off with a research role in the company and then moved to something commercial. But his insights into applied math were so deep that he could deliver a strong data analytics product, which kinda became a benchmark. He was also generally respected. Try for research roles that are close to the business
Don’t worry about that recruiter. Most of them are useless anyways. You cannot expect someone with a degree in ‘Gender studies’ to evaluate your profile correctly. If some position really interests you, try reaching out to hiring managers via LinkedIn in-mail or something if you can.
OP said that the recruiter was helpful and the HM was dissing
One of the reasons I dropped from PhD still in the first year. No industry experience was killing my opportunities. 5 years undergrad, immediately followed by 2 years master and would go for 4 years PhD. I finished my classes in the first semester, got an entry level job, making less than an intern, while also having a second job as a college professor at night. I was pulling solid 13h of work and 3h of commute every day, with no time to work on research. When I came to talk to my advisor to switch the focus of the PhD to be closer to what I was working on at the time (from embedded design methodologies to embedded databases), advisor said it wasn't something they would accept and I went straight to the secretary to sign myself out of the program. I miss academia, but don't regret the decision.
Also, all of my skips have no academic degrees past BSc. All my colleagues with MSc and PhD are ICs and don't seem to be able to advance their careers. I call that the Gates-Zuckerberg Dropout Effect.
A Master's is for your career, a PhD is for you
I'd say that for FAANGMULA immigrant job, masters is for your visa.
I agree @Microsoft. It's really about getting the visa and a successful immigration. Instead of hoping for some miraculous company that would sponsor relocation from your home country.
At least you get to choose Dr instead of Mr/Mrs when filling out forms online.
Its funny cuz its true! Seen ppl do a PhD for that very reason
That sucks. Is the role related to your thesis?
Not at Facebook but my current job is related, but sort of a same situation here too