I interviewed for L5 at Amazon but got bumped to L4. But they were able to offer me 200k tc in nyc. The project/team sounds very exciting as I would be able to work with lotd of data/ML which is whar my masters is in but I havent been able to use it in applied work. My current gig is as a tech lead, where im unchallenged but also underworked. I currently live 2 blocks from my office, and get to work remote a day a week. My current projects are terrible, I dont feel challenged, and I dont see much career growth here as my manager has personally told me that the culture is one that doesnt like for people to promote people above them. Was really looking forward to Amazon to learn a lot and be surrounded by bright people. I also feel like going into Amazon will get me into the higher tier of comp/quality of engineers. Given Im nearly capped on the comp for companies outside of FANG Other Interviews: I failed the onsite for FB a couple weeks ago, and ive interviewed at 3+ startups for lead mobile roles and gotten offers from most. The issue is the comp is the same and I dont see much career growth/comp growth going to a startup. Amazon also offered me to be able to re interview for L5 in 5 months. Commute: Not sure this is a huge component, but I live 2 blocks from my current office, work a day remote, and can come in at 10 and leave at 5 sharp. While Amazon is about a 30 min commute, and probably not leaving at 5 there. Current TC: 200k YOE: 2. I have a Masters from a top school if that adds anything. Age: Im 22 if that adds any insight towards advice into priorities.
You seem considerably young given your master and yoe 👍...
I had a revolution that I was wasting my life when I was 19, and have just been working non stop since. Took 10 classes a semester and worked full time. I do feel like I need to keep up the pace though, or else my age will catch up and it won’t sound as cool.....😂
You should also take some breaks. Simply working your life away at an early age isnt generally the best philosophy. It limits your growth as a person in other domains. Life isn't a race.
How old are you?
22 and 9/10ths
you're young and your yoe is just 2. Master doesn't mean anything. Amazon fairly levels you at sde1 and 200k is a pretty decent offer. If you're good as you said, sde2 is right there. That offer should already put you at sde 2 pay band. Take it and you will see how many doors it would open for you in the future. Not to mention you should learn a ton of things that I might guess your tech lead role could not give you.
L4 to L5 promo takes 1.5-2 years for most with prior experience. This is not a hard promo. You will learn a lot at Amazon. Your comp won't grow much unless the stock grows at least until you hit L5 and get a TT or HV+ rating, but you can always hop to another FAANG with a much stronger resume in a year or two as well.
I guess the alternative would be trying to get a higher comp at a FANG instead of taking the offer.
Go to Amazon, and do it early in your career. It is an engineering school superior to most tech companies.
Interesting. Thanks for the insight! Better than continuing to interview at other FANG?
Can’t speak to all FANG, but the engineering discipline in Amazon is definitely superior to facebook, especially for junior engineers. You can join facebook later as a senior and cash out your expertise.