Rejected 6 On-sites
Twitter Uber Lyft LinkedIn Quip Snapchat Pretty much every time recruiter calls with feedback, “it was really close but...”. Is this normal? 100% of phone screens have gone to onsite thus far. Thoughts... Feedback...Suggestions?
Are you struggling with the technical questions? If not, it might be communication and confidence. When I failed the onsite of one of my top choice companies despite getting all the technical portions right, I realized I wasn't communicating as well as I could be largely due to nerves.
For a moment, let’s forget the outcome of these on-sites! So, after each on-site, do you feel confident and do you feel that you did well? Or do you realize that you did mess up some part and might not be able to make it?
It usually the technical piece but I’m really close - like I have to right approach (I check afterwards) but I don’t quite get it perfect. I’ve even had the interviews comment that I was on the right track.
Do you practice on a white board while talking it out loud as you write? This method of practicing was very helpful for me.
I feel you man. I got rejected at 3 on-sites before I ended up cracking Amazon and Google! I think you need to practice a bit more before going for more on-sites. Since, you are able to figure out the approach, your basics might be on the stronger side, but you need to practice as much as possible, on an actual compiler. Don’t look at the solution and then start typing. Infact, spend more time on each problem, and try to get to the actual solution, even if takes an hour. Overtime, you will start solving problems quicker!
And I tend to mess up like 1.5 out of 5
Yo, I feel you. I did a job search in December, passed 4/5 phone screens, then didn't get any offer. I did another job search in June, and went 3/4 for on-sites. Part of it is just chance: the average interview pass rate is <50%, so you'll hit a run of bad luck. Interviewing is also a skill, so you should be much better prepared for the next set. One thing I did was to be organized about improving responses to questions. E.g., if I got a behavioral question I wasn't prepared for, I would write down an answer in a doc, so I would be fine next time. Good luck!
So where did you go to finally?
Maybe just in your head, you are getting nervous. Performance anxiety. I suggest, keep a bottle of water handy in those onsite interviews and take a sip of water before answering. Water always calms your nerves and will help you focus. If that is the problem.
I think this is the issue I have. Great tip👍
Good point! And also, don’t dive into the solution right away. Clarify as many doubts and try to figure out a few edge cases by having a Q/A with the interview! It won’t only give you time to calm your nerves down but also give you a clearer picture of how you want to structure your code! You don’t want to start writing a solution and discover 10 edge cases etc. That will not only break your flow but also make your thought process messy!
I don’t think it’s soft skills because the feedback is usually good communication, leadership skills etc.
Then it's likely due to system design. Read some system design question online. It's mostly about mention keywords and proactively talk about trade offs so people know. It's very different than real-world design
Is normal Interview process is a shit show, don’t give up and something will stick
lol
Isn't quip part of Salesforce?
Yeah. That might have been partially a skill/technology mismatch. They still ran me through the loop.
Sometimes that happens. You do ok on the interviews but you don’t know X language.
Ok low life
Maybe maybe but you work for Yelp...