I had a PhD in physics and did work in hardware industry at a no name company for a few years before deciding to switch to software in 2017. I had some people management experience at the hardware company. I broke into the industry in 2018, worked as an IC and eng manager at smaller companies, and joined Facebook as an Engineering Manager (M1/E6) recently. I'm still new to software industry and still learning everyday. Some previous colleagues and people with similar background were asking me how I did it. I thought to write about my experience and want to do an AMA to gather some more questions into my writing. So, ask me anything and I want to see if I can be of help. Edit: There are some questions about interview process and experience. It was hands down the best interview experience I ever had, the process is standardized, people are super smart and professional. There were a screen round and an on-site with 6 sessions: coding, sys design, another sys design, career path, people management, project retro. Donโt sweat this, your recruiter will prep you. #career #softwareengineer #careerchange #faang #phd
How did you get your first gig in 2018 and how did you end up getting an EM role at FB without SWE work exp.?
My first gig is at Amazon as an IC. I had some management experience at hardware companies. The way I got into Amazon is just apply online got lucky and passed the interview.
M1 or M2 and TC?
What coding languages do you know / what did you have to do to get past HR filters? I have a masters in electronic materials engineering and decided not to use the degree because the only offer I got was $68k and I make roughly 3x that as an SAT, science, and math tutor (DC elite private schools) However, Iโm bored out of my fucking mind and wouldnโt mind a change. I like programming, but feel like I donโt really have a clear goal in mind and that makes it difficult to target something specific.
Which hardware company did you work at and what was your TC? How much did your TC increase when you joined FB?
I worked at a small firm that's not well known. My TC was 150k when I began and was ~180k when I left in 2017. My TC at FB is ~660k.
Amazing! Good for you! My TC 240 PhD in physics plus 15 YOE ๐ญ
I have a very similar background, have another physics PhD also working as an SWE on my team. Seems pretty easy to make the switch nowadays.
Yeah pretty common, were you working in a different industry before? I feel a lot of ppl got a starting career in a non software track and just afraid of making a switch somehow
Yeah, started off in semiconductor manufacturing, but fortunately my first role involved a lot of software development and data engineering and I was able to make the switch without much trouble.
Can you please let me know how to prepare for EM interviews especially with people who want to transition from an IC to EM. Would highly appreciate it
Either try to grow to an EM at your current company or get to a new company as an IC and make the transition there. Large companies have pretty organized IC to EM transition paths. The best way to prepare for EM interviews is to actually have done the work as an EM and speak from experience.
I recently did phone interview with FB for M2 (at least to my understanding) with another manager. The interviewer seemed positive at the end but then recruiter came back saying the feedback was not positive. I was then suggested by recruiter for TPM which unfortunately I donโt like so I said no. Couple of questions 1. Any insights of what could have happened? 2. I was told to connect me with a director for m2 but then scheduled with another manager for m2. Is this normal?
I hat was the interview like? I am transitioning to EM. Wondering how to draft resume. Previously Applied Scientist. So not sure how to talk about my new EM experience on resume. Got good points for my AS experience on resume. Any pointers are appreciated.
@Google, I guess the interview wasn't positive, but the recruiter still tries to make it work, so TPM.
How many rounds were the FB interviews and what were they like? How big is your team at FB now?
There were a screen and an onsite (of 6 sessions, Iโll add some details in the main post). My team is ~10 ppl
Whatโs the best way to transition from an IC to an EM role?
This probably deserves a longer answer. If you stay at one place, usually there is a path from IC to EM (i.e. level up to certain level, at Amazon I believe you have to be L6, then make a transition if there are openings). Or, you could jump to a smaller company/startup to make the switch directly, gain some experience there and come back as EM if you want to support teams at FAANG.
Did u become em at FB ? Or were you external EM hire ?
external hire
Did you manage ppl before ?