Facebook vs Asana

Microsoft / Eng
ERlc58

Go to company page Microsoft Eng

ERlc58
Oct 13, 2020 39 Comments

Have remote winter internship offers for both, having trouble deciding between them.

Comp:
FB: $8k/month + unknown housing stipend for FB, in addition to possibly being cut for localization

Asana: $10k/month

Team:
Teams haven't been matched yet for either company, and I'll have to accept before I know the team.

Background:
My main interest is in product engineering (esp frontend or full stack), but I'd be fine doing infra as well.

For context, I've previously interned at Microsoft and AWS, and my summer internship is at a unicorn in SF that I'm really excited about.

Other Factors:
The main pros and cons I've laid out so far:

Pros of FB:
- Bigger brand - I haven't interned at FB/G yet.
- Speed - I think the environment will force me to level up my coding skills.
- Products - I think that I'd be pretty interested in working on certain areas like small business tools, AR, or even stuff like video infra.

Cons of FB:
- Possibly ending up on a team not doing much - I could end up working on some tucked away analytics feature or something, which while useful, is not as interesting as working on say, a core product feature at Asana.
- WLB - I don't mind working hard and grinding it out on occasion, but Blind has hit me with too many consistent 10-12 hour work day stories. I understand this is team and individual dependent, but if I end up on a team where everyone is grinding, I'll probably end up working a ton to try and get a decent rating.

Pros of Asana:
- Culture - less stressful, more chill, WLB shouldn't be an issue.
- Size/consistency - from what I've heard, there aren't any teams at Asana to "avoid", which can be partially attributed to its size allowing for better quality control. I've also never worked at a strong tech company of its size (few thousand employees)
- More money - I live in a mid CoL area with a poor tech market, so if Facebook localizes their intern salary heavily, I could end up with a good chunk more money from Asana.

Cons of Asana:
- Not as big of a name as FB in terms of resume - again, I'm not sure if an FB internship will open significantly more doors compared to my current experience from MSFT/AWS and adding Asana.

Unfortunately neither company is willing to hold a full-time return offer until the summer, so I'll have to accept or decline before I even start my summer internship. Unless there's some way to get them to bend the rules, which I have no idea about. I'm not sure which company would be more likely to be able to bend some rules.

For full time, I think I'd rather work at Asana or my summer internship company over Facebook at the beginning of my career. That said, I'm not sure if being at Facebook, even if just for a remote internship, is just too good for my career to pass up.

#offer #tech #internship #intern

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TOP 39 Comments
  • Google / Eng
    6Feet6Inch

    Go to company page Google Eng

    6Feet6Inch
    Fb, shouldn’t be considering the pay difference during an internship. I’d choose the better brand. No one gives sh*t about what you work on during your internship honestly, brand name is all that matters.
    Oct 13, 2020 0
  • Microsoft
    fuccTrump

    Go to company page Microsoft

    PRE
    Google, Yahoo, Facebook
    fuccTrump
    Asana. Fb works on trash products like ig and ads. Yes you might be lucky to work on oculus but that is like 5% of the company if not less. Asana at least is useful and contributes to our society
    Oct 13, 2020 12
    • Microsoft
      fuccTrump

      Go to company page Microsoft

      PRE
      Google, Yahoo, Facebook
      fuccTrump
      That’s an interesting take. But one could argue solving FB issue by 100% is just shutting it down... making it 1% less evil might not be as appealing as making stuff like productivity tools 100x more useful

      But again I’m not saying FB is bad as a place to work, different people have different goals, it’s just my opinion here
      Oct 14, 2020
    • Great point! Value is relative and different people prioritize different things.

      Applying that to your original point - "wasting time for billions". You might consider using these platforms a waste of time. But you're assuming everyone else feels the same way. Which is always a dangerous road to take.

      Honestly, I don't see the appeal in IG. But my partner loves it. It helps her relax and brings her some happiness. She continues to use it despite watching 'The Social Dilemma'. To her, it has value. I assume millions more feel the same way, seeing as they continue to use our platforms despite the negative publicity we've been getting for a while now.

      Like my partner, 37% of the adults in the US use IG as per - https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/ and 69% use FB.
      Oct 16, 2020
  • Facebook / Eng
    TCYOE

    Go to company page Facebook Eng

    TCYOE
    Definitely Fb. You underestimate how many good product and infra teams you’ll get a chance to work on at a scale you’ll never find at other companies with some of the brightest in the industry.
    Oct 13, 2020 0
  • Asana
    wXTR58

    Go to company page Asana

    wXTR58
    Congrats on getting offers at both companies! Team placement for Asana interns is an enjoyable process and they really strive to place you on a team that fits your preferences. Most interns at Asana do get return offers so it's not too stressful of a process where I've heard at fb it can be a real grind to get a good rating.

    Feel free to pm me if you have any other questions.
    Oct 13, 2020 0
  • FWIW interns aren’t worked to the bone and usually have very well scoped projects at FB. I wouldn’t worry about WLB. They want you to really enjoy your time here so that you can return as a full-time employee.
    Oct 13, 2020 0