This article was published on July 20, 2012

Facebook opens up on its hiring process and engineers have to do a lot of coding during it


Facebook opens up on its hiring process and engineers have to do a lot of coding during it

It’s not often that companies come out and say exactly what they’re looking for, other than the posting of bland job descriptions. Today, Facebook has opened up a bit on its hiring practices and what it looks for in people to join the team.

Facebook engineer, Carlos Bueno, wrote a post with a behind-the-scenes look at the process at Facebook:

Interviewing for a technical job is hard, and so is being the interviewer. You want to get that engineering job at Facebook, and we want to hire the best people (you!). Knowing what to expect on both sides can go a long way toward making the process work better.

Preparation is important. Hiring, here and across the industry, is like shooting a few protons into the very large space of your life experience, hoping to get enough information back to say that yes, this specimen is definitely made of elemental awesomium. We’re trying to build a picture of your abilities as a professional and a colleague from a handful of data points.

You read the entire post here, but some of the interesting bits are that once you talk to a recruiter, you’ll do a phone screening with a potential coworker. From there, you’ll get to visit a bunch of people during an on-site at the Facebook campus.

Engineers have to write out some code on a white board, how’s that for potentially stressful?

Bueno goes on to discuss what Facebook looks for in potential hires, focusing in on if someone is a good fit, naturally. The company considers someone that can understand “complex ideas” to be a good fit. Curiousity and motivation helps, too.

If you’re looking to join Facebook, prepare to be asked for feedback on the process, during the process. The company appears to be very open for discussion during the hiring period, so bring your A-game and be up-front on what you really are a pro at:

Impress us with your mastery of whatever language you’re best at. Don’t use a language you know less well because it’s trendy or you think it will please the interviewer. This is a very common pitfall.

Want to learn more about Facebook’s culture? Check out this cool piece about its hackathons.

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