A Google engineer's advice to computer science students: Go where the hiring bar is lower and get your foot in the door
Don't underestimate the potential advantage of a first or second-year program at a Big Tech giant. It could be your foot in the door to a full-time offer. A referral can also help, too.
Google software engineer Tawfiq Mohammad interned at the company for two summers before receiving a full-time offer — and he suggests current computer science students try to do the same.
"I think one of the most important things I've done in my career, to date, is applying for these first and second year programs," he said in an interview with YouTuber Sajjaad Khader. "Like I said, it's a first and second-year program for computer science students, and the hiring bar is much, much lower. For example, they'll ask like a Leetcode easy instead of a Leetcode medium," he added, referencing the technical interviews.
It's no secret that entry-level coders have it rough right now compared to the hiring boom of the pandemic. The tech industry is still feeling the effects of the last few years' waves of layoffs, and the stress of shrinking opportunities is compounded by companies increasingly turning to AI to accomplish tasks human coders once did.
To better your chances of clinching an internship, Mohammad said, tailor your résumé and track your applications.
"I started tracking my applications for these internships as opposed to just mass applying and just like waiting for whatever comes into my inbox," he said. "So, it was very organized. I would update the status of each application and it would help me a lot to prepare for each interview and for which stage I was at in each interview."
To get his internship at Google, Mohammad said he cleared one behavioral interview, followed by two technical screenings. To prepare for the latter, he advises students to learn the pattern of Leetcode questions, rather than focusing on memorizing individual problems.
"If you try to memorize it problem by problem, you'll eventually be given a problem that you don't know," he said. "So you just want to master the overarching principles."
Mohammad acknowledged that getting a referral from his father's friend, who was already employed at Google, likely helped his chances. If getting a recommendation is within reach, he suggests applicants do what they can to secure one.
"I think that really helped me get my foot in the door in the application process," he said. "I got an interview really soon after she submitted the referral. You want to try to separate yourself from everyone as much as you can when you're applying for these internships."
And if you just can't seem to get an internship in this brutal job market, try to start learning critical skills on your own time by taking on projects, he added. Then, you'll have more to list on your résumé that could make you a more attractive applicant.
"I think the best way to learn these basic computer science fundamentals is really just like doing things on your own," he said.
If and when things eventually do work out, Mohammad suggests being as independent as possible. Ask for help when you need it, but the more problems you solve on your own, the more you're likely to learn.
"You're smart enough to evaluate whether you're blocked," he said. "And if you're really, really blocked, at a certain point, obviously, then you should ask for help. But try to solve your problems on your own. Just by solving the problems on your own, you'll understand how all the systems fit together, how things run, and eventually you'll start helping people with your expertise."
In an earlier interview with BI, Mohammad said interns should try to "learn as much as possible" from their more experienced colleagues.
After all, they were likely once in a similar place.
" They're really smart, so you want to absorb as much information as you can from them," Mohammad told BI.
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