Resources I have used to land an Engineering Job

Recently I found myself sharing a lot of resources with people when they ask how to land a job in Tech. Due to how busy I get these days, I cannot scale myself to handle the number of requests I get. As a result, I have decided to put together this post to curate all the resources I have used in the past and found helpful. I hope you find them helpful too.

DISCLAIMER: These resources and tips are curated based on a list of what has worked well for me. I am aware that there may be other better and more helpful resources out there.

I have split this post into subheadings for the different job search phases with either resources, tips or both. Feel free to jump to any section you need help with.

Resume Writing

Your resume is the first version of you a company or hiring manager gets to meet. Hence, crafting an effective resume is the first battle to overcome in your job application journey.

Resources

1. Great article on How to write a killer Software Engineering résumé
2. Watch this video by Google, on how to — Create Your Resume for Google: Tips and Advice. I found this video so helpful!

Tips

1. Always submit your resume as a PDF. I can’t stress this enough.
2. The arrangement of your resume speaks to the kind of person you are; an organized person has an organized resume, an articulate person has an articulate resume, you get my point. Seek feedback and design help for your resume. You don’t need flashy resume design, something neat will suffice.
3. Impact matters more than responsibility. On your resume, write what you accomplished and not what you did regularly.
   Example Syntax: Accomplished X by doing Y, using Z.
4. There are more tips on this Twitter Thread. Check it out.

Job Search and Application

Resources

1. I mostly used Linkedin to search for jobs, which has a constant supply of recent openings.
2. Google jobs is also another alternative.
3. For remote jobs I have three boards — WeWorkRemotely, RemoteOk, and Builtin Remote Jobs.
4. For those looking for roles in Toronto, I created this List of Companies in Toronto and their Careers page.

Tips

1. Always apply via the company website. Find the job you want on these job boards, then head over to the company website, look up the same job posting and apply to it there. Except you don’t find it, then…
2. On Referral: It is good to leverage your close network to get you referred. However, if you wish to message others outside your close network for referral; go straight to the point when messaging, don’t waste their time. Here are some effective blobs I’ve sent to people in the past —
   → “Hi <name_of_person>, my name is <insert_name_here>, I have X years of experience as a <profession/role>. I am proficient in <list_skills_here>. Please feel free to check out my portfolio/Github — <insert_link>. Would you know of any openings at your company for someone with my skill set? Thanks”
   — or —
   → “Hi <name_of_person>, my name is <insert_name_here>, I have X years of experience as a <profession/role>. I am proficient in <list_skills_here>. Please feel free to check out my portfolio/Github — <insert_link>. I found this role — <insert_link_to_job> at your company, and I wanted to ask if you will be able to put in a referral for me. Thank you!”
   Be graceful with potential referrers, no one owes you anything, don’t expect a reply.
3. Applying to jobs can be exhausting. It can be unpleasant when you have to fill in your information every time after applying despite having just uploaded your resume with the same information. To simplify this job application process, you can use simplify.jobs to autofill all your job applications.

Recruiter Call

Tips

1. Ask for a complete picture of the interview process so you are aware of the different stages, and topics/areas to focus on.
2. Be kind and respectful with your recruiter, they are your advocate internally.

Behavioural Interview

I have no interview prep resources to share for behavioural questions.

Tips

1. “Tell me about yourself” question: A framework I've used is -
   - a) Introduce yourself (Name and what you do)
   - b) How you got into this career path (nothing too deep, one sentence is enough).
   - c) Past experiences (Where you worked, what you did, and your most significant accomplishment there).
   - d) [Optional] And why you applied to/are a good fit for the role.
2. Learn how to talk about yourself in an interesting way. The only method to practice this is by talking to other people and explaining what you do. Ask people what they do, learn from how they tell their story, and when they return the question, you can use their format or any other ones you’ve practised to tell your story.

Coding Interview

You will have to learn how to code live in front of your interviewer for coding interviews. This is the only way to test algorithmic thinking and knowledge of data structures.

Data Structures and Algorithms are the base of computer science.

Resources

1. My favourite resource to use is Pramp.com: Pramp is a way to have live mock interviews with other people. It is an excellent way to practice your communication skills.
2. I can’t mention coding interviews without mentioning Leetcode and HackerRank. These sites have lots of questions you can practice.
3. Python & JAVA Solutions for Leetcode on Github.
4. And ofcourse, the bible of coding interviews — Cracking The Coding Interview. Great book! Everything you need on coding interviews is in there.

Helpful Youtube Playlists:

1. Cracking the Coding Interview playlist.
2. LeetCode Solutions by Nick White.
3. LeetCode Coding Interview questions by Kevin Naughton Jr.

Tips

1. Practice the art of not jumping straight to solve the problem, ask clarifying questions first, examine all potential edge cases, make sure you can explain your approach before diving into problem solving.
2. A lot of what you do on a job is communicating. “How do you take what’s in your head and bring it to reality?”. Communication is so important that it ranks higher than having a working code solution. It is easy for interviewers to help candidates who clearly state their thought process. Practice your communication skills while solving coding problems.

Systems Design Interview

Resources

1. Article on FreeCodeCamp — Concepts You Should Know for System Design Interview.
2. Youtube videos by Gaurav Sen, Mikhail Smarshchok, and Exponent’s System Design Interview Prep are also good resources to understand the system design interview concepts.

Tips

1. Start simple, you don’t need to start with a complex system. Work your way up to a more complex solution to showcase your true understanding of bottlenecks and then scaling systems.
2. Seek feedback from your interviewer at intervals, don’t make them spell everything out for you, but just to ensure you are on the right path.

Domain-Specific questions

For these kinds of interviews, I do a quick google search for interview questions on the subject. Take, for example, on Linux; I google search “Interview questions on Linux” and study about 2 or 3 quality resulting articles I get.

Interview day

No resources, but my process for having a great day.

I try to incorporate mindful practices in my daily life because of its many benefits. On interview day, a kick it up a notch. It would help if you had all the good vibes and energy coming your way.

Mindful practice helps you get out of your own way.

De-Stress and declutter your mind. Some things I do are: Take a long walk before the interview, superman pose before the interview, meditate, stretch, listen to loud music, etc. Whatever activity you know or do to clear your head will be helpful.

Remember, depending on how your interview goes, you are not any less or any more worthy. Assess any feedback gotten through the process and keep learning.

Offer Negotiation

This stage is crucial even though you are excited about successfully completing the hiring process. It’s not over, and you’ll need to discuss money. It is nerve-racking for many to talk about money; however, you do want to get the best offer possible, so you've got to get comfortable with the uncomfortable.

Resources

1. The best resource I can recommend here is Levels.fyi, which lets you view factual salary information of employees in a company and compare career levels and view compensation packages.
2. A lot of tech folks talk about compensation on TeamBlind. But, you do require to use your company email to sign up.
3. I loved this video by Exponent on How to Negotiate Your Tech Salary with Zaheer Mohiuddin, co-founder of Levels.fyi.

Tips

1. It is prohibited by law in some regions for potential employers to ask for your current salary. When asked, state that you can’t release such information even if it’s not law in your area.

Miscellaneous

1. Article: Random Interview Questions
2. Video: How to Get a Job at the Big 4 — Amazon, Facebook, Google & Microsoft by Sean Lee
3. Builtin: How to find a job.

Thanks for reading so far! WAGMI…

I’ll keep updating this article as I remember more resources or learn new cool ways to nail the job search.