Interview Structure:

• 30-minute Screening Call with Recruiter
• 45-minute Experience Call with Engineering Manager
• 6.5-hour Virtual On-Site:
  • 15-minute A/V Check
  • 15-minute Intro with Manager
  • 45-minute Principles
  • 45-minute Coding Exercise 1
  • 45-minute Lunch Break
  • 45-minute Architecture Exercise
  • 45-minute Culture
  • 45-minute Coding Exercise 2
  • 15-minute Outro

My Experience:

I had my final round, virtual on-site interview in April 2023. My interview experience up to that point was entirely positive, albeit challenging and a large time commitment. From my perspective, I left the final round interview feeling like I had done well, and several interviewers told me so themselves.

The following week, I had a call with an Engineering Manager and another call with my recruiter. In these calls, I was told that the company and hiring team "really wants to make me an offer," but could not because they had to finish the interview process with other candidates first. My recruiter informed me this could take 3 to 4 weeks.

Due to what was communicated to me, I was under the impression that I would receive an offer after this period, so I agreed to wait. I followed up with my recruiter regularly to re-express my interest and ask for any updates.

This potential offer was re-iterated to me in phrases like "...you're still top of mind for whenever we can finally pull the trigger" and "I really hope something will break right soon." This communication continued for 3 months to the beginning of July.

As I informed the recruiters and interviewers, I was unemployed during this time, so I denied other potential employment opportunities and income because of my commitment to this opportunity with Discord. However, after 3 months, I ultimately accepted an offer of employment with another company, despite Discord being my top choice and the potential offer from Discord still on the table.

While I am grateful to have been strongly considered for this role, this whole experience following my final round interview has been very bad. I held Discord in high regard through the application and interview process. Working at Discord was a dream of mine.

Unfortunately, this experience has negatively skewed my feelings toward Discord. Obviously, I wish the company could have made me an offer soon after my final round interview. However, in this situation, I think an unemployed individual would be better off being rejected with valuable feedback soon after the final round interview, instead of being slowly dragged along, unemployed, for several months with hints of a potential offer yet little explanation for the delay.

Nonetheless, I grew and learned a lot through this experience, and I hope this feedback is valuable to you.

What technical features did you contribute in your last roles?

How did you engineer them?