GitHub

Staff Software Engineer Interview Experience - San Francisco, California

December 1, 2023

Negative ExperienceNo Offer

Process

In an earlier experience, there were three rounds of interviews after an initial screen, where I was ultimately rejected on account of a disability.

This time around, despite matching numerous skill requirements (90%), the candidate can be rejected due to either being on a blacklist or not meeting equity targets.

Questions

In an earlier interview process, I had a live evaluation where I needed to check out code (Ruby), deploy a GitHub Enterprise Server, and troubleshoot problems. I also made changes to resolve the issues.

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Interview Statistics

The following metrics were computed from 1 interview experience for the GitHub Staff Software Engineer role in San Francisco, California.

Success Rate

0%

Pass Rate

GitHub's interview process for their Staff Software Engineer roles in San Francisco, California is extremely selective, failing the vast majority of engineers.

Experience Rating

Positive0%

Neutral0%

Negative100%

Candidates reported having very negative feelings for GitHub's Staff Software Engineer interview process in San Francisco, California.

GitHub Work Experiences

Decent comp for remote

Staff Software Engineer • Former Employee

San Francisco, California, United States

Pros: Remote work is the norm, having a big impact on millions of developers.

Cons: The average GitHub developer is decent, but not as consistently good as at other tech companies I've worked for. There are some pockets of extremely competent engineers, though. Currently trying to figure out their AI strategy, and both product and management seem to change directions weekly.

Decent comp for remote

Staff Software Engineer • Former Employee

San Francisco, California, United States

Pros: Remote work is the norm, having a big impact on millions of developers.

Cons: The average GitHub developer is decent, but not as consistently good as at other tech companies I've worked for. There are some pockets of extremely competent engineers, though. Currently trying to figure out their AI strategy, and both product and management seem to change directions weekly.

Great place to work

Staff Software Engineer • Current Employee

Seattle, Washington, United States

January 7, 2022

Pros: - Trust by default - Helpful colleagues - Supportive leadership

Cons: - Not very aggressive in shipping

Great place to work

Staff Software Engineer • Current Employee

Seattle, Washington, United States

January 7, 2022

Pros: - Trust by default - Helpful colleagues - Supportive leadership

Cons: - Not very aggressive in shipping

Good Balance, Frequent Reorgs

Software Engineer • Current Employee

San Francisco, California, United States

September 16, 2025

Pros: Good work-life balance in the company.

Cons: A lot of reorg occurs.

Good Balance, Frequent Reorgs

Software Engineer • Current Employee

San Francisco, California, United States

September 16, 2025

Pros: Good work-life balance in the company.

Cons: A lot of reorg occurs.

Decent comp for remote

Staff Software Engineer • Former Employee

San Francisco, California, United States

Pros: Remote work is the norm, having a big impact on millions of developers.

Cons: The average GitHub developer is decent, but not as consistently good as at other tech companies I've worked for. There are some pockets of extremely competent engineers, though. Currently trying to figure out their AI strategy, and both product and management seem to change directions weekly.

4.0
Decent comp for remote
Staff Software Engineer • Former Employee
San Francisco, California, United States
April 15, 2025
Pros: Remote work is the norm, having a big impact on millions of developers.
Cons: The average GitHub developer is decent, but not as consistently good as at other tech companies I've worked for. There are some pockets of extremely competent engineers, though. Currently trying to figure out their AI strategy, and both product and management seem to change directions weekly.

Great place to work

Staff Software Engineer • Current Employee

Seattle, Washington, United States

January 7, 2022

Pros: - Trust by default - Helpful colleagues - Supportive leadership

Cons: - Not very aggressive in shipping

5.0
Great place to work
Staff Software Engineer • Current Employee
Seattle, Washington, United States
January 7, 2022
Pros: - Trust by default - Helpful colleagues - Supportive leadership
Cons: - Not very aggressive in shipping

Good Balance, Frequent Reorgs

Software Engineer • Current Employee

San Francisco, California, United States

September 16, 2025

Pros: Good work-life balance in the company.

Cons: A lot of reorg occurs.

5.0
Good Balance, Frequent Reorgs
Software Engineer • Current Employee
San Francisco, California, United States
September 16, 2025
Pros: Good work-life balance in the company.
Cons: A lot of reorg occurs.

GitHub Interview Questions

Ugly Number

Determine if a given positive integer is an ugly number. Ugly numbers are defined as positive numbers whose prime factors are limited to 2, 3, and 5.

Set Mismatch

You are given a set of numbers that originally contained all numbers from 1 to n. However, due to an error, one number is duplicated and another is missing. Find both the duplicated and missing numbers.

ArraysBit Manipulation

Determine if a Cell Is Reachable at a Given Time

You're at a starting cell and want to reach a target cell in a given amount of time. Can you reach the destination in the allotted time, considering you can move in any of the eight directions?

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