I was contacted by a recruiter who found my profile on LinkedIn, asking me if I was interested in their ITRP program. I said sure, and I had to go through a phone screen, then two weeks later, a highly technical one-hour phone interview, and finally, an on-site interview in Mountain View one month later.

Let me tell you, it was one of the best experiences I have had in my life. No, I didn't get selected, but I had such an amazing experience, I had no doubts that Google would be a fantastic company to work for. Three 45-minute interviews were 1:1, and a 45-minute lunch with an employee-guide was also done, but I don't think that had anything to do with the hiring process. Believe me, these interviews were so conversational and easy-going that time flew so fast. I am normally at a 120 bpm heart rate in interviews, but this was nothing like that. I personally felt like I nailed the interview, but apparently, I didn't, or there were just better people than me (this is Google!).

Google pampers its candidates. I stayed at a very nice hotel, got a neat leather rental car with gas reimbursement, $35/day food reimbursement, and free food and all the beverages I wanted that day, aka Red Bull, lol. After the interview, I went to San Francisco that afternoon since I've never been there, and then in the early evening, I drove down to Pacifica, which is a gorgeous coastal city, and went down a bit along Pacific Coast Highway. Long story short, I'm a huge auto enthusiast, and that is one of the most scenic roads in the U.S., and I still smile months after just thinking about it.

It's all non-disclosure. However, I will say that it is HIGHLY technical in nature, and you may be asked to explain things that you might not be familiar with at all.