Pros: I found Microsoft to be a safe, supportive place to work. Everyone knows their job and sticks to it. People shouldn't take this for granted because in other places, sometimes even your job description and/or expectations are ambiguous. The benefits are great, especially free health care. I always felt like my managers and peers had my best interest and my career advancement in mind, right up alongside the team's success. I believe that MS is a company of integrity, one that supports great causes and supports the employee as far as possible. There is always someone to learn from or some piece of technology to learn about right there in-house. So, learning and mentorship opportunities are both plentiful.

Cons: You can gain quite a bit of weight from the free drinks, affordable lunches, and frequent summer morale get-togethers. So, while all of the above is good, you need to take advantage of your ProClub pass. The only other downside I can think of, and I am really struggling, is that you can easily get so comfortable at Microsoft that you never ever leave. I have felt like this and spoken with others who have to force themselves to see other career options/moves. It's hard to give up Microsoft's benefits and stable work environment, but having a diverse resume is also very important.

Pros: The technical people here are exceptional. I've worked with leaders and pioneers in my field much earlier in my career than I could have hoped to. I also like the breadth of products that Microsoft builds, so the freedom to move from product to product as my career grows is valuable to me. My coworkers across the company are also a great resource. I've learned a lot about several Microsoft products in great depth thanks to help from my coworkers. The perks are also great: * Free health care * A great gym membership * Lots of paid time off * And of course living in the Pacific Northwest.

Cons: The work-life balance is totally random. Some weeks/months I'll be able to do whatever I want, but some months I'll work 80+ hour weeks a few weeks in a row. Management attempts to fix this, but I've seen the pattern of poor planning saved by last-minute heroics a few times now. We also have a tendency to get out of touch with reality. Not everyone in the real world has a quad-core computer with 8GB of RAM and fast internet at home, but we get lulled into making that assumption because everyone we know here has all that stuff.

Pros: Good benefits, good work-life balance, which the company stresses.

Cons: Unless your project is high priority, it's hard to make an impact. Most of the people that I worked with have families to take care of, so there is really no socializing with your coworkers in my case. When I first started, I thought I could make a difference, but looking back, I barely scratched the surface.