More politics than Congress
More politics than Congress
Great benefits, surrounded by lots of raw intellect, individual offices. Virtually unlimited resources.
The review process is, in a nutshell, horrible. On small teams, the "curve" approach forces even the most talented engineers to be in the 10% bucket. In the test world, there is little to zero chance of advancing to Senior or Principal from level 59; you most certainly have to leave the company and come back.
Pay is so-so compared to other companies in the Bay Area. The egos you encounter here will boggle your mind. Microsoft hires based on raw intellect and places little to no value on the ability to communicate.
Belief that the best talent should be promoted to leadership. The IC path is very unknown. Extremely political.
Grow your ICs.
Avoid the "old boys' club" mentality.
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Microsoft Interview Experiences
Software Engineer
The interview process was quick. There were three technical rounds: * One with a difficult and picky interviewer. * Two with relatively chill interviewers. The problems were likely LeetCode easy to medium level, with system design questions in
Silicon Engineer
I submitted my application online around fall of 2015 and was contacted a few weeks later for an on-campus interview at my university. At the on-campus interview, I was asked behavioral questions and then tested on: * NAND gate truth table * K-map *
Intern for Test
Microsoft offers excellent interviewing perks. I felt genuinely wined and dined throughout the process. For onsite interviews, they provided ample financial resources to explore the area at no personal cost, which was a pleasant experience. Unfortu
Software Engineer
Mountain View, California, United StatesMay 30, 2025The interview process was quick. There were three technical rounds: * One with a difficult and picky interviewer. * Two with relatively chill interviewers. The problems were likely LeetCode easy to medium level, with system design questions in
Silicon Engineer
Mountain View, California, United StatesFebruary 1, 2016I submitted my application online around fall of 2015 and was contacted a few weeks later for an on-campus interview at my university. At the on-campus interview, I was asked behavioral questions and then tested on: * NAND gate truth table * K-map *
Intern for Test
Mountain View, California, United StatesFebruary 1, 2010Microsoft offers excellent interviewing perks. I felt genuinely wined and dined throughout the process. For onsite interviews, they provided ample financial resources to explore the area at no personal cost, which was a pleasant experience. Unfortu
