Process
My experience of my first interview with Rakuten Mobile: I submitted my open ES file and received an interview notification at the end of May. The interview was processed through Skype and took 10 minutes. All questions were in Japanese.
Questions
- Self-introduction
- Why Rakuten?
- What are your pros and cons?
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Interview Statistics
The following metrics were computed from 59 interview experiences for the Rakuten Software Engineer role in Japan.
Success Rate
31%
Pass Rate
Rakuten's interview process for their Software Engineer roles in Japan is fairly selective, failing a large portion of engineers who go through it.
Experience Rating
Positive46%
Neutral41%
Negative14%
Candidates reported having very good feelings for Rakuten's Software Engineer interview process in Japan.
Rakuten Work Experiences
2.0
Good for average people; real talent will have a tough time thriving here
Software Engineer • Former Employee
Tokyo, Japan
July 12, 2015
Pros: As an engineer, I was disappointed that the more interesting people in this company tend to be in the business unit.
This is not a great place to learn for us.
One positive thing though: Not many Japanese companies can afford to get Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, or Oxbridge grads with good connections from abroad. So for a Japanese company, Rakuten has done well in this area (largely due to its relative fame).
Cons: Sadly, all the top talent are treated in the same way or worse than average employees. So, even my Princeton "douki" (colleague) for example, is doing stupid tasks and never given the opportunity to show what she can bring from outside. This is the bad thing about Japanese culture.
3.0
Depends on the team, bad upper management
Software Engineer • Current Employee
Tokyo, Japan
June 16, 2020
Pros: - Free lunch
- International culture experience
Cons: - Poor inter-team communication
- Slow pace
- Horrible upper management
3.0
Friendly But Rigid Team
Software Engineer • Former Employee
Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
July 12, 2025
Pros: Friendly environment and focus on the goal.
Cons: It should adopt more Western culture for flexibility.
- 2.0Good for average people; real talent will have a tough time thriving hereSoftware Engineer • Former EmployeeTokyo, JapanJuly 12, 2015Pros: As an engineer, I was disappointed that the more interesting people in this company tend to be in the business unit. This is not a great place to learn for us. One positive thing though: Not many Japanese companies can afford to get Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, or Oxbridge grads with good connections from abroad. So for a Japanese company, Rakuten has done well in this area (largely due to its relative fame).Cons: Sadly, all the top talent are treated in the same way or worse than average employees. So, even my Princeton "douki" (colleague) for example, is doing stupid tasks and never given the opportunity to show what she can bring from outside. This is the bad thing about Japanese culture.
- 3.0Depends on the team, bad upper managementSoftware Engineer • Current EmployeeTokyo, JapanJune 16, 2020Pros: - Free lunch - International culture experienceCons: - Poor inter-team communication - Slow pace - Horrible upper management
- 3.0Friendly But Rigid TeamSoftware Engineer • Former EmployeeTokyo, Tokyo, JapanJuly 12, 2025Pros: Friendly environment and focus on the goal.Cons: It should adopt more Western culture for flexibility.
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