Relativity Space

Sr propulsion engineer Interview Experience

November 28, 2022

Neutral ExperienceNo Offer

Process

I applied online, and a friend who works there passed my name on to the hiring manager.

I had one Zoom interview with the lead, followed by a virtual onsite with ~6 people from the team.

I thought it was weird to do a virtual onsite, considering I only live 25 minutes away from the site.

The virtual onsite was back-to-back-to-back Zooms, and I didn't have time to eat lunch. I had to ask a couple of different interviewers to delay the start so that I could refill my water or use the restroom.

I found that the questions they asked more or less asked me to violate an NDA, and I continued to decline to answer questions that I could not legally answer.

I also just got generally not-great vibes from the team.

I saw some of their designs and didn't love it.

Ending my interview day, I couldn't think of a single reason to work at Relativity instead of RocketLab, where I already had an offer.

I'm actually not certain whether or not they wanted to give me an offer, as I knew I wasn't interested in working there.

Questions

What is the application for this design?

Why can't it be XYZ?

What does the rest of the system look like?

Have you ever designed a more complicated component than the one you presented on?

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Interview Statistics

The following metrics were computed from 1 interview experience for the Relativity Space Sr propulsion engineer role in United States.

Success Rate

0%

Pass Rate

Relativity Space's interview process for their Sr propulsion engineer roles in the United States is extremely selective, failing the vast majority of engineers.

Experience Rating

Positive0%

Neutral100%

Negative0%

Candidates reported having mixed feelings for Relativity Space's Sr propulsion engineer interview process in United States.

Relativity Space Work Experiences

Exciting Tech, Growing Industry, Shifting Priorities

Software Engineer • Current Employee

Pros: - Exciting Tech - Talented Employees - Your work has a visible impact - Growing Industry - Watching the new factory come alive is just plain fun - Work/life balance that seems significantly better than at SpaceX from what I can tell

Cons: The start of this year has seen rapidly changing priorities, but I don’t think this will last. These are normal startup growing pains, like changing infrastructure, cutting back on free snacks, and moderate turnover.

Exciting Tech, Growing Industry, Shifting Priorities

Software Engineer • Current Employee

Pros: - Exciting Tech - Talented Employees - Your work has a visible impact - Growing Industry - Watching the new factory come alive is just plain fun - Work/life balance that seems significantly better than at SpaceX from what I can tell

Cons: The start of this year has seen rapidly changing priorities, but I don’t think this will last. These are normal startup growing pains, like changing infrastructure, cutting back on free snacks, and moderate turnover.

One Company, One Vision

Aerospace Engineer • Current Employee

Pros: You're not only designing a launch vehicle from scratch, which is already awesome. You're also shaping the culture and values of the organization as it grows with incredible speed. You also get to develop an entirely new manufacturing platform that will revolutionize the way large aerospace structures are made. All of this cool stuff aside, the reason this company will be successful is because of Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone. They are the reason the culture is awesome and sustainable. They are the reason company leadership is able to put egos aside and focus on achieving goals. They are the reason Relativity is a better place to work than other space startups. They care about their employees, and it really shows.

Cons: Hypergrowth. It's hard to stay ahead of it, and sometimes the leadership falls short on communication. This is only temporary though, and voicing concerns along the way will be met with pragmatic solutions from management, not mere head nods. Benefits, aside from stock options, are average, but they will improve as the company grows and is better positioned to negotiate with providers.

One Company, One Vision

Aerospace Engineer • Current Employee

Pros: You're not only designing a launch vehicle from scratch, which is already awesome. You're also shaping the culture and values of the organization as it grows with incredible speed. You also get to develop an entirely new manufacturing platform that will revolutionize the way large aerospace structures are made. All of this cool stuff aside, the reason this company will be successful is because of Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone. They are the reason the culture is awesome and sustainable. They are the reason company leadership is able to put egos aside and focus on achieving goals. They are the reason Relativity is a better place to work than other space startups. They care about their employees, and it really shows.

Cons: Hypergrowth. It's hard to stay ahead of it, and sometimes the leadership falls short on communication. This is only temporary though, and voicing concerns along the way will be met with pragmatic solutions from management, not mere head nods. Benefits, aside from stock options, are average, but they will improve as the company grows and is better positioned to negotiate with providers.

Great Mission, Great Challenge, Hard Work

Engineering Leader • Current Employee

Pros: Relativity has a clear vision and mission that help keep the work priorities and direction well aligned. Everyone knows what needs to be done to achieve our lofty goals. There is no lack of opportunity for learning, growth, ownership, and decision making. Expectations are high, culture screening is important during interviews and performance reviews, and the talent bar keeps rising. These are all necessary to be successful and achieve our mission, while not falling into the trap of legacy aerospace inefficiencies.

Cons: The only way to achieve such a difficult mission is to have a huge drive to succeed and work really hard. This can lead to a significant level of stress as well as a reduced work/life balance.

Great Mission, Great Challenge, Hard Work

Engineering Leader • Current Employee

Pros: Relativity has a clear vision and mission that help keep the work priorities and direction well aligned. Everyone knows what needs to be done to achieve our lofty goals. There is no lack of opportunity for learning, growth, ownership, and decision making. Expectations are high, culture screening is important during interviews and performance reviews, and the talent bar keeps rising. These are all necessary to be successful and achieve our mission, while not falling into the trap of legacy aerospace inefficiencies.

Cons: The only way to achieve such a difficult mission is to have a huge drive to succeed and work really hard. This can lead to a significant level of stress as well as a reduced work/life balance.

Exciting Tech, Growing Industry, Shifting Priorities

Software Engineer • Current Employee

Pros: - Exciting Tech - Talented Employees - Your work has a visible impact - Growing Industry - Watching the new factory come alive is just plain fun - Work/life balance that seems significantly better than at SpaceX from what I can tell

Cons: The start of this year has seen rapidly changing priorities, but I don’t think this will last. These are normal startup growing pains, like changing infrastructure, cutting back on free snacks, and moderate turnover.

4.0
Exciting Tech, Growing Industry, Shifting Priorities
Software Engineer • Current Employee
Long Beach, CA
April 17, 2023
Pros: - Exciting Tech - Talented Employees - Your work has a visible impact - Growing Industry - Watching the new factory come alive is just plain fun - Work/life balance that seems significantly better than at SpaceX from what I can tell
Cons: The start of this year has seen rapidly changing priorities, but I don’t think this will last. These are normal startup growing pains, like changing infrastructure, cutting back on free snacks, and moderate turnover.

One Company, One Vision

Aerospace Engineer • Current Employee

Pros: You're not only designing a launch vehicle from scratch, which is already awesome. You're also shaping the culture and values of the organization as it grows with incredible speed. You also get to develop an entirely new manufacturing platform that will revolutionize the way large aerospace structures are made. All of this cool stuff aside, the reason this company will be successful is because of Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone. They are the reason the culture is awesome and sustainable. They are the reason company leadership is able to put egos aside and focus on achieving goals. They are the reason Relativity is a better place to work than other space startups. They care about their employees, and it really shows.

Cons: Hypergrowth. It's hard to stay ahead of it, and sometimes the leadership falls short on communication. This is only temporary though, and voicing concerns along the way will be met with pragmatic solutions from management, not mere head nods. Benefits, aside from stock options, are average, but they will improve as the company grows and is better positioned to negotiate with providers.

5.0
One Company, One Vision
Aerospace Engineer • Current Employee
Inglewood, CA
May 14, 2019
Pros: You're not only designing a launch vehicle from scratch, which is already awesome. You're also shaping the culture and values of the organization as it grows with incredible speed. You also get to develop an entirely new manufacturing platform that will revolutionize the way large aerospace structures are made. All of this cool stuff aside, the reason this company will be successful is because of Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone. They are the reason the culture is awesome and sustainable. They are the reason company leadership is able to put egos aside and focus on achieving goals. They are the reason Relativity is a better place to work than other space startups. They care about their employees, and it really shows.
Cons: Hypergrowth. It's hard to stay ahead of it, and sometimes the leadership falls short on communication. This is only temporary though, and voicing concerns along the way will be met with pragmatic solutions from management, not mere head nods. Benefits, aside from stock options, are average, but they will improve as the company grows and is better positioned to negotiate with providers.

Great Mission, Great Challenge, Hard Work

Engineering Leader • Current Employee

Pros: Relativity has a clear vision and mission that help keep the work priorities and direction well aligned. Everyone knows what needs to be done to achieve our lofty goals. There is no lack of opportunity for learning, growth, ownership, and decision making. Expectations are high, culture screening is important during interviews and performance reviews, and the talent bar keeps rising. These are all necessary to be successful and achieve our mission, while not falling into the trap of legacy aerospace inefficiencies.

Cons: The only way to achieve such a difficult mission is to have a huge drive to succeed and work really hard. This can lead to a significant level of stress as well as a reduced work/life balance.

5.0
Great Mission, Great Challenge, Hard Work
Engineering Leader • Current Employee
Long Beach, CA
August 9, 2021
Pros: Relativity has a clear vision and mission that help keep the work priorities and direction well aligned. Everyone knows what needs to be done to achieve our lofty goals. There is no lack of opportunity for learning, growth, ownership, and decision making. Expectations are high, culture screening is important during interviews and performance reviews, and the talent bar keeps rising. These are all necessary to be successful and achieve our mission, while not falling into the trap of legacy aerospace inefficiencies.
Cons: The only way to achieve such a difficult mission is to have a huge drive to succeed and work really hard. This can lead to a significant level of stress as well as a reduced work/life balance.

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