Pros: So I got hired by SpaceX and it is absolutely surreal. With the current economic outlook for new grads, there's lots of uncertainty about getting a job at all, let alone a job at what I would consider hands down to be the most desirable engineering company to work at in the world today. The company is expanding at a blistering pace and adding to their product capabilities and portfolio at a weekly cadence, so you get the sense that you're still in the early days of an already large company that is on pace to become an absolute corporate behemoth of the 22nd century. Needless to say, that only happens if you do your part to make it happen. At least on my team, even engineers fresh out of college are given incredible amounts of scope and ownership, almost equivalent to a management role given the ratio of outside contractors to SpaceX engineers. Moreover, the bureaucracy is light and knowledge is gatekept as little as possible, so if you have something novel that you want to contribute, I definitely feel that there's opportunity to do that if you can balance it with your official duties. People tell horror stories about the work life balance here, but that varies from site to site (Starbase is intense but typically compensated accordingly, while other sites are as a rule not this intense all the time), and whether you're on the "critical path" in which case you're expected to do what it takes to accelerate the project timeline. However, if you're trying to get away with working as little as possible, this company is probably not for you anyways since it generally attracts people who like to go above and beyond in their careers. In terms of dress code, lack of HR overreach, and general atmosphere however, SpaceX has a fun culture in opposition to the work commitment. Apply, apply, apply, if you are an engineer or want to be one, I encourage you to rush to apply at this company. You don't have to have an aerospace background for roles that don't genuinely require one (and there are plenty of non-engineering corporate roles that have similar ownership and plenty of blue-collar roles that get paid extra for the extra time they put in).

Cons: Dream company and dream job. No complaints from me.

Pros: The work is awesome and the people are brilliant.

Cons: Lots of work that can get stressful at times.

Pros: Engineers have the final say. This company has a great culture of finding and following the truth, taking accountability, and picking things because they are the best. The big picture is very exciting, and you are surrounded by others who are all excited to push the boundaries of rocket technology. You get to work with some of the leading experts in aerospace on projects that have never been done before. Good pay fresh out of college. Employee stock awards provide incentives for individuals to improve the company.

Cons: Management does not care about you. They care about the work getting done at all costs. A team's best individual contributors are the ones promoted to managers. These are usually the people worst suited to managing others. Managers range from enthusiastic but inexperienced, to incompetent. It's not a sustainable workplace. Most people are here for under 2 years. To make it here longer than 5 years, you have to be a little crazy. Long hours, but I assume you already knew that. Your experience here will depend entirely on your manager. Some teams are very relaxed, have good management, and have fun. Often the teams working with the government are this way (Dragon, Starshield, HLS). The teams driven entirely by internal pressure are the worst (Starship mainline, user terminal, etc.) They give performance bonuses in the form of stocks that vest over the next few years, and they WILL try to cheat you out of them. I was fired due to performance reasons when a brand new manager came in, and they let me go 2 weeks before the bonus I had earned a year ago vested. This is not unheard of, and I know of several others who were treated the same way.