Process
If you want to work at Tesla, you need to be persistent. I applied numerous times after graduating college in 2010. I interviewed twice before the third attempt, which finally resulted in an offer. Knowing someone who works there will help you get noticed by hiring managers. Everyone is extremely busy, so don't take it personally if they say they will call you the next day and it ends up being the next week. It's nothing personal; people are just very, very busy.
The interview and hiring process:
- Spoke with the recruiter and set up a phone interview with a senior engineer.
- Interview with a senior engineer. If you know what you are talking about, then this should be enjoyable. They are getting a first glance at your personality and technical prowess, so be honest and don't try to embellish.
- Spoke with the recruiter and set up an on-site interview a couple of hours after the phone interview. The time between the phone interview and the on-site was less than a week.
- On-site interview: This was a really cool experience for me. I interviewed with two engineers and two managers. Again, it's not hard if you know what you are talking about. If you don't know the answer to a question, say so. Honesty is a good trait. Also, I'm really into EVs, so I think I asked about 80% of the questions, which put my mind at ease and gave them a good idea of where I was technically. Be totally transparent.
- Contingent offer about a week later.
- Essays for Elon: You need to write up three projects that you have done for Elon to review. Be honest and do not embellish. In retrospect, this was a lot of fun.
- Background check.
- Onboarding process.
The whole process was a great experience.
Questions
It wasn't the typical uncomfortable interview across a table; it was more of a conversation. Tesla isn't a typical vertical organization, and its mindset is similar to Google's. They want people who have the tech skills (tons of people), but personality plays a huge role.
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Interview Statistics
The following metrics were computed from 7 interview experiences for the Tesla Engineer role in Fremont, California.
Success Rate
14%
Pass Rate
Tesla's interview process for their Engineer roles in Fremont, California is extremely selective, failing the vast majority of engineers.
Experience Rating
Positive57%
Neutral14%
Negative29%
Candidates reported having very good feelings for Tesla's Engineer interview process in Fremont, California.
Tesla Work Experiences
3.0
Stagnant start-up
Engineer • Current Employee
Fremont, California, United States
June 5, 2025
Pros: Great health benefits and perks.
Cons: HR has made it more difficult to internally promote. Performance review scores have changed, and promotions are rarer now.
5.0
Competitive Company, High Workload
Engineer • Current Employee
Fremont, California, United States
September 16, 2025
Pros: This is a competitive company.
Cons: Workload can be high, depending on the team.
1.0
Heading for a fall
Engineer • Former Employee
Fremont, California, United States
November 27, 2016
Pros: Cool technology, cool CEO. Other engineers are sharp and very nice/great to work with. Prestigious. All the walking around the big plant keeps you in shape.
Cons: Management, management, management. Normally, when you say someone is crazy, it’s a figure of speech. But many of us think that my boss is clinically mentally ill, and his boss isn’t much better (at least neurotic).
And there was another manager who was just evil, his face always like a stone, attacking/destroying people right and left (usually new employees who didn’t know enough yet to defend themselves).
Pay is the lowest in the valley. I hadn’t been paid this little since the late 90s.
The company has the highest turnover rate of any company I’ve ever seen. It’s hard to find people who have been there more than a year or so. You can never decompress/relax/reenergize because your boss will be e-mailing you evenings and weekends, expecting an immediate response. You always have to be "on."
Tesla had to commandeer part of the cafeteria full-time to hold the continuing string of interviews needed to counter the stream of people leaving. With all their job listings, I’d always thought they must be expanding like crazy, but it’s actually just to compensate for the turnover.
Tesla’s business model appears to be this:
* Continue building the mystique of the Tesla/Elon Musk name as a lure.
* Hire people only from out of state (I almost never came across anyone who was from California) who are not aware of how expensive the Bay Area is or how low their new higher salary is relative to the cost of living.
* Once they’re here, work them huge hours because you have them in the “golden handcuffs” of having to pay back their relocation costs if they leave within two years.
* After two years, you have to replace them, but you got two years of 60-hour weeks from a top person at a low price.
Noted short seller Jim Chanos is shorting Tesla, saying that the exodus of executives strongly correlates with companies that are heading for a crash. I know firsthand that they spend massively on projects in their factory that make no economic sense, justifying it by saying, “This will look so cool on the tour route!” Shades of the dot-com bubble, circa 1999…
- 3.0Stagnant start-upEngineer • Current EmployeeFremont, California, United StatesJune 5, 2025Pros: Great health benefits and perks.Cons: HR has made it more difficult to internally promote. Performance review scores have changed, and promotions are rarer now.
- 5.0Competitive Company, High WorkloadEngineer • Current EmployeeFremont, California, United StatesSeptember 16, 2025Pros: This is a competitive company.Cons: Workload can be high, depending on the team.
- 1.0Heading for a fallEngineer • Former EmployeeFremont, California, United StatesNovember 27, 2016Pros: Cool technology, cool CEO. Other engineers are sharp and very nice/great to work with. Prestigious. All the walking around the big plant keeps you in shape.Cons: Management, management, management. Normally, when you say someone is crazy, it’s a figure of speech. But many of us think that my boss is clinically mentally ill, and his boss isn’t much better (at least neurotic). And there was another manager who was just evil, his face always like a stone, attacking/destroying people right and left (usually new employees who didn’t know enough yet to defend themselves). Pay is the lowest in the valley. I hadn’t been paid this little since the late 90s. The company has the highest turnover rate of any company I’ve ever seen. It’s hard to find people who have been there more than a year or so. You can never decompress/relax/reenergize because your boss will be e-mailing you evenings and weekends, expecting an immediate response. You always have to be "on." Tesla had to commandeer part of the cafeteria full-time to hold the continuing string of interviews needed to counter the stream of people leaving. With all their job listings, I’d always thought they must be expanding like crazy, but it’s actually just to compensate for the turnover. Tesla’s business model appears to be this: * Continue building the mystique of the Tesla/Elon Musk name as a lure. * Hire people only from out of state (I almost never came across anyone who was from California) who are not aware of how expensive the Bay Area is or how low their new higher salary is relative to the cost of living. * Once they’re here, work them huge hours because you have them in the “golden handcuffs” of having to pay back their relocation costs if they leave within two years. * After two years, you have to replace them, but you got two years of 60-hour weeks from a top person at a low price. Noted short seller Jim Chanos is shorting Tesla, saying that the exodus of executives strongly correlates with companies that are heading for a crash. I know firsthand that they spend massively on projects in their factory that make no economic sense, justifying it by saying, “This will look so cool on the tour route!” Shades of the dot-com bubble, circa 1999…
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