+1000% Even doing all the LC problems tagged Meta is severely missing the point. It can work for some people if you get a little lucky, but the interviews are not about doing LC.
I worked at Meta for 8 years, did 400+ interviews, and helped craft the Product Architecture style type.
I wouldn't be disappointed but I would also reset how you prepare for the real deal.
Being "close" doesn't count much at Meta because they are looking for "clean thinking". This is also why they do whiteboard-style interviews still instead of compiled code. If your process is muddled and jumpy then being close won't matter. If you haven't seen a problem, get a little lost and take a long timer, you can still pass by having clean and clear thinking and getting a reasonable solution out. You own't pass by scrambling and jumping around to a half baked optimal one.
u/Mindrust wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
As a former meta engineer, do you have any tips in terms of how of preparation strategy?
Currently I have scheduled some pramp mock interviews to get used to talking out loud about problems and having to solve them under time constraints, as well as reviewing problems in the are
u/michaelnovatireplied·★ FEATURED
Talking out loud and whiteboarding-style prep are two big ones to practice, that is very different from crushing through LC problems in your room alone.
This is very bias and not meant to be an ad at all, but I highly recommend following a "problem solving process" rather than just trying to solve a problem based on ones you've seen before. This is the one I helped create: [https://formation.dev/blog/the-engineering-method/](https://formation.dev/blog/the-engineering-method/) <- I'm commenting here as an individual and not on behalf of my company
There's always a chance you'll get a new problem and you don't want to fail the interview because you spent 6 months memorizing a list. Not only that Meta doesn't want those people, they want people who can solve problems. The same approach works with Google interviews as well.
Finally, SD and the technical behavioral round are also important and have their own strategies too, but one step at a time.
u/Educational-Match133 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
I'm a bit skeptical of this. I can pretty much guarantee you that if a candidate exhibits "clear thinking" then it means they have seen that question before or seen a question like it. "muddled and jumpy" is how every human being thinks when they are presented with a genuinely
u/michaelnovatireplied·
I mean it depends on your interviewer. Really seasoned and calibrated interviewers have ways to identify this. It's pattern matching.
Less calibrated interviewers might be less good at this.
Interviewer experience is taken into account in the packet review.
u/agassi_123 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Hi Michael - Curious why this formation.dev is not available in the UK? Is it more from a financing/payment based perspective?. I still have US based credit cards but wondering if my current location would still prevent me from access?
u/michaelnovatireplied·
You can join via subscription and we'll consider it case by case depending on your experience and job prospects. There isn't a strict reason but we only want to accept that people we are confident we can help and give you a return on investment.
Feel free to ping me your LinkedIn and I can give more personalized advice.
u/Educational-Match133 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
I think you are underestimating the extent to which all human being use pattern matching to solve every problem.
u/michaelnovatireplied·· edited
I mean my day job is helping people get FAANG offers and we have a very high Meta placement rate right now. There are a ton of nuances beyond what I can quickly comment in a post but I stand by "clean solution" is the ultimate complement in a Meta interview.
u/No-Response3675 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Hi there! Just wanted to let you know that the link to fellowship is broken.
u/michaelnovatireplied·
Thanks!
u/RandomName200012 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Do you have any tips / advice on prepping?
u/michaelnovatireplied·
My common 3 tips are:
1. Practice whiteboard style - Don't rely on executing the code to test it. you have to be able to explain why the code works and what its performance is just by walking through it.
2. practice talking out loud - ideally with other people around to go feedback but you can also record yourself.
3. follow some kind of problem solving method. I shared one somewhere else on this thread but this isn't rocket science. the hard part is just diligently under pressure following a method that forces you to consistently complete problems. So when you're nervous and there's lots of pressure, maybe there's a twist on the problem we haven't seen before. if you can take a deep breath and follow a consistent problem solving method, there's a much higher chance that you'll pass and a much lower chance that you'll completely bomb the interview.
u/Zajimavy wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
I'm curious, what's the benefit to formation over a site like interviewing.io?
u/michaelnovatireplied·★ FEATURED
Very different things. I think we are somewhat competitive but we're more directly competitive with Interview Kickstart than Interviewing.io.
**Interviewing.io:**
- Good to do one or two interviews if you have an upcoming interview and have no idea if you are prepared
- Good for benchmarking - you know how close to the bar you are.
- Okay/but less good at levelling up - you can buy interview packages and get 1-1 feedback, but it's limited to coaching sessions and there isn't day to day or broader job hunting support
- Not good if you need 5+ mocks with senior people as the cost will be closer to Formation cost and Formation gives you a ton more value.
**Formation:**
- Ultimate goal - get you the highest chance of passing top tier interviews and identifying and getting you whatever mentorship and practice you need to get there
- Very broad coverage - DS&A, SD, technical behavioral, resume, job hunt support, negotiation, unlimited mock interviews, all included in the cost.
- The downside is you rely on us to set your schedule: sessions, practice, mocks, etc... when we think you need them (and make adjustments based on what you think you need). So you can't just do 1000 mocks because you want to, you have to rely on our judgement for when you need specific mocks, and practice and trust our assessment of how you are doing relative to the top tier bar
- Dedicated team of 3 staff members to monitor your progress, support, assign you things, handle logistics and make adjustments
- Generally speaking, Formation is good if your job timeline is flexible because everyone takes different amounts of time to get ready. You show up and we figure out where you are at skills-wise and we get you to the top tier bar, and then encourage you to interview. So if you have a hard/fixed interview date, then we get you the best prepared possible, but can't guarantee you'll be at that bar by then. I still think it's a good deal to do it for 1 month - give it 110% to prepare for fixed interviews and get as prepared as possible - compared to other options.
Happy to answer more questions, easier to go back and forth than write a monologue lol.
u/Zajimavy wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Really appreciate the detailed response. I used interviewing.io back at the start of covid and moved into a company that's a tier or so below faang, paying probably 80% of faang.
I'm starting to slowly ramp up my search and have considered using another service with the goal o
u/michaelnovatireplied·★ FEATURED
Whole range, canonical E4 (FAANG mid)/E5 (FAANG senior) is the most common, skewing E4. The most senior placement was a FAANG staff level. In the current market the majority of people who have joined in the past few months are high mid or senior as well.
This is an example of a more senior person and hopefully we'll have some public examples soon (a couple of people right in that 6 to 8 year bucket who got senior Meta roles): [https://formation.dev/blog/success-story-mike-clarke/](https://formation.dev/blog/success-story-mike-clarke/)
The mentors range as well. We have those super senior managers and principal engineers - generally for specific 1-1 mocks. And we have more mid level mentors that run small groups sessions who are really good at coaching or specific technical topics.
In comparing to [Interviewing.io](http://Interviewing.io) - we want the equivalent of those "expensive" mocks to be only when you need them and we want you to trust us when we think you need them. You don't need a director to mentor you on Linked Lists, but you do need them to help you with the hiring manager interview.
u/Alone_Barnacle7940 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Hi Michael,
Should I add/message you on LinkedIn or apply on the formation site? Former IBMer laid off a year ago, now at a healthcare company but looking to get back into tech
u/michaelnovatireplied·
I would recommend applying, complete the post application benchmark, and then ping me so I can then follow up and help make sure our team looks at your application.
u/Sneha12we wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
My system design interview is scheduled with meta. Have someone recently attended it? Or any suggestions?
u/michaelnovatireplied·
Yeah, SD is a challenging interview at Meta, my 3 common tips are:
1. Start by asking a lot of questions, collecting requirements, and drawing a block diagram
2. For each piece you dive into, always discussion at least 2 options and their pros and cons, even if one is much better than the others
3. A good interview is a natural conversation back and forth. Don't just present a monologue.
u/Sneha12we wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
I'm interviewing for E5 level, could you please suggest some topics?
u/michaelnovatireplied·
The topics and questions aren't a secret and you can find them by just Googling. It's good to watch a bunch of practice interviews, but it takes a lot of practice to get really ready for SD and don't try to just prepare answers for specific problems.
If that's what you want, you didn't read my advice :D