Diegogrc's blog

By Diegogrc, history, 20 months ago, In English

Hello everyone!

I'm reaching out to ask for your help in finding companies that are currently hiring new graduates with a competitive programming background. I recently received news from Google and Meta that they would not be able to extend me an offer due to business reasons, despite having interned at Meta and successfully completing the interview process with Google.

As a recent graduate, I am eager to start my professional career and continue learning and growing. However, given the current economic situation in the US and other countries, finding job openings and securing interviews has been a significant challenge. Additionally, finding sponsors for visas has been another hurdle to overcome.

I have experience working in big tech, having completed four internships at Meta, and I also have a strong background in competitive programming, including two ICPC WF and IOI competitions. I know that this type of profile can be attractive to companies, but I am unsure where to look now.

Thank you all for any assistance you can provide. I understand that many of us are facing similar struggles, but I hope we can all find opportunities to develop professionally and achieve our goals.

UPD:

I just wanted to share some good news and information with the community. Things have now worked out, as I will be joining D.E. Shaw & Co. Thanks for all the help and support of the community during these tough times! It really did helped me a lot pushing through and finding opportunities and just knowing that I was not alone.

I wanted also to mention which companies did end up giving me an opportunity to interview, as I know some of you might also be struggling finding interviews, and you might find something helpful with these companies. The companies that I had interviews with were:

  • D.E. Shaw & Co
  • Citadel
  • Jane Street
  • Square
  • Pinterest
  • Wood Mackenzie
  • QuantCo

Note: This was all between January and May 2023

I hope the best for all the community, and please feel free to reach out if you need any assistance, as I have been trough this process for a couple of months and it was for sure tough and hard on my mental health.

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20 months ago, # |
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20 months ago, # |
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20 months ago, # |
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Have you tried trading companies? I doubt you aren't aware of them, but check here for a subset of them (I know this is for internships, but they all offer new grad positions as well, and don't know how to navigate the full-time data on levels). I think those appreciate CP much more than others, but getting in is pretty competitive.

I also totally recommend making a linkedin account, from my experience, as you grow your network, you'll be contacted by plenty of recruiters regarding at least vaguely interesting opportunities. I know of people with less interesting backgrounds getting good jobs this way. Regarding visa, it's always easier in Europe than the US so consider applying there as well if you feel adventurous.

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    20 months ago, # ^ |
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    Thanks for the reply! I will try it out. I do have a LinkedIn accout, but don't really get contacted by any recruiters. Do you have any pointers on that? Thanks, I really appreciate it. Here is my profile for reference: LinkedIn (also, please feel free to add me :)

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20 months ago, # |
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I suggest to look at the levels.fyi list like another comment reccomended. Some companies that stand out for me are:

1.- D.E. Shaw: I interviewed for an intern position last year, at it seems that they hire international and the interviews are adapted to your CV...for example I told them I was into ICPC and stuff so the interviews were algorithm heavy. Overall the experience interviewing there was good.

2.- Citadel: A friend interviewed there last summer. Interviews focused in algorithms. They hire international (but maybe they are also in recession?).

3.- Huawei: They sponsor ICPC, and they have offices in europe. I interviewed with them this year, and the process was nice, the recruiter knew about ICPC. I don't think they'll pay much, but jobs seem interesting. They hire international and also offer a industrial phd programm that looks nice. Search for their europe research centers.

4.- Lyft (Mexico): They are hiring in mexico, and even though they don't pay as much as a US company, they pay way better than other tech companies here (and they are very flexible on being remote). I interviewed with them this year for an intern position, and it seems they don't care that much about icpc, but interviews shouldn't be hard.

I think this year a lot of companies are in hiring freezes, so it is good opportunity to study a masters, survive on internships, and be more prepared when the next boom happens.

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    20 months ago, # ^ |
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    Thanks for this! I will look into the companies you mentioned! I really appreciate it :)

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Did you have much stuff on your resume outside competitive programming? If so and you don't mind saying, what kind of areas? (I don't really know what I want to do anymore and am looking for ideas)