Want to work for Google? Here's a glimpse at the interview process
by Steven Payne
Two Google software engineers from the Mountain View headquarters in San Francisco came to UNT Discovery Park this week to share insights with computer science students interested in a future working for the company.
Allen Calderwood, from Virginia Commonwealth University, and UNT alumna Cassie Chin volunteered to travel to Texas and Virginia to find talent for the company and offer new opportunities for budding technical engineers soon to graduate.
"Monday we had two seminars, the first one being a talk about what opportunities are available for juniors, seniors, and master's students, as well as what Google is looking for and how [graduates] can apply," Chin said. "We also did a short presentation on resumes, and how to build a resume. [Tuesday] we did a presentation for freshman and sophomores for Google Internship opportunities, and we also presented over how the interview process at Google works."
The seminar over the interview process drew the most attention, with students working together in groups to work computer science problems similar to ones they might encounter during interviews with Google recruiters. The interview itself is unique because most candidates who apply to Google don't have the means to simply fly or drive to San Fransisco from around the country.
"We want to get the students familiar with what makes them a good candidate, and hopefully, over the coming years, UNT will produce more students that are ready to apply to Google and bring in more engineers," Calderwood said. "Google recognizes that there are great engineers at schools other than ones such as MIT or Harvard. You don't have to go to an Ivy League to be an engineer; every school has its top ten, and I believe that they are definitely just as competitive as other schools, and Google feels that way as well."
Calderwood works as an engineer on the Android phone app, while Chin helps maintain the company's YouTube channel.
"What will happen is that candidates will send in their application for a specific job, and if Google thinks you're someone they'd want to hire, then someone will reach out to you for a phone screening," Chin said. "If you get past that stage, there will be a series of phone interviews, and then you'll be asked for an on-site interview if you're coming full-time. If you're an intern, you might not be required for on-site interviews."
During the phone interview stage, candidates will be connected with the interviewer over Google Docs and solve problems to show their skills during a 45-minute session. Chin and Calderwood explained that Google interviewers try to find out how a candidate thinks, their leadership skills, their role-related knowledge, and their "Googleyness," a unique quality about a person's personality which makes them a fit for the company.
"The main thing I learned was to definitely learn more coding languages," computer science freshman Alexandra Triampol said. "Every good computer science major should always know how to think on their feet and problem solve. I wish I had seen more hands-on activities other than the coding, but that's mainly what being a coder is: knowing how to code."
More information internship opportunities with Google such as Engineering Practicum, Engineering Internship, and Engineering Residency can be found here.
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