I've been rejected by Google, Amazon, Uber, the D. E. Shaw group, Airbnb and Adobe. Despite mastering all the basic algorithms that I needed and watching YouTube videos to see how people were getting interviews and job offers, I wasn't getting calls — just rejection emails.
Shortlisting yourself for a job interview is a skill. In the past, it was possible for hiring managers to go through all the applications manually. But in 2023, that's not possible. That's why companies use software in their applicant tracking systems (ATSs) — in other words, the computer programs used to manage the hiring process. I realized that the keywords I had used in my applications didn't match the companies' requirements, so no one was hiring me.
The right keywords include the company's desired skills and requirements, and candidates who use them get on the shortlist. Then, they need to justify those skills. If candidates match the requirements of the company, they'll get an interview call.
I experimented with this. I made mistakes, but I learned from them. In the end, I managed to get job or internship offers from nearly all the companies that had previously rejected me. Now, I am an analyst for Goldman Sachs in Warsaw, Poland.
Unfinished business
The only company I haven't cracked yet is Google. It's very hard to get an interview at Google India. They focus on how neatly and quickly you can code. Out of a thousand applicants, only five or six get an interview.
I got my first Google interview by sending emails to 30 to 40 recruiters a day, but I had just seven days to prepare. I passed the first two rounds, and then it was time for the on-site interview. All of the technical rounds went well, but in the behavioural round, one of my answers included the word "surrender", which had been blacklisted by Google, so the hiring committee didn't move forward with my application.
I haven't given up, however. I'll be interviewing with Google again this year. If you set yourself big goals, you'll achieve a lot while working towards them. The offers I've received so far have kept me motivated.
Now, I help people prepare for job interviews through CS for All, a company I founded last year to connect recruiters and candidates through a more seamless hiring process. I run sessions during which I explain to candidates how to get guaranteed interview calls. After these sessions, participants have got interviews and job offers from big companies, like Tesla and JPMorgan Chase. Sharing my knowledge has boosted my confidence, improved my communication skills and helped me to eliminate fear. And now, I can use the things I have learned from my failures to help others to achieve their goals. Failure really can pave the way to success.