Interview at Facebook (non-engineer position) - Part 1: The process

If you are interested in technology companies, then you might already know that Facebook is one of the best places to work. As a result, getting a job at Facebook is not a usual thing. A common thing when you google about "interview at Facebook" is that the results are mostly for engineering roles. How about non-engineer positions? I heard you, because I was just like you: struggled to find hints about non-engineer hiring process.

Hence, I am writing this piece to share with you about my experience when interviewing at Facebook. I have interviewed for roles at following locations (some successes, a lot of failures):
- Facebook HQ (Menlo Park, CA, USA)
- Facebook Dublin (Ireland)
- Facebook Singapore

To be specific and accurate, I will share about my most recent experience when interviewing at Facebook Singapore. By the time you finish reading this first part of "The process", I want you to be able to answer the following questions:
- Where do I search for FB job listings?
- What does "abc" mean in the job description? Is it a must or an optional?
- What is the process like?
- How many rounds does it take?
- How long is it?

The main site for job search at Facebook is https://www.facebook.com/careers/. You can filter and narrow down your opportunities there. If it is there, then it is still available.

The job listing is no more available so I copied a similar one here FYI: https://www.facebook.com/careers/jobs/a0I1200000LSvn8EAD/. The role that I applied for has the same duties, yet for Vietnamese language.

It is quite straight forward: minimum = must, preferred = optional YET good-to-have. Please keep in mind that this workplace is very very competitive, as many candidates would apply for underqualified roles too. Some Master's graduates or experienced professionals would kill to take entry-level roles. Yes, it is THAT competitive. My suggestion is to not waste your time to apply if you can't answer "Yes" to the Preferred Qualifications.

Once you have targeted a/some role(s) that your qualifications would make FB want you, then you can go ahead to the application process.
There are mainly two ways: apply directly on the website OR get yourself an employee referral. The myth of "Employee referral = better chance" is busted. The truth is, "Employee referral = faster process". In other words, the results would come the same either way, but their waiting time is very different. I will talk more about this in Part 2.

I have counted days to come up with the process timeline as following (please keep in mind that it could differ from cases to cases, but this is the approximate basic timeline):

===Process timeline===

1. Get referral (day 0)

2. Phone screen with recruiter (day 7 - this could be at day 30 or 60 for applying directly on the website without any referrals)

3. Interview with Team member OR Team leader (day 8)

4. On-site interviews: 3-6 interviews with Department leader and Team leaders (day 15)

5. Reference check (day 16-20)

6. Get verbal offer (day 23)

7. Sign written offer (day 27)

8. Background check (day 28 - day 34)

Most of roles would take 3 big dates for you to remember: no.2, 3 and 4 from the above list. Number 3 is usually done via video call. Number 4 could be done via video call or in-person (I have experienced both). The length of each interview is about 30 minutes: 20 minutes of them asking and 5-10 minutes for your own questions. Hence, the on-site interviews could take up to 3-3.5hr of total duration. Yes, you will have a break on the big date, of course.

If you make it to the on-site interviews in-person, then FB will take care of your travel expenses and meal expenses. Isn't it nice? At this point, it is already very impressive for candidates.
During your process, the recruiter will be your main point of contact. Be honest and transparent with your recruiter because s/he is there to help the company get the best fit, and to help you get the best outcome at the end.

As this could be a life-changing event, you will need some more materials for the preparation. I will take you deeper about my preparation in my next piece: Part 2 - Preparation and Execution. It would cover the following questions:
- How does my resume (cv) respond to the job description? (highlighted tips for Vietnamese professionals)
- How do I get a referral application?
- Where do I find out about salary?
- Questions in interviews?
- Difference between reference check vs background check?

Stay tuned and be humble! :)