Square (Block) $500k offer; Senior Software Engineer Interview Experience 2022
Square is one of the few fintech companies that hasn’t done layoffs recently. I’ve heard good things about the company’s work-life balance and culture, and their interview process didn’t seem Leetcode-heavy, similar to Stripe’s interview experience.
Their initial offer for a senior software engineer was around $500k in total compensation, which is in line with what I’ve seen on levels.fyi.
While the technical portion of the Square interview wasn’t as hard as Two Sigma’s, Square’s interview emphasizes candidates’ ability to demonstrate impact and drive large, cross-functional projects.
Overview
I applied directly on their careers site. The process took around three weeks and consisted of the following steps:
- Recruiter phone screen
- Technical phone interview
- Virtual On-site, which consisted of:
- Pair Programming 1
- Pair Programming 2
- Q&A — Architecture / Design
- Q&A Leadership
- Q&A Past Technical Experience
- Hiring Manager Chat
4. Offer call & Negotiation
Recruiter Phone Screen
The first round was a typical recruiter screen. They asked me why I wanted to leave my current rule and what I was looking for in the next one I took. I made sure I’d be interviewing for Square’s L6 role, which is unique to Square and is the higher end of senior (L5) at Google and Facebook.
Square’s levels and their corresponding expectations are actually public, so I read up on them to ensure I’d be a good fit for the role. You can find them here.
Then I scheduled my technical phone screen, and prepared as much as I could by doing solving Leetcode questions tagged with Square.
Tips:
- Research Square and understand what they do.
- Have an answer for why you want to switch roles (besides “money” or “It’s time to try something new”).
- Be able to answer why Square appeals to you.
- Confirm the level you’re interviewing for.
Technical phone interview
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