Was reached out to directly from a recruiter, received an interview the following week. The interview itself was fine, however my issue is with how the recruiter followed back up with me. I was sent an email 2 weeks later (!!) after radio silence from the recruiter who wrote: “I hope this message finds you well. The reason for my outreach today is to provide you with an update on your application, and ask for any referrals in User Experience that you may know. Unfortunately we are not able to move forward with your application at this time but you can still apply for other roles after 12 months. Our team is looking at our top talent (that’s you), and asking if they know anyone who would be interested in starting their journey with Google. We are looking for people just like you for our team. YES, Google is still hiring!!!! We would be absolutely thrilled for you to send us anyone you know that has a skillset just like you! I look forward to connecting with you soon!” This email is so tone-deaf and insulting- Google is looking for “people just like me” to hire but clearly, didn’t want to hire the person who’s most like me: myself. I’m so annoyed and insulted by the incompetence of this email- it makes me want to not work at Google or recommend anyone I know work there.

I was first contacted by a recruiter for a phone screening, and then followed-up with a technical interview about a week later. I had prepared for a week for this technical interview, but I suppose I did not prepare well enough? I was asked questions I found very difficult to understand and follow along-- I had asked the interviewer several times to repeat what they had said. I also found the interviewer to be a tad unprofessional: demeaning facial expressions and clear frustration in their voice. It was honestly humiliating. I know that I'm qualified for this role, but truly this interview took me by surprise and I did not perform my best. Maybe next time.