How to score a great software job in companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon in India

Replies

• 

  Kaustubh Katdare

  Welcome to CE, #-Link-Snipped-# . I think there are two points that need to be addressed. First - you aren't at any disadvantage being in India. If you want to do something for the world using software, have a look at the Indian companies that are doing world class job right from India. Example? FreshDesk.com - a humble startup from Chennai that's rocking the online customer care domain for all the major companies. Take a look at FusionCharts - the team that's generating graphs for almost entire world.
  
  Or - if you really want to do something or solve a problem for large number of people - why not start your own business? It doesn't require much capital to start your business online.
  
  Second: If you 'really' want to get into Google / Microsoft / Apple or other big brand companies, you'll have to plan. As far as I know, in order to be recruited by these (and similar) companies and actually being put on some kick-ass, world-changing project - you need to 'get' their attention. Do something in the open source domain, or build your profile such that Larry Page and S.Brin would fire their own recruiters for not recruiting you. It might include, but not limited to-
  

  • Being a noticeable figure in open source world.
  • Build some great work experience relevant to technologies that Google's serious about.
  • Get a Ph.D or a very specialised degree that Google or Apple would be interested in.
  • Buit a company and get acquired by Google etc.

  Note that not everyone in Google gets to work on high-tech projects. There are people who do support activity (and if my information is correct, they recruit engineers to provide support for Adwords / Adsense!).
  
  Try and read as much as you can and make a plan. All the best!
• 

  Ashish Ahuja

  Thank you so much sir 😀 It was a great insight to the hazy topic. And as you touched upon the topic of starting our own business, to be true I am really inclined to making it a reality. As soon as I start to think about doing something, it all starts to clutter together and everything becomes so confusing. How to start, where to start, how to reach out to people, how to manage it with limited capital and resources, how to make it a success and all sorts of questions come up. And in all of these, the idea seems to deform and shuts down.
  
  The second topic as you addressed to do something in the open source community. I wonder how people come up with manifesting a great product to life. I have been trying to learn so many languages and techniques and have been trying to build something out of it but nothing matches the threshold of becoming productive. I really want to improve myself and build something that can help the world including me to have a better future.
• 

  Ankita Katdare

  If you really want to land a job in the cool corporations of the world, you have to make yourself really interesting with the work you've done so far. It could be extra-curricular or professional, but it has to show why you are THE employee they shouldn't afford missing.
  
  Take a look at this amazing presentation on Slideshare -
  How I landed a job with Slideshare
  
  You can also check the number of insane things people do to get their dream jobs - #-Link-Snipped-#
  
  I am a big fan of the recently MEDIUM blogging platform. And here is an article that if you read through can give you some great ideas of what you can start doing immediately -
  #-Link-Snipped-#
  
  Lastly, Google conducts about 5 interviews. The interviewers try to design questions that test -
  whether you know your field of expertise;
  whether you can apply what you know in an unfamiliar context;
  whether you can make “creative” leaps to arrive at a solution.
  
  Like most other job interviews, they will be interested in your thought process, and your whole explanation will count.
• 

  avii

  ahj.ashish

  I have been trying to learn so many languages and techniques and have been trying to build something out of it but nothing matches the threshold of becoming productive.

  The answer lies here itself. You are trying to do too many things at once. Start one thing at a time. Work on Go for 6 months. Work on Scala for 6 months. Work on both for another six months. You get the idea, right? ;-)
  
  I know many people from Google and I can give you a reference. However I want to know whether you are worth it. Answer me these two simple questions:
  
  1. Why do you want to work in Google or Microsoft
  2. What have you done so far
  
  Please don't tell me you are passionate about programming and all, without having a gtihub profile.
  
  So, convince me. And I will make sure you land up in Google.