[gwbas1c]

> Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc. are mostly going to be looking for solid CS fundamentals in their interview

I gotta second the above statement. A software engineering job often has so many unqualified applicants that it's just not practical to give every applicant a courtesy phone call. In these cases, a CS degree requirement is a way to filter out the people who are spamming their resume; or the crazies who just don't understand the kind of experience that the job requires.

That being said, it doesn't hurt to couch-surf in Silicon valley for a week or two. There are a lot of (cough) "startups" that need dirt-cheap developers that you can meet at every single networking event. You'll have 2-3 years of putting up with stupid ideas that go belly up every few months, but as you build your network, you'll eventually find someone who values your skills and forgets that you don't have a pedigree.

[solipsism]

You misread apparently. No one said anything about a CS degree. And your intuition is wrong. The Facebooks and the Googles are the companies who are confident enough in their screening that they don't care much about your formal education anymore.

CS fundamentals absolutely. CS degree nope.

[legoartwork]

Should I be able to get an interview with a pure math degree, but data structures + algorithms study on the side?

[solipsism]

Sure. Just put something on your resume that gives a recruiter some confidence in your capability with respect to those data structures and algorithms. A computer science degree is only one way of doing that.

[gwbas1c]

You misread apparently. "self-taught devs w/o college degrees?"