[therealdrag0]

OTOH: It seems big companies often have more flexibility in what your skillset is. Yes the interview process is cookie-cutter algorithms, but the application process is "we want smart people no matter which language/framework you've used before". Like I know people who got jobs with Microsoft with little programming experience (but other engineering degrees), whereas my mid-sized company we only hire people with the exact skillset we use because we can't afford to have them not productive right away.

[xrd]

I would love to hear more about Microsoft. They seem like they are doing different things since they aren't considered part of FAANG. Smart on their part and sounds like a good place to work and a good model for other large companies to follow.

[praveer13]

Microsoft interviews are purely core CS stuff. I think even for 4-5 year experience guys they ask mostly data structures and algorithms.