A recruiter at Google, Keawe Block, has finally laid out some of the things that he looks for when hiring engineers for the company and in a post in the website FastCompany, he specifically mentioned 4 things that he looks for. While stating that the company has now expanded its horizons and hire from more than 300 schools as compared to 75 and that GPA is not the most important thing in the hiring process, he however stated that when it comes to hiring engineers there are some rules.
The first quality of a potential recruit is to not 'disqualify yourself preemptively' and wroter that, "Recent experience has taught us that we can find great tech talent in a much wider range of places than previously thought. For one thing, there are far more qualified college applicants than there are spaces for them at top universities. And for another, computer scientists aren't always aware of their talent for coding by the time they're 18 and have to declare a major."
Secondly, he wanted engineers to be flexible in their approach and 'show us what you can- even if you didn't learn it at school' and considering the sort of innovation Google is engaged in, it is without doubt an essential quality. Thirdly, Block stated that an engineer should 'get comfortable with coding exercises' and needless to say, it is perhaps the most important attribute. He expanded on it, stating, " It goes without saying that engineers need to be able to code, so intensive preparation for the coding exercise-the centerpiece of every Google engineering interview-is a must. Candidates should be able to answer three coding questions from scratch (without the help of a library function) within 45 minutes. I also suggest practicing with a live person, whether they're technical or not. And try going analog-use a whiteboard or a blank piece of paper. And focus in particular on algorithms and data structures."
Lastly, during an interview, one should always remember 'what got you noticed in the first place' and no lose confidence or composure when one steps into the Google campus.
