Ask HN: Should I Leave Google Engineering Residency? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Should I Leave Google Engineering Residency?

I’m currently a SWE in Google’s engineering residency program. This is a one year fixed term engineering rotational program. At the end of the year, most residents are given conversion offers to start immediately as a regular SWE. I like the team I’m on, but there is no headcount, so if I convert, I’ll likely go through the match process and be placed on some other team. I’m not excited about going through this process and essentially starting over at google.

I’m wondering if I should just interview elsewhere and, if I get an offer I like, just take it, even before the program ends. Google has given me no guarantee to stay beyond the program, so I feel it is reasonable to look for, and take, another offer. With a year of Google SWE on my resume, I should have better options than I did when I first looked for jobs.

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Hey, I'm a SWE at Google currently hosting an eng resident. I'd encourage staying through the residency in general, but I of course don't know your specific situation. (I'm also not sure which rotation you're on, but it's worth noting that even if one of your rotation teams doesn't have headcount the other might, and that even if neither does right now they might by the end of your residency.)

If you want, feel free to contact me internally and schedule a 1:1 so we can chat in more detail. My google username is the first 5 characters of my HN username. If you want to make the meeting private, that's absolutely reasonable. I will not mention anything about it to your team or manager unless you ask me to.

insufficient data

Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

The Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice: I don't much care where.

The Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

Alice: So long as I get somewhere.

The Cat: Oh, you're sure to do that, if only you walk long enough.

Personally I don’t like quitting commitments, but I’m very careful about making them in the first place. (This is why I’m a remote consultant...)

When you started, you must have had a reason for joining. What was it? Is it still a valid reason, or has new information changed your perspective?

My advice: finish the year of residency, and apply to other jobs just prior to finishing it. If you time it right, then when you get the promo offer you will have other options to compare it against. Also, I just googled this program. I didn't realize it was for engineers in their early career. In that case, I definitely encourage you to wait for the promotion, take it, and at least work a couple months there. Otherwise it might look like you left because you weren't offered the promo. Not sure on that though, I'm not a hiring manager.

Regardless, I don’t see a reason to quit without other options lined up. You can easily find other options while employed, it’s not like you need to quit first.

Also, it’s google. Not the worst place in the world to spend a couple months coasting as a corporate drone.

I would suggest staying at Google unless you have a legally binding contract in your hand from another company that virtually guarantees you buckets of money for leaving Google.

Bird in the hand two in the bush etc

I would stay, lots of engineers dream of landing at GOOG.

Stick it out and see what happens, network, meet people see what team you land on.

Lots of interesting people and projects.

Plus 3 to 4 years of GOOG on your resume is better than one.

> I would stay, lots of engineers dream of landing at GOOG.

We shouldn’t get caught up living other people’s dreams.

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