What it's like working for Microsoft as a software engineer

[@alexbrylov5330]

I had a few offers, including from a few teams at Microsoft and I did end up accepting the offer from Microsoft. My manager gave me the highest compensation for L61 right the way, made a request to push stock options further and he let me choose what I want to work on within the project. I can tell already it’s going to be one hell of a good ride and after watching your video I’m more excited about starting and learning more. Thank you mate! :3

[@JohnSteen]

Hell yeah, congrats Alex! I'm sure you'll crush it there. Fun ride ahead.

[@dhupee]

How did you got an offer in the first place mate, I'm genuinely curious

[@alexbrylov5330]

@@dhupee I applied to a number of positions thru Microsoft Careers website, I started getting calls, then started getting scheduled for round two. I’ve done full round of interviews for 4-5 teams, where I aced all of them for each team for the exception of one. Month later when one team finished interviewing all candidates, I got the offer. I studied last year so this year I just received a few thing for a few hours and it was enough to ace it.

[@alexbrylov5330]

@@JohnSteen I’m hoping so, I just got my setup today and starting in early May :P

[@0dyss3us51]

Honestly sounds great

[@emanoel724]

Very nice. I took a look at your linkedin profile and saw you don't even have a bachelor degree in computer science or something. You must be extremely good, such an inspiration!

[@nepaliyatri1766]

Glad to see your journey. I have been following your videos for quite some time now. You have been a great guide. I am also preparing for my transition into software. Currently on self learning while doing full time job. Been slow lately though, planning for a bootcaml once I get ready

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks Nepali, that's really cool to hear and kind of you to say. Lots of respect to you for making this transition while navigating a job. Wish you all the best, I'm sure you'll crush it!

[@awowoosas]

Hi John, I'll be joining Microsoft Azure (telemetry) team in the Austin office in a few months. All the points you brought up (negatives and positives) really resonated with me. I enjoy and thrive in high collaboration and high growth environment. After watching this video, it seems like I really did make the right decision even though I had a few competing offers from FAANG. Thank you so much for this very helpful video.

[@JohnSteen]

Awesome to hear Vichet, good luck!

[@LinuxUser123]

That should be amazing, Austin I heard is pretty cheap, and you will probably get very good pay, congrats

[@kkj53851000]

Hello i'm everyday watching your video in the moning. When i watch your video i can learn English and learn your experience. And In 3 years i will go silicon velly. And i want to work at Microsoft. So nowdays i work hard and study hard. Always your video help me. Thank you!!

[@NateRoberts]

This was super useful information, appreciate you qualifying it by saying it was your personal experience and it can vary. Very encouraging and I wishing you the best at your new position too! 👏🏽👏🏽

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks a lot Nate. Wish you the best of luck!

[@rehthro]

6:25 " 'Learning how to code' is deployed and serviced for a multi-billion dollar company " This part struck me, did not know how to feel about it.

[@OiVinn-eq1ml]

This was a nice & simple breakdown

[@ArtofBen]

Microsoft has always been my n1. Hope I can get there one day. Best of luck to you.

[@JohnSteen]

You totally can! Good luck

[@kevinrogers5835]

Thank you so much for the update @John Steen.

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks Kevin!

[@kevinrogers5835]

@@JohnSteen No, thank you! You have no idea how much you are influencing my Journey. I am currently at Flatiron School in the SWE bootcamp transitioning from finance to Tech. Your work has increased my knowledge and understanding. I really enjoyed your blog on Translation and execution.

[@JohnSteen]

Wow, that's so awesome to hear. Big congrats on your transition, and let me know if I can help with anything along the way!

[@johnmartins0522]

Thanks for the video! I'm joining the Cloud and AI group (unsure of the team yet but I think somewhere in Azure) in Redmond in August this year. Was great to hear what I can except my day to look like.

[@JohnSteen]

Congrats!

[@VPythandle]

Thank you for such a detailed video John - you touched upon on many aspects in a crisp and concise manner. I really liked the part about ‘learning’ - how you felt like you were getting a world class CS degree while getting paid.

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks a lot VP

[@EngineeringProdigy-z7c]

Would it be possible to do a lateral transition working as a Customer Experience Engineer for 1-2 years and then get into SWE at Microsoft?

[@JohnSteen]

Let me know what other topics you'd like to see covered here 😁

[@kevinrogers5835]

Possible topic: What was something you had to learn on the job early on. How did you approach getting up to speed and how did your team support that learning?.

[@kevinrogers5835]

Amazing! I just looked at your linkedIn and you wrote an entire post about this two weeks ago. A video would still do it more justice. 🙌

[@VPythandle]

Your job application strategy and overall process post bootcamp 😊 Would love to know the systems you put in place to stay motivated and keep gunning for your dream job. Your blog post already touches on these aspects but would love to see a video of you breaking it down, thanks!

[@JohnSteen]

@@kevinrogers5835 Good idea, thanks for the rec!

[@JohnSteen]

@@VPythandle Thanks for the suggestion!

[@AungBaw]

Good content instant sub, kudos.

[@USALifeDiaries]

I’m looking forward to apply positions over there! Can you please tell me what entry levels are open there. Currently I’m pursuing my bachelor’s degree in business administration! Please guide me through this! What internships I can apply to get in there! Guide me

[@RockyOutdoorss]

Really dope video John! It gave me awesome insight into what my day to day life is gonna be like 😎😄

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks a lot! It really was a great experience

[@KJ7JHN]

how many languages did you know when you applied to MS? Did you have your Bachelors?

[@JohnSteen]

I knew Python, Ruby and JavaScript. Bachelors in accounting

[@kannonpatterson]

You haven’t posted in so long . Are you still at Microsoft ? How’s your experience been since posting this ?

[@JohnSteen]

I'm at Google. Been a long road! Crazy that 4 years has past since I started at Microsoft.

[@rubinnitsuh4392]

loved the vid !!!

[@JohnSteen]

Thank you!

[@StephenPhillips]

Hello how are you doing? I'm real close to finishing up my BA degree in computer science and I was wondering if I could work at Microsoft while wrapping up my degree?

[@JohnSteen]

Sorry, no idea. I don't work there anymore

[@johndixon158]

I was a technical suport from microsoft handling operating system Windoes from third party vendor do you have any reommendation to apply from a differen vendor since i was out from the third party hwo hamdles microaoft

[@JohnSteen]

Sorry I don't have any familiarity with vendors

[@SwagatSinnarkar]

Hi John, Does Microsoft is asking DSA who applied for the position of SDE role (.net developer) ? & If What type of dsa Or questions is asked by interviewers?

[@JohnSteen]

Yes DSA questions are the primary type of questions asked in interviews. I can't give you specific questions, but I will say that you need to know all core DSAs (binary search trees, hash tables, linked lists, etc. - all the usual suspects)

[@th3tagang]

Your oncall experience is not the norm in Azure. I know the big data teams handed off to engineers in China or India but this is not common in the majority of Azure. Oncall is usually a grind where you DO get calls in the middle of the night. You lucked out but since you were junior you never stood oncall as you did not understand the system until you left your team. I am sure things were fine but if you would've stayed longer you would see what real oncall is like.

[@JohnSteen]

I actually worked the same shifts that senior folks worked (I was often their back up or vice versa). We definitely were able to hand off cases at the end of the shift, because of an intentional decision by the org. During the shift it could definitely be high pressure though. And yes, that was my experience, but am not guaranteeing this for anyone else.

[@Foxesred2]

My cousin works for Microsoft

[@cadenwondell1156]

What degree do you have if any? What degree(s) do you suggest for software engineering?

[@JohnSteen]

I have a masters of accounting degree. Worthless for tech lol. If you actually want to get a degree, get a computer science degree. If that ship has sailed, do a coding bootcamp and teach yourself with books and online resources. That's what I did.

[@sumanthdsharma]

At what level of employees are expected to be on "on call" . Is it from Level 60 or above Level 60 ?

[@JohnSteen]

Depends on org

[@sumanthdsharma]

@@JohnSteen I mean in Microsoft

[@thedharding]

Thanks, cheers!

[@dmoneyballa]

You get to use a Macbook at Microsoft or is that Macbook your personal laptop?

[@JohnSteen]

That’s my personal laptop. I used windows at Microsoft. You can use a Mac on certain teams I think.

[@nlneth9]

I'm currently 17 is there any way I can start coding/programming like you or it's too late? I really want a good work life balance

[@JohnSteen]

There are people that start at 35 and 40. You're early.

[@nlneth9]

@@JohnSteen so is there any free resources I could use to start my journey?

[@JohnSteen]

@@nlneth9 MIT opencourseware, KZbin videos, freecodecamp, app academy open, the resources are endless. I would just try to build a simple web app first and have fun learning.

[@gsmjack]

Great video John! I recently was accepted into a competitive coding bootcamp and I'm trying to shift my content over to that a bit as well lol, do you have any tips for me? love your video style! you earned a sub :)

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks so much! And congrats. Are you wanting tips for KZbin or for the bootcamp?

[@gsmjack]

@@JohnSteen Haha KZbin mainly but both really!! Keeping up in bootcamp is super difficult, we’re in the second month already

[@TwitchRadio]

See you there in 6 to 7 months ✌️😎🤞... But did have a question.. I'm a bit older than most of the people getting into software engineering. I'll be 36 soon.. Im also ex military who is %100 disabled and been working hard for 10 years to get back to my whole reason for joining the military to pay for my college education... But I've seen alot of people in their 20's mainly... Would I be a good fit at Microsoft? Live in the Seattle area... And 2nd question is, if I decide to move to TX from the one here in Washington state, do they offer job transfer opportunities... Or is that rare.. Anyways, thanks for your time and the video. New sub ✌️

[@JohnSteen]

I saw a wide variety of ages at Microsoft, so don't worry about that! As long as you have the skills for the job, it can be a great fit. I think sometimes they do offer relocation packages, but I'm not too familiar with that process personally. Thanks for watching and congrats on the career move.

[@TwitchRadio]

@@JohnSteen yeah, it's a long time coming, been working on Web3 projects since 2014 ish... And self studied IoT and cloud computing since about that time as well.. And just about to graduate is a BA in software systems engineer (1/2023).. This it's a mix of software engineering and software applications architecture.. supposedly when researching it online, it's a very niche degree... Didn't know that going in, just wanted the most broad-spectrum bachelor's program in IT... Should of just went with a CS degree... Who knows, maybe it will work out in the end.. Anyways, thanks for the words of encouragement and maybe see you some day. Keep up the good work ✌️😎👍

[@AngkarYearZero]

Never take for granted that you can get a job at a company like Microsoft. If you can't get a job at those top companies, you have to work at companies with other developers who also couldn't get jobs at those companies. Every developer wants to work at companies like Microsoft, Google or some cutting-edge startup. The less talented a developer is the more arrogant and frustrated they are. I've worked with some of the most toxic developers who constantly try to prove themselves and make a mess of everything and humiliate you doing so. They have absolutely no perspective on their abilities and think they are Microsoft-level developers when they aren't. It's incredibly frustrating.

[@xanhxanh5097]

Hey John I loved the video though it would be very cool if you cool show some footage of the office.

[@JohnSteen]

Wish I could but don't work there anymore

[@lakshya.bairagi73]

Hi John , my name is lakshya and I want to become a software engineer so what should I do in order to become a software engineer well right now I am 16 yrs old . Plz help me from India 🙏

[@JohnSteen]

Really big question that I can't answer in a comment. My high level thoughts are: build things you're interested in. Use all free resources at your disposal to learn: Google, KZbin, replit, ChatGPT, whatever you like the most

[@johnpinheiro6211]

Did you go to college or self taught Dev? Love from 🇵🇹🇵🇹🇵🇹

[@JohnSteen]

Self taught 🤘🏻

[@harshkumardubey435]

What's ur salary ??

[@JohnSteen]

I think when I left Microsoft in Austin my total comp was around $142k.

[@LinuxUser123]

@@JohnSteen hey, sorry to bother, that was in what state? california? texas?

[@JohnSteen]

Texas

[@LinuxUser123]

@@JohnSteen 145k annually? Also how many years you worked there?

[@JohnSteen]

Yep. Less than 2 years

[@ibrokemyownheart4953]

When do you get to play valorant?

[@MaalikFaun]

13:06 yeah that's the part of workplace culture i simply can't massage myself into. I spent my teen years on 4chan lmao. It feels weird interacting politely. over for me.

[@dirtyred-ch7mk]

tbh I'd rather make 90K than have to code on a Surface Pro

[@dustindustir521]

Will I also get such a magnificant beard, working at Microsoft?

[@JohnSteen]

Yes it's included in benefits and perks

[@cybernautclub]

When the guy said, there are many different teams and orgs...ORGS - I immediately thought of Scientology.

[@fritzschnitzmueller3768]

Standups are the biggest waste of time ever

[@mr.erikchun5863]

Thanks for not showing yourself getting out of bed and brushing your teeth. Sexy beard btw

[@JohnSteen]

Haha I can't bring myself to embrace the cringe of doing a day in the life video.

[@MaalikFaun]

thanks man@@JohnSteen

[@darianmorat]

You're working in Microsoft but you use Mac... That's awesome xd

[@JohnSteen]

hell yeah 😁 I prefer Mac (although I did use a Windows computer for my work at Microsoft.)

[@darianmorat]

@@JohnSteen Yeah but at the end if you use mac or win that really doesn't matter... Good video and I'm waiting for more bro

[@JohnSteen]

Thanks a ton

[@b14ckh4wk3]

summary: how's the day of a well paid modern slave

[@LinuxUser123]

What do you do?

[@JohnSteen]

yikes, not a fan of that outlook. I'm grateful to have a place to develop my skills and can leave at any time. Also strengthens my ability to do my own thing if I decide to do that.

[@LinuxUser123]

@@JohnSteen true, you choose to work not just for the pay but for alot other benefits that come with it, including work experience, which can later absolutely help you start your own business