How I trained on Facebook and made sure that coding is my future
MY NAME IS NONE, NOW I LEARN ON A FOUR COURSEFaculty of Computer Science, HSE. My professional career began as a teenager when I entered an advanced programming school in my native Stavropol. The teacher motivated us, saying that if we participate and win olympiads, we will be able to enter the best universities in Moscow and St. Petersburg without exams.
For me it was not the main thing: I just really liked solving computer science tasks. I had a friend with whom we constantly competed, who will complete more tasks for the day. This competitive environment allowed both of us to quickly pump up our skills and after the ninth grade for the first time participate in the All-Russian Olympiad. At home, my hobby caused conflicts: I only did what I did at the computer, instead of helping in the kitchen and doing housework. Nevertheless, my mother always supported my trips to the Olympiad and to the summer schools.
There is a summer computer school in Russia where teachers teach students in grades 6-11 through programming in algorithms and data structures, which is excellent for preparing for olympiads. I went to LKSH three times and made so many friends there. This is a unique place, because even after one trip you have a huge dating network that can help in the future. For example, this is how I learned about an internship on Facebook. One of my friends from the Olympiad community somehow wondered if I wanted to get there. Of course, I really wanted to, but I thought that it was impossible, that it was the lot of someone smarter and luckier than me. She helped create a resume and recommended me through the company's referral system.
After a week of waiting, I received a letter from the recruiters. To get an internship, you must complete two or three technical interviews by phone or Skype in English. Interestingly, technical issues usually mean the same olympiad tasks that I actively solved in high school - or even easier. Of course, I was very worried, but, fortunately, the skill has not gone anywhere, and I managed to cope with them successfully. It seems to me that during my school years I would have done no worse, and maybe even better. If you are interested in learning more about how interviews are conducted, I highly recommend the book "Cracking the Coding Interview". Also, my friends and I lead a VC group in which we talk about resources with tasks for interviews, help compose resumes and look for people in large IT companies (often our friends) who could recommend people for internships and work.
Facebook gives trainees real-world tasks that companies need. We are given real freedom of action, and we have a serious responsibility.
For internships I was offered any of the four main offices - in London, New York, Seattle or Menlo Park in California. Without thinking twice, I decided to go to the main office in Silicon Valley. Facebook helped me to issue a J1 visa, on which I could do an internship, and paid for all expenses related to the relocation: consular fees at the embassy, insurance, flights, taxis from the airport, and the like. The internship is paid, but I can not disclose specific figures. Three months of working on Facebook is enough for me to live in Moscow for a year or two or two without special restrictions.
I went twice on an internship at Facebook. The main motivation of the intern is to get an invitation to work on a permanent basis. If a person has shown himself well and the next year continues to study at the university, then he is invited again. Before the internship, all interns fill out a questionnaire about their skills and preferences for the future team. At first, I worked on Internet.org. This is a Facebook initiative, the goal of which is to connect all people on the planet to the Internet; it provides free access to basic services like wikipedia. One of them, for example, "My rights" is a site that helps women recognize domestic violence and learn what its victims do.
The second time I worked with Core Infrastructure, in particular, in the McRouter team. I coped with the first project this year in six weeks instead of the planned 12. During the second project, the McRouter team wanted me to show myself as independent as possible: I myself smashed a big task into smaller ones, communicated with different people and solved emerging problems. Facebook, unlike other large corporations, give interns real-world tasks that companies need. We are given real freedom of action, and we have a serious responsibility. All the people I worked with turned out to be very responsive: if I really needed something, I never had to wait more than an hour, and sometimes my colleagues answered questions even on weekends.
I worked a lot - I couldn't do without a lot of stress. I wanted to prove myself as best I could and have time to finish the second project before the end of the internship. I can’t talk about the technical details because of the nondisclosure agreement, but it was difficult: the code was written several years ago, and therefore it was difficult to find people who knew how it works. When I first started working on it, no one even knew how to test it. In a short time it was necessary to understand the code well, improve it and add new functionality. One of the former employees tried to do this a year ago, spent several months on it, and then abandoned it. I had four weeks and no one seemed to believe that I could do it - even me. But in the end it turned out, and I realized that I can do a lot more than I thought - my colleagues were also very proud of the work done. There were, of course, minuses: I spent the whole weekend in the second half of the internship at the office.
The main bonus of the internship is a free service housing for 12 weeks of work. I lived in Redwood City, a 30-minute bicycle ride to the office. The conditions were simply gorgeous: the apartment is designed for one person and consists of a living room, a fully equipped kitchen, a bedroom and a huge bathroom. The building had a gym, swimming pool, jacuzzi and several recreation areas where you can cook barbecue. Several dozens of interns lived with me, with whom we became good friends.
Nobody watches how much time you work, because the main thing is to solve the tasks set, and not to spend a certain number of hours in front of the monitor
In general, living in the Valley is rather boring, especially when you are 20. In America, all "adult" entertainment is available not from 18, but from 21 years old. The whole movement and interesting events take place in San Francisco, but on weekdays I did not have enough time and desire to go there after work. Although several times after work, I boarded a yacht and sailed to one of the piers in San Francisco. That's right, on the yacht: Facebook provides various free shuttles so that employees can get to and from work from almost every corner in the valley. One of these shuttles is the yacht next to San Francisco.
On campus there are more than 15 different restaurants for every taste, and all food is free: if you want, you go to a salad bar, and you want to eat burgers and pizza. Each employee can eat as much as he wants, as well as bring his family and friends on a tour (read: free to eat). Everybody is joking about "Facebook 15": in the first three months, an average employee earns 15 pounds - about seven kilograms. At the first internship, this fate did not pass me. In order to take care of yourself, the office has a free nutritionist, a huge gym, football and volleyball fields. On the roof-park of the new building, yoga classes are held in the morning. Facebook also invites all employees to refund money spent on sports and health. The campus also has a game and music rooms, a medical center, a hairdresser, a beauty salon, a gift shop, a free dry-cleaner and even a carpentry workshop.
The work schedule is very flexible. Nobody watches how much time you work, because the main thing is to solve the tasks set, and not to spend a certain number of hours in front of the monitor. The culture in the company is very open, everyone works in the openspace, and even the top managers do not have separate offices. Every Friday, Mark Zuckerberg arranges question-and-answer sessions for all employees, where he tells about the week’s progress, sets the company's goals for the future, and also answers any questions, both professional and personal.
Facebook pays great attention to building a diverse work environment - for example, in the office there are rooms for meditation and prayer. The company is very respectful of the LGBT community and participates in the annual San Francisco Pride. In the first week, all employees undergo special courses in which they talk about etiquette and respect within the company, and also give contacts to people who can be contacted for help if they become a victim of discrimination or sexual harassment. I was amazed how much the company saves its employees. Facebook has its own hotline, working around the clock, seven days a week, to which you can call in case of an emergency - for example, if you have a car accident: here you can get help with any question.
As a result of the internship, I was invited to take a permanent job at Facebook in the London office when I finished my undergraduate degree. In the future, like many, I would like to create my own company with a first-class product that will change the world. In the next couple of years, I plan to go to work in London (possibly on Facebook), and after moving to the United States. Thanks to this internship, I was able to believe in myself and that I could cope with difficult tasks, find out what exactly I like in programming, travel around the world and meet talented people.
I would like to add that you can find your place in programming at any age and regardless of the first education. Many are repelled by gender stereotypes - it is believed that computer science or mathematics is a "non-female" business, and women cannot be as successful in them as men. There are really fewer girls in IT: on the first internship in my team of 20 people, besides me, they were not there. But now Facebook and many other companies are making efforts to correct the current state of affairs. If you are a girl and want to learn programming or you can already share your experience - write to me, we will be united.
Photo: Facebook
