{"id":6922,"date":"2020-10-28t14:39:33","date_gmt":"2020-10-28t14:39:33","guid":{"rendered":"\/\/www.catharsisit.com\/?p=6922"},"modified":"2020-10-28t14:39:33","modified_gmt":"2020-10-28t14:39:33","slug":"is-there-room-for-me-in-tech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.catharsisit.com\/blog\/is-there-room-for-me-in-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"is there room for me in tech?"},"content":{"rendered":"
tech is an industry full of barriers to entry and the intersection of my identities makes me no stranger to those barriers. i am black, a woman, a first-generation college graduate\u2014and i embarked on my career believing that tech wasn’t meant for someone like me. i thought to get a job in tech, you\u2019d have to attend a top 10 school, meet every requirement on the job description (must-haves and nice-to-haves), and exceed the minimum years of experience by at least<\/em> 2-3 years to be competitive.<\/p>\n getting a job in tech isn\u2019t easy\u2014especially if you come from a historically marginalized group, like me. i was acutely aware that biases, conscious and unconscious, can seep their way into every stage of a hiring process, starting from the resume review all the way through the final interview stages.<\/p>\n the knowledge of these barriers made getting a job in this industry feel daunting. if your experience in job seeking has been anything like mine, i\u2019m here to share all the things i didn\u2019t know about interviewing for a job in tech. i want to try and lessen that nervousness and lower some of those barriers for you. <\/strong><\/p>\n i will be your #1 cheerleader. you got this.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n when i began looking for jobs, i wanted to find a company that did hiring differently. i wanted to be at a place that did more than just talk about their commitment to diversity. i wanted to be somewhere that was actively engaging in ways to break these forms of bias that so easily impact marginalized groups’ chances of getting the job.<\/p>\n i came across a job post on linkedin for an associate recruiter and thought, i have some of the experience they are looking for, but not all.<\/em> i scrolled further and read, \u201cdon\u2019t meet all the requirements for the position? that\u2019s okay. we encourage you to still apply.\u201d i mean, hey, if they are telling me to still apply, why not! what did i have to lose?<\/em><\/p>\n i hit send on the application and my nervousness set in. the fear of rejection felt just as overwhelming as the fear of getting the interview and having to figure out how to make it through the interview process. i didn\u2019t really know anyone in tech, and i lacked the networks to help me prepare for this process.<\/p>\n despite my concerns, i was invited to the next stage of the process and went through about a month of interviewing with magoosh. i nervously made my way through each step, wondering, do i have what they’re looking for, will this organization be able to hold my identity as a black woman, how will they evaluate me, and will my identity impact their perception? <\/em><\/p>\n spoiler alert. i got the job!<\/p>\n the magoosh interview process can feel long and honestly a little intimidating, especially if you have never gone through a process like this before. there were a lot of things i wish i knew, and i want to share some tips to help you prepare for your magoosh interview (and really, any tech interview)!<\/p>\n interviews take a lot of time and emotional energy and unfortunately some interview processes you enter will end with a rejection. i can tell you, i have definitely received more rejection emails than interview invites. rejection is hard and it can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re excited for a job or are going through hard times and need to catch a break. i have always tried to frame each rejection as an opportunity to learn and grow, but honestly, it can be hard to bounce back, especially if you have experienced multiple rejections. as we dig into interview tips, i\u2019ll also share some ways i have bounced back and learned from rejection.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n at magoosh, we run two hiring processes depending on the type of role.<\/p>\n our part-time\/contractor process:<\/p>\n and our full-time process:<\/p>\n the primary difference between the two is that part-time\/contractor roles will move straight into the assessment stage after the application, and the final interview process is generally shorter. please note, these are generally our two processes but if you have a different process for your role, the information below should still be helpful!<\/p>\n as i shared earlier, i wanted to find a place that did hiring differently, and i found that in magoosh. one of the first blog posts i read was bhavin’s article on diversity and the magoosh approach to addressing unconscious bias.<\/a> i was impressed and excited that magoosh was taking steps to mitigate unconscious bias, but i also had many questions. during my interview i was able to gain clarity into the practices bhavin writes about in the article but there was one tool i had lingering feelings about, even as i started in my role and that was the rooney rule.<\/p>\n the rooney rule is an accountability tool we use to ensure we engage a diverse group of candidates. we don’t move forward with final interviews until we know we have a diverse group in that final stage of the process. as a black woman, i didn’t really know how to feel about the rooney rule. i liked that magoosh was doing the work to ensure their pipeline was diverse, but i also wondered, am i being interviewed because i identify as an underrepresented minority? am i the \u201ctoken\u201d?<\/em> if you are wondering this or have these feelings after learning about the rooney rule, i get it.<\/p>\n i want to let you know that we are interviewing you because you are the best fit for the job.<\/strong> the demographic data you submit with your application will never be tied to any identifying information you provide to us in the interview process (i.e. name, email, resume, etc.) and it will never be used to make a hiring decision.<\/p>\n we know there is a considerable diversity gap in tech<\/a> and education and that we work at the unique intersection of two institutions with barriers to entry for underrepresented minorities (urm). the rooney rule helps us track our efforts in addressing those gaps, and it holds us accountable to our goals of having a team that\u2019s representative of our student base<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/a> the stages will be outlined based on our full-time process, but a lot of the recommendations apply to our part-time process as well!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n what we\u2019re looking for:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n quick tips:<\/p>\n if you’re rejected in this phase…<\/strong><\/p>\n check your resume and cover letter again. are you demonstrating why and how you’re a fit for the role?<\/em> sometimes even the simplest changes in the language i was using shifted the number of interviews i was able to get after this stage.<\/p>\n for me, this is the stage where i most commonly faced rejection. if you get hit with multiple rejections in this phase, keep pushing! sometimes it takes multiple applications and multiple tweaks of your resume and cover letter before you finally get a callback.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n what we\u2019re looking for:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n quick tips:<\/p>\n if you’re rejected in this phase…<\/strong><\/p>\n ask for feedback on how you can improve and what gaps the interviewer saw in your skills. were your examples clear and relevant to the role? did you demonstrate a passion for the mission? did the examples you shared align with core values?<\/p>\n also, check in with yourself. did you give yourself enough time to prepare? how did you feel about the interview? where did you think you really shined and what moments were weaker? for your next interview, build on what went well and work on the things you thought could have gone better. practicing responses out loud in areas that i commonly struggle with has always been super helpful for me!<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n what we\u2019re looking for:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n quick tips:<\/p>\n if you’re rejected in this phase…<\/strong><\/p>\n this is another great time to ask for feedback! since this exercise is specifically assessing skills for the role, i\u2019d recommend specifically asking for feedback on where your skill set could improve.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n what we\u2019re looking for:<\/p>\n our final round of interviews can run from 4 to 6 hours. we try to make the final interview as fun and engaging as possible, but it can be exhausting. two to three days before your interview, you will receive an agenda outlining what you can expect on your interview day. we usually add at least two breaks and a lunch period into that agenda; however, if you would like to add some additional time to take a breath between interviews, let us know! we want to make sure you feel as comfortable as possible. our goal is to set you up for success. we want the best person for the job, not the best interviewer.<\/p>\n we also give candidates the option to do a prep\/pep talk with the recruiter prior to the interview. i think i can speak for the entire recruiting team when i say, we want you to take advantage of this! we are more than happy to share some more details about team members you will be meeting with, the interview day, or anything else that is on your mind as you get ready for the interview. again, we are rooting for you and want to see you succeed.<\/p>\n the interview is usually comprised of:<\/p>\n similar to the phone interview, we will be asking you to draw from past work experiences, so have some examples ready to go.<\/li>\n if you’re rejected in this phase…<\/strong><\/p>\n if you make it to this stage in a magoosh interview, you generally would get feedback, but if not, reach out to the hiring manager or your recruiter and ask for feedback. since this interview is assessing deeper core values, mission and skill fit, try to find out where the red flags came up. you can also ask for any words of advice or gaps to address before your next interview if you’re applying for a similar position.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n no matter if you got the job or not, you applied and you hopefully learned from the experience. i have always tried to frame my failures and my successes as an opportunity to dig into where i can grow and how i can be even better. if you get rejected after applying for a role at magoosh or elsewhere, take what you can from the experience, allow yourself to process, and press forward. there\u2019s another opportunity waiting for you!<\/p>\n our hiring process isn’t perfect. we are always looking for ways to learn and grow, so if you have any feedback on how we can improve please share it with us here<\/a>.<\/p>\n these are just a few of the things i wish i knew before my interview. i hope that it has been helpful for you! if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out. like i shared earlier, we are a resource and are always happy to help.<\/p>\n now hit \u201csend\u201d on that application. we can\u2019t wait to meet you. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" in this post, we’ll break down how the magoosh interview process works, plus tips on how to prepare!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":295,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[486],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[516],"class_list":["post-6922","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deib"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\ntable of contents<\/h2>\n
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my magoosh story<\/h2>\n
first, let\u2019s talk about the hiring process<\/h2>\n
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the rooney rule<\/h3>\n
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\nimage credit: lankogal (licensed via shutterstock)<\/em><\/p>\nhere’s how to prepare for the magoosh interview process!<\/h2>\n
application stage<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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phone interview stage<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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assessment stage<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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final interview stage<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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finally, know that you did your best no matter the outcome!<\/h2>\n