Career Planning

Career Strategy

Leveraging a Big Tech Internship to Bootstrap a Top Tech Career: How I Got 5-7 Offers and Changed My Trajectory

Big tech internships are 3-5x easier than full-time roles: barriers lower, interviews easier, networking better. My 2020 Amazon internship led to €200k+ Oracle role by 2023—complete strategy for CS students to bootstrap careers.

The European Engineer

February 19, 2024

26 min read

Even if you want to end up as a remote worker in a LCOL low-tax place.

If you're a CS student, the highest leverage activity you can pursue is:

Getting a Big Tech internship.

Yes.

This is a pretty safe advice I can give.

Find internship opportunities →

Why Big Tech Internships Are the Highest Leverage Activity

1. It's Relatively Easy

Barriers to entry for internship big tech positions are much lower than for full-time positions: easier to get an interview, easier to pass the interview.

Comparison: Intern vs Full-Time Hiring

Factor	Internship	Full-Time	Difference
Application response rate	5-15%	1-5%	3x better
Interview difficulty	Medium (2 rounds)	Hard (4-5 rounds)	50% easier
LeetCode level	Easy/Medium	Medium/Hard	1 level easier
System design required	Rarely	Always (L4+)	Skip for intern
Behavioral depth	Light	Deep	Less prep needed
Acceptance rate	15-25%	5-10%	2-3x better
Competition	Fellow students	Global talent	More forgiving

Real numbers (from my experience + community data):

Company	Intern Acceptance	Full-Time Acceptance	Multiplier
Google	4-6%	0.5-1%	5-10x easier
Meta	5-8%	1-2%	4-5x easier
Amazon	8-12%	2-4%	3-4x easier
Microsoft	6-10%	1-3%	3-5x easier

Why internships are easier:

Companies expect less experience (you're student!)
Bar is lower (you're learning, not producing immediately)
More forgiveness in interviews (okay to struggle a bit)
Larger hiring volume (intern programs = 100s of spots)
Converting interns costs less than external hiring

2. Getting a Junior Full-Time Role in Big Tech Is Very Hard Without an Internship

The company would need to make a substantial bet on you, without knowing if you can perform at big tech levels. While also being junior (so in general needing more guidance).

New grad hiring statistics:

Background	Full-Time Offer Rate	Typical Outcome
Big tech intern (same company)	70-90%	Return offer expected
Big tech intern (different company)	30-50%	Strong candidate
Prestigious uni (no intern)	10-20%	Competitive
Average uni (no intern)	1-5%	Very difficult
Bootcamp (no intern)	<1%	Nearly impossible

The return offer advantage:

When you intern at Company X:

You're evaluated over 3 months (not 4 hours of interviews)
They know your work quality
You know the team (mutual fit assessment)
70-90% of interns get return offers
You skip full interview loop (huge advantage)

Even if you don't take the return offer:

Company X brand on resume
Other big techs see you as "validated"
Your external applications get prioritized

Example pipeline:

With internship:

Student → Google Intern → 80% return offer → Google L3 → Easy transfers to Meta/Amazon

Without internship:

Student → Apply everywhere → 2% response → Struggle → Maybe startup → Harder to break into big tech later

Learn how to prepare →

3. Spending the First Few Years in Low-Paying Tech Jobs Can Hurt Your Career

I mean, noone is gonna die if you do so, but the further you part ways from top careers, technically the harder it is to rejoin them. Ageism is a bit real in big tech IMO.

Career trajectory comparison:

Path A: Big Tech Early

Age 22: Google intern
Age 23: Google L3 (€100k)
Age 25: Google L4 (€140k)
Age 28: Google L5 (€180k+) OR Jump to startup with equity

Path B: Startup/Low-Pay Early

Age 22: Startup (€40k)
Age 24: Better startup (€60k)
Age 26: Try big tech... rejected (too long away from fundamentals)
Age 28: Good company but not big tech (€90k)
Age 30: Finally big tech L4 (€140k)

Path A beats Path B by:

2-4 years of progression
€200k-€400k more earnings by age 30
Better optionality throughout

Why later entry is harder:

"Why no big tech on resume?" (red flag for recruiters)
Harder to justify why you want it now
Interview expectations higher (should be senior by years of experience)
Less forgiveness (expected to know more)

4. A Big Tech Internship Is a Very Liquid Commodity

Even if you don't want to do big tech long-term, having some good brands on your CV will pay dividends when looking for all kinds of roles in tech: startups, contract jobs, remote gigs, business opportunities, etc.

Brand value in different contexts:

Next Step	Without Big Tech Brand	With Big Tech Brand	Advantage
Startup application	"Who are you?"	"Ah, ex-Googler!"	3-5x response rate
Remote job search	Need to prove yourself	Assumed competent	Skip rounds
Contract rate	€50-€80/hour	€80-€120/hour	+50% rate
Founding startup	Hard to raise	Easier (pedigree)	2x funding success
Network effect	Limited	"FAANG mafia" access	Massive

The "ex-FAANG" premium:

Startup hiring manager perspective:

Candidate A: 3 years at unknown companies
Candidate B: 1 year at Google + 2 years at startups
Candidate B wins 80% of the time (even with same skills)

Why?

"If Google hired them, they must be good"
"They know how good companies operate"
"They have network for hiring"
Brand = credibility shortcut

5. As a Student, You Have Much More Time to Prepare for Interviews

If you're in uni, you can buy yourself time more easily than when having a 9-5. Moreover, you can somewhat freely tune how much effort you want put into your uni commitments (for example, you might be ok with taking average grades if this allows you to have more time to prep and interview).

Time availability comparison:

Situation	Study Time Available	Interview Prep Possible	Flexibility
CS Student	10-20 hours/week	Yes (flexible schedule)	High
Full-time employed	5-10 hours/week	Difficult (after work, tired)	Low
Job searching (unemployed)	30+ hours/week	Yes but desperate	High stress

Student advantages:

Can skip/reduce coursework temporarily (grades don't matter much)
No commute (more time)
Energized mind (not drained from work)
Can take semester lighter (plan interview season)
Summer = 3 months full prep time

My personal example:

During Master's: Had 4-6 hours/day for LeetCode
Could do 2-3 hours in morning, 2-3 at night
Did 300+ LeetCode problems over 6 months
This level of prep is impossible with full-time job

6. As a Student, You're More Likely Dealing with Theoretical CS Daily

Things like algorithms and data structures classes, theoretical distributed systems classes and so on. All things that for some reasons nowadays are key to big tech interview processes.

Coursework overlap with interviews:

CS Course	Interview Relevance	When You'll Forget
Data Structures	90% (arrays, trees, graphs)	6 months after graduation
Algorithms	95% (sorting, DP, greedy)	1 year after graduation
Distributed Systems	70% (system design)	2 years after graduation
Databases	60% (SQL, indexing)	1 year after graduation
Operating Systems	40% (threads, memory)	6 months after graduation

While student: You're doing LeetCode AND coursework reinforces it After graduation: You're doing CRUD apps that use .5% of CS knowledge

The retention cliff:

CS Knowledge Retained
100% │     Student years (taking classes)
     │    ╱‾‾‾‾‾‾╲
 80% │   ╱        ╲
     │  ╱          ╲___________  (with interview prep)
 60% │ ╱              
     │╱                ╲
 40% │                  ╲________  (without prep)
     │                           ╲
 20% │                            ╲______
     │                                   ╲____
  0% └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────
     Year: 1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8

Interviews right after graduation = unfair advantage

7. Corollary: The More You're in Industry, The Less You Remember Theoretical CS

And the more time you'd need to spend LeetCoding on the weekend to stay sharp for interviews (which will also be harder interviews because you'd be interviewing for full-time and potentially senior roles).

Re-learning effort required:

Time Since Graduation	LeetCode Prep Time	Difficulty
0-1 year (intern now)	50-100 hours	Medium
1-2 years	100-150 hours	Medium-Hard
2-4 years	150-250 hours	Hard
4-6 years	200-300+ hours	Very Hard
6+ years	250-400+ hours	Extremely Hard

My personal data:

2019 (during Master's): 200 hours prep → passed Google/Amazon/Meta
2024 (5 years later, attempted refresh): Took me 100 hours just to get back to Medium level
Extrapolating: Would need 300+ hours to get back to peak

Weekend LeetCode grind reality:

Work 9-5, exhausted
Weekend: 3-4 hours Saturday, 3-4 Sunday
At 7 hours/week = 30 weeks = 7 months to prep
As student: 15 hours/week = 3 months to prep

Student = 2-3x faster prep

8. Big Tech Internships Are a Cheat Code for Networking

You usually are surrounded by many other students in your position, and you can easily mingle with them as peers and create genuine connections. Most of them, will end up doing pretty well in their careers, and this can positively contribute to your network. Also it's a good way to make like-minded friends.

Intern cohort network value:

Cohort Size	Active Networkers	5-Year Outcome	Value
Google (500-1000 interns/year)	50-100 you actually connect with	20-30 at big tech/startups	High
Meta (300-600)	30-60 connections	15-25 at big tech	High
Amazon (1000+)	50-100 connections	20-40 at big tech	Medium-High

Why intern networks are special:

✅ Equal footing (all interns, no hierarchy)
✅ Shared struggle (bonding over LeetCode, projects)
✅ Natural socializing (intern events, housing, after-work)
✅ High achievers (they got the intern = top 5% of students)
✅ Future founders/leaders (5-10% will start companies, 20% will reach senior+)

Network ROI examples (from my experience):

After Amazon internship 2020:

2021: Referral to Swiss company from fellow intern (got offer)
2022: Referral to Oracle from Amazon FTE I met (got offer, €200k+)
2023: Co-founded project with intern friend (didn't work but learned)
2024: 3 intern friends now at different big techs (referral network)

One internship = 30-50 high-quality connections for life

Start building your network →

My Story: How a Big Tech Internship Changed My Career Trajectory

Today I'm gonna share the story of how I pursued this activity myself and how it paid off over time.

The Setup (2019)

In 2019, I was working as a software engineer in Zurich making relatively good money (€130k at a consulting firm).

Yet, I felt like I could do something cooler with my career.

Big tech was in its prime, and I thought it could be a good option.

The problem: I didn't have too much time for LeetCode outside of work.

Since I was also curious to try out research (in math and theoretical CS/ML), I decided to:

Quit my job and start a master's degree in Computer Science.

The Preparation Phase (2019-2020)

I ended up liking research but also realizing I would rather join big tech as a SWE.

What I had:

Lots of time to study algorithms and data structures
Could practice big tech interviews intensively
Access to university career services
Could attend recruiting events

My preparation routine:

4-6 hours/day LeetCode (300+ problems)
System design study (2-3 hours/week)
Mock interviews with peers (2-3 per week)
Company research (which ones hiring interns)
Applications (50+ companies)

Time investment: ~800 hours over 6 months

The Results (Early 2020)

Fast-forward 2020: I secured about 5 to 7 big tech internship offers.

Company	Outcome	Compensation	Notes
Google Zurich	Offer	CHF 6.5k/month	Accepted initially
Amazon Barcelona	Offer	€2.5k/month	Eventually took this
Meta London	Offer	£4.5k/month	Declined
Microsoft (location TBD)	Offer	€3k/month	Declined
Stripe Dublin	Final round	-	Close but no offer
+ 2 more	Offers	Various	Declined early

Then COVID happened, and most of these offers got rescinded. 😱

Amazon was one of these offers, and as a company it was doing great with all the people moving their spending online, so they didn't rescind my offer and I joined them.

The Immediate Benefits

Here's how this whole thing accelerated my career:

1. Became a "LeetCode Expert"

I did a lot of practice (I don't know how many single interviews I did, but probably in the order of 30-70) and even up to this day, I know perfectly well what to expect and feel comfortable in a big tech interview loop.

This skill compounds:

2020: Passed 5-7 big tech intern interviews
2021: Passed Swiss company interviews easily
2023: Passed Oracle interview (€200k+ offer) with 1 week prep
Forever: Never afraid of interviews, always have options

The confidence multiplier: Once you've passed Google/Meta interviews, everything else feels easier.

2. CV Got More Legit

Branding is a thing. And putting a big tech stamp on your SWE CV is quite huge.

Resume evolution:

Before Amazon:

- Bachelor's CS, Unknown Italian University
- Junior Dev, Small Italian Company (€25k)
- Mid Dev, Samsung (€50k)
- Swiss Consulting (€130k)

Recruiter reaction: "Okay, decent progression..."

After Amazon:

- Bachelor's CS + Master's CS
- Amazon Intern
- Swiss Consulting (€160k)
- Oracle Zurich (€200k+)

Recruiter reaction: "Oh wow, Amazon + Oracle, let's talk!"

The brand opened doors:

LinkedIn messages 5x increase
Response rate to cold applications: 5% → 20%
Startup founders asking me to join

3. Expanded Network and Learned from Super Bright People

Amazon Barcelona intern cohort:

30-40 interns (mostly European universities)
10-15 I actively connected with
5-7 I stayed in touch with

Where they are now (2024):

3 at Meta/Google/Microsoft (senior engineers)
2 at hot startups (founding engineers)
1 doing PhD (but will likely join big tech after)
1 started own company

Network value: Already got 2 referrals, 1 co-founder opportunity (didn't take but valuable), ongoing career discussions

4. Learned About High-Performing Organizations

Amazon leadership principles aren't just corporate BS:

Customer obsession (actually think about user)
Ownership (don't wait for permission)
Dive deep (understand details)
Bias for action (ship fast, iterate)

These principles work everywhere, not just Amazon. I use them daily.

Also learned:

How big tech code reviews work (high bar)
How to write design docs (structured thinking)
How to collaborate across teams (communication)
How to handle ambiguity (very common in real work)

5. Leveraged Return Offer for Better Job in Zurich

Being in a position of getting a full-time return offer from Amazon Barcelona, allowed me to leverage my position to get a well-paid job in Zurich afterwards.

Negotiation leverage:

Swiss Company: "We offer €140k"
Me: "I have Amazon return offer for €90k, but I prefer Zurich for personal reasons. Amazon is prestigious though..."
Swiss Company: "How about €160k?"
Me: "Deal."

The return offer (even if I didn't take it) was worth €20k/year more.

6. Later, CV Ready for Full-Time Big Tech Offer

So, again: my CV was ready for me to get a full-time big tech offer from Oracle Zurich in 2023.

The progression:

2020: Amazon intern (€2.5k/month × 3 months)
2021-2022: Swiss consulting (€160k-€180k)
2023: Oracle L5 (€200k-€250k)

Total time: 3 years from intern to €200k+ role

Without the Amazon internship? Probably would have taken 5-7 years to reach same level, if at all.

Learn from my progression →

The ROI Calculation

Investment:

Quit €130k job, did 2-year Master's
Opportunity cost: ~€260k (2 years of salary)
Tuition: €3k (Swiss Master's cheap)
Total cost: ~€263k

Return:

Amazon intern → Return offer (€90k)
Leveraged to Swiss role (€160k vs €140k = +€20k/year)
Oracle offer 2023 (€200k+)
Career trajectory: 3 years ahead of peers

By age 30:

Without internship path: ~€120k salary
With internship path: ~€220k salary
Difference: €100k/year

Break-even: 2.6 years (€263k / €100k = 2.6)

After break-even: €100k+/year premium continues

Not even counting:

Network value
Optionality (can always interview elsewhere)
Confidence
Skills learned

Total ROI: 300-500% over 10-year career

Calculate your career ROI →

The Internship Playbook for CS Students

Timeline for Junior/Senior Year Students

12-18 months before graduation (ideal timeline):

Month 1-3: Foundation

Learn fundamentals: Data structures, algorithms
Start LeetCode: 20-30 problems (Easy level)
Build portfolio: 1-2 solid projects on GitHub
Resume v1: Draft resume, get feedback

Month 4-6: Ramp Up

LeetCode intensify: 80-120 problems (Easy + Medium)
System design basics: Watch YouTube (Gaurav Sen, etc.)
Mock interviews: 5-10 with friends/peers
Applications start: Apply to 30-50 companies

Month 7-9: Interview Season

LeetCode maintain: 150-200 problems total
Active interviewing: 10-20 phone screens
Behavioral prep: Common questions, STAR method
Applications continue: Another 30-50 companies

Month 10-12: Close

Final rounds: 3-5 onsites
Negotiate offers: Compare, negotiate, decide
Accept: Sign offer, relax

Expected outcomes:

80-100 applications total
15-25 phone screens
5-10 onsites
2-4 offers

Must-Apply Companies for European Students

Tier 1: Maximum brand value

Company	Locations (EU)	Intern Comp	Return Offer Rate	Why Apply
Google	Zurich, London, Munich, Dublin	€6k-€7k/month	80%	Best brand
Meta	London, Dublin	€5k-€6k/month	70%	Excellent brand
Amazon	Luxembourg, Barcelona, Dublin, Berlin	€3k-€4k/month	65%	High volume hiring

Tier 2: Excellent brand, easier entry

Company	Why Apply
Microsoft	Good brand, great culture, solid pay
Apple	Exclusive brand, but very selective
Stripe	Unicorn brand, tech quality reputation
Databricks	Hot, growing fast, data engineering focus

Tier 3: Solid options, higher acceptance rate

Palantir: Prestigious, complex problems
Bloomberg: Finance tech, good pay London
Booking.com: Amsterdam, good culture
Spotify: Stockholm, product focus
Zalando: Berlin, scale-up experience

Tier 4: Emerging unicorns (still valuable)

Revolut: Growing fast
N26: Fintech
Klarna: Swedish unicorn
Adyen: Payments
Any Series C+ startup in your city

Application strategy:

Apply to 15-20 Tier 1-2 (dream companies)
Apply to 20-30 Tier 3-4 (safety + good brands)
Apply to 20-30 local companies (backup)

Find all intern opportunities →

Resources for Preparation

LeetCode prep:

NeetCode 150: Curated list, structured by topic
Blind 75: Classic list, covers all patterns
Company-specific lists: Buy LeetCode Premium ($35/month, worth it)

Target: 150-250 problems total (80% Medium, 15% Easy, 5% Hard)

System design (for senior intern/full-time):

Gaurav Sen YouTube: Best free resource
System Design Interview book (Alex Xu): $30, comprehensive
ByteByteGo: Newsletter/blog, great examples

Behavioral:

STAR method: Situation, Task, Action, Result
Prepare 5-7 stories: Cover different competencies
Practice aloud: Record yourself, sounds less awkward

Mock interviews:

Pramp.com: Free peer mock interviews
Interviewing.io: Anonymous mocks with engineers
University peers: Form study group, do weekly mocks

Time investment:

Minimum: 150 hours (3 months, 12 hours/week)
Recommended: 300 hours (6 months, 12 hours/week)
Intensive: 500 hours (6 months, 20 hours/week)

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake 1: Starting too late

❌ Starting prep 2 months before applications
✅ Starting 6-12 months before

Mistake 2: Only applying to FAANG

❌ "Google or bust" mentality
✅ Apply to 50-100 companies (various tiers)

Mistake 3: Neglecting resume/projects

❌ Empty GitHub, generic resume
✅ 2-3 solid projects, tailored resume

Mistake 4: Poor time management

❌ Binge LeetCode week before interview
✅ Consistent practice (1-2 hours/day for months)

Mistake 5: Not leveraging university resources

❌ Going solo
✅ Use career center, alumni network, professor referrals

Even If You Want Remote LCLT Eventually...

The big tech internship is still worth it:

Path 1: Direct to LCLT (No internship)

Graduation → Struggle to find job → Low-paying local job (€40k) → 
Try to break into remote (hard) → Maybe succeed at €70k-€80k after 3-4 years

Path 2: Big Tech Internship → LCLT (Optimal)

Big tech intern → Return offer or good first job (€80k-€100k) → 
2-3 years experience → Remote €120k-€150k from LCLT → 
Living like king in Poland/Georgia

Why Path 2 is better:

✅ Higher starting salary (€80k vs €40k)
✅ Better negotiation position (ex-Google = €120k remote, no brand = €70k)
✅ Faster trajectory (2-3 years vs 5-7 years)
✅ More options (can always go back to big tech if LCLT doesn't work)

Real example: Friend did Google intern → 2 years full-time → Remote $160k from Poland → Saving $100k+/year

No internship path: Friend struggled 4 years → finally €80k remote → Saving €50k/year

Difference: $50k more savings/year × 10 years = $500k more wealth

Even if your goal is LCLT remote life, do the big tech internship first.

Plan your LCLT transition →

So if you're a CS student, you might want to consider trying getting a big tech internship before you graduate!

To summarize:

✅ 3-5x easier than full-time hiring ✅ Validates your skills for life ✅ Opens all future doors (remote, startup, big tech) ✅ Best time is NOW (as student with time + fresh CS knowledge) ✅ Network compounds for life ✅ Even if you want LCLT eventually, this accelerates the path

Expected investment: 150-500 hours preparation

Expected return: €500k-€1M+ over career (from earlier trajectory + higher salary + better opportunities)

ROI: 1000-5000%

Hope this helps 🙂

Start your big tech internship journey →

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it too late if I'm in my final semester without an internship?

Not too late, but you need to act fast and adjust expectations:

Realistic timeline (if graduating in 4-6 months):

Month 1-2: Crash prep

LeetCode: 100 problems (focus on Easy/Medium)
Build 1 impressive project fast (2-3 weeks)
Resume polish + 20-30 applications/week
Goal: Get some interviews started

Month 3-4: Interview + graduate

Continue interviews while finishing school
Accept you might start job 1-3 months post-grad (normal)
Focus on mid-tier companies (higher acceptance rate)

Adjusted strategy:

❌ Don't aim for only FAANG (too competitive without early prep)
✅ Apply to: Tier 2-3 companies + local big companies + well-funded startups
❌ Don't be picky about location (take best offer)
✅ Treat first job as "stepping stone" (can switch after 12-18 months)

Alternative approaches:

Option A: Full-time at good company → intern program next summer

Some big techs accept "new grad + 1 year" for intern programs
Build up skills, reapply next year
Not common but possible

Option B: Master's degree

If you can afford 1-2 years
Fresh intern eligibility (restart clock)
More prep time (6-12 months)
My path - worked well but expensive (opportunity cost)

Option C: Accept reality, optimize anyway

Take best available full-time job
Even if not big tech, get 2-3 years experience
Build killer portfolio
Reapply to big tech as experienced hire (L4/L5)
Harder than intern route but still viable

Success stories of "late applicants":

Timeline	Outcome	Key Factor
Friend A: 3 months prep	Amazon offer	Already strong at coding
Friend B: 2 months prep	Stripe offer	Excellent side projects
Friend C: 1 month prep	Startup (€70k)	Realistic expectations

Bottom line: You can still succeed but need to either (a) be exceptional, (b) adjust expectations to Tier 2-3, or (c) plan for Master's/later entry. The absolute worst outcome is wasting your last semester NOT trying. Apply anyway!

Can I get big tech internship from non-target university?

Yes, but requires extra effort. Here's the reality:

Target vs Non-Target statistics:

University Type	Big Tech Interview Rate	Offer Rate if Interview	Total Success
Top tier (MIT, Stanford, ETH, Cambridge)	20-40%	15-25%	3-10%
Good EU unis (TUM, EPFL, Imperial, TU Delft)	10-20%	10-20%	1-4%
Average EU unis	3-8%	10-20%	0.3-1.6%
Unknown unis	1-3%	10-20%	0.1-0.6%

Key insight: Target unis get 5-10x more interview chances. BUT if you GET the interview, success rate is similar (10-20% regardless of school).

How to compensate for non-target school:

Strategy 1: Referrals (Most effective)

Find alumni from your uni at big techs (LinkedIn)
Join tech communities (GDG, hackathons) - meet recruiters
Professor connections (some have industry contacts)
Peers (someone's older sibling/cousin at Google)
Effect: 5-10x higher chance to get interview

Strategy 2: Standout projects

Build something impressive (1K+ GitHub stars ideal)
Contribute to major open source (React, Kubernetes, etc.)
Win hackathons (shows you can perform under pressure)
Effect: 3-5x higher resume screen pass rate

Strategy 3: Volume

Target unis apply to 30-50 companies
Non-target? Apply to 100-150
More rejections but same absolute number of interviews
Law of large numbers works in your favor

Strategy 4: Earlier preparation

Start LeetCode freshman/sophomore year (not senior year)
Smaller company intern first (year 2-3)
Use that for big tech application (year 4)
Build credibility gradually

Strategy 5: Compete in coding competitions

Google Code Jam, Facebook Hacker Cup, Codeforces
High ratings = automatic recruiter interest
Codeforces 1800+ = big techs will contact YOU

Real success case study (Friend from Romanian state university):

Year 1-2: Focused on fundamentals, local internships Year 3:

Built open-source project (2K stars)
Competed in Codeforces (reached 1700 rating)
Applied to 120 companies
Got 8 interviews (6.7% rate vs 20% at top unis)
Received 2 offers: Amazon + smaller company

Year 4: Used Amazon internship → Full-time → Now at Meta London making €140k+

His advice: "Compensate with volume + standout work. It's possible but need 2x the effort."

Bottom line: Non-target is handicap but not disqualifying. Need to:

Apply to 100-150 companies (vs 30-50 for target)
Get referrals (5-10x multiplier)
Build impressive projects (overcome resume screen)
Be patient (might need 2-3 application cycles)

Alternative: Smaller company intern year 3 → Big tech full-time year 4. Easier path and same destination.

What if I fail all my big tech interviews - is my career over?

Absolutely not. This is incredibly common and you have multiple recovery paths:

Reality check - Failure is NORMAL:

Interview Round	Average Pass Rate	Cumulative Success
Resume screen	5-15%	5-15%
Phone screen	50-70%	3-10%
On-site	15-30%	0.5-3% total

If you applied to 50 companies: Getting 0-2 offers is EXPECTED outcome for most students.

If you failed all interviews, you likely made these mistakes:

1. Insufficient LeetCode (<150 problems)

Fix: Do 200-300 problems over 3-6 months
Retry: Next application cycle (6-12 months)

2. Weak behavioral/communication

Fix: Mock interviews, STAR method practice
Retry: Next cycle with better stories

3. Unlucky problem/interviewer

Fix: None needed, just bad luck
Retry: Same companies next year (different interviewers)

4. Too high expectations (only applied to Tier 1)

Fix: Apply to Tier 2-4, get ANY tech offer
Use: Stepping stone to big tech later

Recovery paths:

Path A: Try again next year (Master's/Delayed grad)

Do Master's degree (+1-2 years)
Use time to improve (LeetCode, projects)
Reapply as "student" (intern-eligible again)
Success rate: 40-60% if you improve

Path B: Good company → Big tech later

Accept best non-big-tech offer (€50k-€80k)
Work 1-2 years, become solid engineer
Reapply as experienced hire (L4)
Success rate: 30-50% with 2 years experience

Path C: Double down, reapply same year

Spend 3-6 months hardcore LeetCode
Reapply to same companies (+ more)
Some companies allow reapply after 6-12 months
Success rate: 20-40% if genuine improvement

Path D: Startup → Big tech

Join hot startup (€60k-€90k + equity)
Get promoted fast (less competitive than big tech)
Senior at startup (2-3 years) = competitive for big tech L4
Success rate: 40-60% from good startups

What your career looks like without big tech intern:

Scenario A: Never get big tech

Age 23: Startup (€60k)
Age 26: Better company (€90k)
Age 29: Senior at scale-up (€120k)
Age 32: €150k-€180k

vs Big tech path:

Age 23: Google L3 (€100k)
Age 26: Google L5 (€180k)
Age 29: €200k+

You're 2-3 years behind but STILL making excellent money compared to general population.

Scenario B: Get big tech later

Age 23: Startup (€60k)
Age 25: Join Google L4 (€140k)
Age 28: Google L5 (€180k)
Age 31: €200k+

You "lost" 2 years of big tech comp (€80k-€140k less earned) but you STILL got there.

Mindset reframe:

❌ "I failed big tech interviews, my career is over" ✅ "I'll join a good company, get experience, and try big tech in 1-2 years"

❌ "Everyone else got Google, I'm a failure" ✅ "Most students DON'T get big tech. I'm going to be fine."

❌ "Without big tech intern, I'll never make good money" ✅ "Plenty of paths to €100k-€200k. Big tech is ONE path, not the ONLY path."

Famous people who didn't have big tech internships:

Many successful founders (Airbnb, Stripe founders, etc.)
Many current big tech seniors (joined later in career)
Tons of successful €200k+ engineers at scale-ups

Bottom line: Big tech internship is highest leverage move, not a requirement. If you fail, you're 2-3 years behind, not permanently disadvantaged. The tech career is long (35-40 years). Missing intern = 5-7% setback, not 100% failure.

Keep improving, keep trying, you'll get there.