Interviewing at higher level (senior) as a mid-level engineer

Question

Context:

My company is experiencing a lot of uncertainty, which has led me to start interviewing now. I joined my company as a mid-level MLE and stayed mid-level for almost two years. Now, I've got close to six years of work experience. I'm behind in my career, but I should be at a senior level now.

While working here, I found it very difficult to grow and learn. There was a significant language barrier, and I eventually lost the confidence and drive to work harder. Throughout my time, I received an M rating for all cycles.

Issues:

I should interview at a senior level right now. Previously, I have received offers from a few FAANG-level companies at mid-level. But I have some limiting beliefs that I struggle with:

I haven't grown enough in the past two years to qualify for the senior level.
ML System Design for the senior level is going to be much more challenging since I didn't work on complex projects or understand systems at that level at my company
For most projects at my current company, I worked on superficial tasks instead of thoroughly learning the details of each project. So, if I am questioned about that, they find out, which makes me very hesitant and lacking in confidence.
I could read up on all of the above and improve as much as I can. However, it's hard to find senior-level ML System Design courses.

Questions:

My question is how I can overcome my limiting beliefs, gain self-confidence, and move forward with the interview with a more positive mindset?

Rahul Pandey · Accepted Answer

First, I have a meta-comment that you should not spend too much time trying to level yourself across companies. Let the market decide what level you are by collecting a bunch of offers. See these discussions to dodge questions from a recruiter trying to collect information that they don't need.

ML System Design for the senior level is going to be much more challenging since I didn't work on complex projects or understand systems at that level at my company

This is a self-limiting belief. Very, very few engineers can work on projects in their day job that actually translate to a typical system design interview question. Instead, accept the fact that interviews and normal engineering are very different, and you'll need to allocate time just for interview prep.

Remember, when you join a company, you'll be given a grace period to ramp up, build relationships, and learn how to make an impact. So don't overthink if you're ready or not: that's a later problem!

Be confident that you can use the onboarding time at the company to properly ramp up (and you have Taro's support! We have a highly rated onboarding course)

Interviewing at higher level (senior) as a mid-level engineer

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