Hi all, hope you're all doing well! TLDR: Is it possible to get promoted from L3 to L4 by changing FAANG companies? Context: Currently 1.3YOE Exp as FAANG SWE at L3/fresh graduate Level 9 months** of prior experience as a graduate SWE at a non-FAANG company Work Environment Extremely high workload+stress: 60-85+ hours per week (everyone on the team works these hours so it's not a question of my inefficiency) Consistent weekend work required to meet deadlines Unrealistic expectations, tight estimations and tighter deadlines. Management unwilling to adjust timelines or provide additional resources - results in employees working on sick leave, solving user issues on PTO etc. No senior engineers in my team working within 40 hr/wk, I say this to paint the picture of the working env for people who are 'well settled' into the job. I'd go on but hope this gives an idea. My Performance Exceeds expectations in all categories. Gained significant experience due to the high project throughput. Taking ownership of multiple features. Go-to person for user issues related to certain features. System design experience for small to mid-sized projects. Questions/Concerns: Is promo from L3 -> L4 in FAANG by moving companies, even possible? What should I say if the recruiter asks me for my current job level? I don't want to be down-levelled if I disclose my current L3 level. However, I don't want to be dishonest either. What if a recruiter reaches out to my current company to ask about my level? What parts of my experience can I highlight to show I'm performing at the L4 level? Closing thoughts: By the time I prep for interviews and likely land a job I'll probably have 1.7yrs of FAANG exp (L3) and 9 months of non FAANG exp. Hopefully, this is enough for a L4 promo. Ideally, I don't want to grind my health down for a promo. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Awesome platform by the way, it's really helped in my career development and I can't express how grateful I am for Taro :)

Really glad you like Taro and found it to be helpful! Is promo from L3 -> L4 in FAANG by moving companies, even possible? Uplevels happen all the time. Amazon in particular is common as many people get unfairly stuck at SDE 2 (mid-level) and then they go to another FAANG as senior. However, in your case it's tricky as the mid-level bar is usually 2 YOE and the market's not good right now for L3/L4. I think you'll need strong interview performance + multiple competing offers to make the L4 promo the likely outcome. More advice here: Don't Get Downleveled

L3 to L4 @ FAANG: Jump or Grind?

Entry-Level Software Engineer at Taro Community12 days ago

Hi all, hope you're all doing well!

TLDR:
Is it possible to get promoted from L3 to L4 by changing FAANG companies?

Context:

Currently 1.3YOE Exp as FAANG SWE at L3/fresh graduate Level
9 months of prior experience as a graduate SWE at a non-FAANG company

Work Environment

Extremely high workload+stress: 60-85+ hours per week (everyone on the team works these hours so it's not a question of my inefficiency)
Consistent weekend work required to meet deadlines
Unrealistic expectations, tight estimations and tighter deadlines.
Management unwilling to adjust timelines or provide additional resources - results in employees working on sick leave, solving user issues on PTO etc.
No senior engineers in my team working within 40 hr/wk, I say this to paint the picture of the working env for people who are 'well settled' into the job.
I'd go on but hope this gives an idea.

My Performance

Exceeds expectations in all categories.
Gained significant experience due to the high project throughput.
Taking ownership of multiple features.
Go-to person for user issues related to certain features.
System design experience for small to mid-sized projects.

Questions/Concerns:

Is promo from L3 -> L4 in FAANG by moving companies, even possible?
What should I say if the recruiter asks me for my current job level?
- I don't want to be down-levelled if I disclose my current L3 level.
- However, I don't want to be dishonest either.
What if a recruiter reaches out to my current company to ask about my level?
What parts of my experience can I highlight to show I'm performing at the L4 level?

Closing thoughts:

By the time I prep for interviews and likely land a job I'll probably have 1.7yrs of FAANG exp (L3) and 9 months of non FAANG exp. Hopefully, this is enough for a L4 promo.

Ideally, I don't want to grind my health down for a promo.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Awesome platform by the way, it's really helped in my career development and I can't express how grateful I am for Taro :)

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44 Comments

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Discussion

(4 comments)

2
Alex Chiou
•Tech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course Hero
11 days ago
Really glad you like Taro and found it to be helpful!

Is promo from L3 -> L4 in FAANG by moving companies, even possible?

Uplevels happen all the time. Amazon in particular is common as many people get unfairly stuck at SDE 2 (mid-level) and then they go to another FAANG as senior.

However, in your case it's tricky as the mid-level bar is usually 2 YOE and the market's not good right now for L3/L4. I think you'll need strong interview performance + multiple competing offers to make the L4 promo the likely outcome. More advice here: Don't Get Downleveled
2
Alex Chiou
•Tech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course Hero
11 days ago
What should I say if the recruiter asks me for my current job level?

Follow the advice here: "Recruiter asking what level I was"

If they explicitly ask if you're L3 or L4, then you need to tell the truth but also say that you're a high performer on track for a fast L4 promo.

What if a recruiter reaches out to my current company to ask about my level?

I don't think people do that. If your manager likes you, I doubt they would disclose that information, even when explicitly prompted.

What parts of my experience can I highlight to show I'm performing at the L4 level?

Go through these 2 resources:

Grow From Junior To Mid-Level Engineer: L3 To L4

Master The Behavioral Interview As A Software Engineer
2
Alex Chiou
•Tech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course Hero
11 days ago
One last thing: I don't think switching from FAANG to FAANG will solve the work-life balance issue. It certainly won't if you do it with an uplevel at the same time.

For the first 6 months, you'll need to deal with both a new company and a new level you've never had before. You could be working 80-100 weeks in the current stressful climate that's permeating all of Big Tech right now. It's important to remember that L4 in particular is a very wide band, and you need to compete with all of the L4s to avoid being at the bottom of stack rank.
- 0
  Entry-Level Software Engineer [OP]
  •Taro Community
  6 days ago
  Thanks a lot for the advice and linked resources Alex!
  
  Will keep the tips in mind.