META

Details & History

Meta, originally founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and fellow Harvard students, has evolved significantly over the years. Initially created as a social networking site for college students, Facebook quickly expanded its user base globally. In 2012, Facebook acquired Instagram, and in 2014, it acquired WhatsApp and Oculus VR, broadening its reach in social media and virtual reality. In 2021, Facebook rebranded as Meta to reflect its focus on building the "metaverse," a virtual environment where people can interact in immersive digital spaces. Meta's primary revenue comes from digital advertising across its platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger.

Office Locations

Meta's headquarters is located in Menlo Park, California, known as the "Hacker Way" campus. The company also has major offices in key global cities, including New York City, London, Dublin, and Singapore. Meta's U.S. presence includes offices in Seattle, Austin, and Los Angeles, among others. Internationally, it has regional headquarters in cities like Dublin (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), São Paulo (Latin America), and Singapore (Asia-Pacific). These offices support Meta’s global operations, from engineering and product development to sales and customer service.

Primary Competitors

Meta faces significant competition from several tech giants, particularly in the social media and digital advertising space. Key competitors include:

• Google/Alphabet: Competes with Meta in digital advertising and technology, with products like YouTube and Google Ads.
• Apple: Although not a direct social media competitor, Apple’s privacy changes have impacted Meta’s advertising business, making it a strategic competitor.
• TikTok: Owned by ByteDance, TikTok is a formidable competitor in the social media space, particularly among younger audiences.
• Snap Inc.: The parent company of Snapchat, Snap Inc. competes with Meta for user engagement and ad dollars, especially with augmented reality features.

Top Meta Departments for Entry-Level Roles

• Product
• Marketing
• Operations
• Sales

Diversity at Meta

Meta is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace that reflects the global communities it serves. The company actively strives to create an environment where people from all backgrounds feel welcomed and empowered to contribute their unique perspectives. Meta's diversity efforts focus on improving representation across race, ethnicity, gender, and other identity factors, particularly in leadership and technical roles.

Meta has implemented several initiatives to support diversity, such as resource groups for underrepresented employees, mentorship programs, and partnerships with organizations that promote diversity in tech. The company also publishes an annual diversity report that tracks progress and sets new goals for creating a more inclusive workplace. These efforts are part of Meta’s broader mission to build products and experiences that are inclusive and equitable for everyone. You can read more about their individual efforts and programs here.

Is remote work allowed at Meta?

In short, no not really. About a year ago Meta implemented a strict RTO (Return to Office) program that requires employees to be physically in a Meta office at least 3 days a week. Luckily they have lots of offices, but it's not nearly as flexible as somewhere like Airbnb.

Is it hard to get a job with Meta?

Yes, absolutely. Even seasoned tech employees have issues getting interviews at Meta due to their competitive nature.

A few things you should know about Met-- for starters, they drastically under-title. What do we mean by that? If you're going out for a job that seems "entry-level," it's probably not. You're probably competing with people who have been doing a similar job for at least a few years.

For example, normally companies require around 2-3 years of experience for a mid-level product management role. Meta usually requires 8+. This is mimicked in all departments.

Second thing: They're also one of the highest paying companies in tech. This somewhat has to do with the under-titling, but if you're lucky enough to land at AirbMetanb, you'll be paid extremely high for your title. Back to the product management example: a normal mid-level PM will be paid somewhere between 115k-140k, where at Airbnb that same role has a starting BASE PAY of 180k-230k. They also have been known to give generous bonuses and stock.

We want you to be aware of what you're getting into if you're trying to land a role at Meta. Be extremely skeptical of companies that offer bootcamps above $3,000 and promise a role here-- that is highly unlikely.

Does Meta have good benefits?

In a word, yes. Meta offers one of the most comprehensive benefits packages in the tech industry. Here’s a quick overview:

• Comprehensive Health Insurance: Meta covers medical, dental, and vision for employees and their dependents, with multiple plan options.
• Parental Leave: New parents receive 20 weeks of paid leave, regardless of gender.
• Family Planning: Meta offers up to $40,000 for fertility treatments and adoption assistance.
• Wellness Reimbursement: Employees receive $720 annually for wellness-related expenses, such as gym memberships and fitness classes.
• Onsite Services: Meta’s main offices provide free meals, snacks, and beverages, plus access to onsite healthcare and laundry services.
• Flexible Work: As a remote-friendly company, Meta offers flexible work arrangements and resources to set up a home office.

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Who is Meta Looking to Hire?

Meta values individuals who are not only technically skilled but also demonstrate qualities like collaboration, innovation, and resilience. They seek candidates who are passionate about building communities and driving social impact.

Meta Core Values

• Be Bold: Take risks and embrace challenges.
• Focus on Impact: Prioritize work that creates meaningful change.
• Move Fast: Innovate and iterate quickly.
• Be Open: Encourage transparency and collaboration.
• Build Social Value: Develop products that bring the world closer together.

Learn more about their values on Meta's culture page.

Meta Interview Process

The interview process at Meta typically involves the following steps:

1. Recruiter Screen

This initial phone screen assesses your background, interests, and alignment with Meta’s values. Expect to discuss your experience, career goals, and why you’re interested in Meta.

2. Technical Assessment (if applicable)

For technical roles, candidates complete coding challenges or technical assessments that test problem-solving skills and knowledge relevant to the role.

3. Onsite or Virtual Interviews

Meta conducts multiple interviews focusing on both technical and behavioral aspects. Depending on the role, you may have interviews covering coding, system design, product sense, and cross-functional collaboration.

4. Final Interview with Leadership

The final round typically involves interviews with team leads or senior management, focusing on your ability to lead, innovate, and drive impact.

Meta Internship Program

Meta offers competitive internship programs across various disciplines, including engineering, data science, and product management. Interns work on high-impact projects, often influencing products that reach millions of users.

Meta Associate Product Manager (APM) Program

The APM program is designed for recent graduates interested in building a career in product management. It’s a rotational program that exposes participants to different product areas within Meta, helping them develop leadership and strategic skills.

We have a tried-and-true process to help our Bridged readers get hired. It's 5 primary steps, but the meatiest is finding ways to get specific experience. Read on for recommendations.

Identify Your Target Role

Do your research, through Bridged or another company, to identify roles that may align well with your interests and core competencies. You can start here with our review of Best Entry-Level Tech Jobs to explore some options.

Meta is incredibly competitive, so your target career might be a role you see yourself holding in a few years. For example, if you'd like to be a product manager at Meta, that's not usually an entry-level role-- so you'll be competing with other folks who have product management experience.

Explore Ways to Get Experience

There are lots of ways to gain job experience without being on the job. Bridged gives several recommendations in our Job Guides for each job, but you can start by exploring programs like Coursera or Udemy to get valuable, resume-ready certifications from reputable sources.

For Meta specifically, some certifications will be great building blocks towards a role-- but not the entire piece. Don't let a bootcamp fool you into thinking you can immediately land a competitive role at Meta after completion of their $3,000 program. Employers like Meta look for demonstrated experience in the given field at real companies, and the best way to achieve this is by working at a less-competitive tech company in a similar role first.

Use Jobscan to Optimize Your Resume

Even if you're the most impressive person Meta has ever seen, we're sad to report it's part pure luck if you get picked for an interview.

We've written a whole article about this, but you'd be surprised how many impressive resumes NEVER see the eyes of a human! That's because of a pesky-little thing called an Applicant Tracking System (or ATS for short) that scans and ranks resumes based on their matchability to the job descriptions.

For a company like Meta that's getting hundreds of candidates DAILY, it's extremely important to match their ATS. Meta is one of the most prominent users of Greenhouse, which is a finicky software for a bunch of reasons-- but a big one is that it doesn't recognize verb tenses or abbreviations. For example, if you write Product Management Leader instead of Product Manager, when the description says "Product Manager" it will not give you a match point! Read more examples and our full review writeup here.

Use Linkedin Premium to Find and Reach out to Meta Employees & Recruiters

If you think you have what it takes to work at Meta, it never hurts to reach out to an employee for a referral or a recruiter to get noticed. This is especially relevant if you're looking for an internship and can find the person in charge of recruiting interns.
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We recommend a premium subscription because it allows you to view more profiles and send more Inmails. This way you can locate and reach out to the exact recruiter that works on an area that hosts your target roles. Be funny, and emphasize the work you've done to match with your target role, and take feedback gracefully. Mention Meta's corevalues, and how you'd relate. A little human connection works wonders.

And Finally: Be Patient

It's a weird world out there in the job market. Everyone is getting rejections. Don't let it get to you, and keep upskilling in the process. Someday you'll see you're exactly where you need to be, and on the right path. Good luck!

Because of it's extremely competitive nature, it may be hard to get an entry-level tech role at Meta. It's a great target company for an end-game tech role, but may require some other tech experience first. Be persistent, and be sure to spread your applications around to other similar roles to your target Meta role. You've got this.

Check out their careers page here.

Here at Bridged we are huge fans of stacking micro-certifications to achieve desired career results. We're building a product to make your career planning fun and affordable, and we'd love to talk to YOU! Was this article helpful? Did you land an interview at Meta?

Let us know at hello@getbridged.co