Chatting with Apple software engineer, Aygerim Sauletkhan
Aygerim Sauletkhan is a software engineer at Apple and runs a JIT algorithm problem solving meetup in Palo Alto. Before joining Apple, Aygerim was a computer science student pursuing a career in full stack web development. Originally from Mongolia, she moved to the United States at 17 years old, and she currently lives in Palo Alto, California.
These are the highlights of her AMA on Elpha, where women in tech talk candidly online. You can check out the entirety of the conversation on Elpha.
Q: Which companies you think are friendliest to new grads? What should they be looking for in an employer?
Aygerim: As a new grad, I thought about what I genuinely value and excites me and found companies that align with it. I am sure that there are certainly other ways to differentiate oneself from the competition depending on the stages: landing phone interview, technical phone interview, on-site etc. From my personal experience, the technical skill (problem solving — leetcode, reading about design questions, performance and UI issues) and the ability to clearly articulate thoughts in real-time are most important to land an on-site where authenticity, communication / collaboration / problem solving skills, enthusiasm gets assessed. I used different sources including Key Values, Reddit, TechCrunch to learn more about companies.
From my personal experience, the technical skill and the ability to clearly articulate thoughts in real-time are most important to land an on-site where authenticity, communication / collaboration / problem solving skills, enthusiasm gets assessed.
Q: What has been your experience given your background/culture and what is your advice to young women who are considering or have not yet considered this path from regions like Mongolia?
Aygerim: There are more opportunities in US than in Mongolia. I think life in Silicon Valley is amazing, but at the same time it’s far from the reality. My background has been a great reminder for me to be aware and grateful in my fast-paced life. As I’ve mentioned, I came into my career with some experience in computer science, but I didn’t have the same path as some my friends who knew they wanted to do CS for a long time. I think anyone can code given little exposure and practice. So starting with the right mindset should make one sustainably resilient towards self-doubts, failures and what not. Incrementally keep learning everyday and never giving up is what I would say!
After failing my first couple interviews, I altered my mindset about interviews as a learning experience rather than the key for job.
Q: Have there been times when you questioned whether you’d succeed at getting a job or something else?
Aygerim: Of course, many! After failing my first couple interviews, I altered my mindset about interviews as a learning experience rather than the key for job.
Q: What made you choose Apple when your were job-hunting, and what other places did you consider?
Aygerim: The fact that Apple owns both hardware and software and its ability to set technological standards was one advantage. I was specifically interested in user facing web applications. Two things about iCloud made me choose Apple.
- iCloud’s mission of the providing the best user experience and the value it provides through syncing and securely storing one’s data across devices was perfectly aligned with what I valued and wanted to invest my time in.
- Not only everyone from my team but a lot of people from different teams under iCloud came to lunch during my on-site. That was surprising and was a great opportunity for me to get to know the organization more. Now I can see that iCloud is one of the most cross-functional collaborative teams and I have already worked on different projects with different teams without having to change my manager or team. As a new grad, I think it’s the best learning experience I can get.
Q: Which criteria do you assess while hiring engineers at Apple?
Aygerim: The most critical criteria that I use during interviews:
- Problem solving — analytical skill, understanding of CS concepts
- Communication skill — collaboration skills
- Ability to learn quickly
- What you value, and passion for industry
Want more of this? Join Elpha. So you can ask questions, share resources and get advice from a community of women in tech.
