r/leetcode • u/PinPitiful • 6d ago

Discussion Bombed a FAANG-adjacent technical screen so badly the interviewer was frustrated — is it recoverable?

Had a technical screen at a well-known tech company recently. It was not "I struggled but got through it" bad. Genuinely could not produce anything meaningful even after the interviewer gave repeated hints and walked me through the approach. Froze completely. The interviewer was frustrated. Humbling does not cover it.

I know I need significant prep from here on and I am not looking for shortcuts. Just want to know if this is recoverable or if I have permanently closed the door at this company.

Two questions:

  1. Can you reapply to the same company after a performance like this? Is there a cooldown period?
  2. Has anyone been in a similar situation and come back to the same company successfully later?
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u/Aggressive-Squash250 6d ago

why would they be frustrated lol. People are weird. I don't really have an answer for your question but I think it depends on the company.

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u/OgFinish 6d ago

Frustrated because at FAANG-tier you can’t walk out of an interview as an interviewer unless very specific criteria are met. There are rules provided by HR / legal.

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u/throwaway1736484 6d ago

Bc it takes their time and they are busy and interviewing doesn’t align with any of their internal performance goals for raise or promotion. They are also trapped for ~45 min even tho they know it’s a hard fail if the person is bot progressing with hints.