Let's understand CS candidate hierarchy! Not all software engineering candidates are treated equally - tech recruiters and engineering managers have a clear priority system.
Your path into their hiring pipeline determines your chances of getting that technical interview and ultimately landing the role.
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Think of a CS job you applied for—what factor do you believe influenced whether you heard back?
Referrals sit at the top of every tech recruiter's priority list. When a current engineer recommends someone, that candidate immediately jumps ahead of everyone else.
Tech companies know referrals convert to hires 5x more often than other sources, especially for technical roles.
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Why do you think employee referrals have such high success rates in tech?
After referrals come direct applications - developers who apply directly through the company's careers page or reach out to engineering managers personally.
These candidates show genuine interest in that specific tech company and its engineering culture, not just any coding job.
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How would you demonstrate genuine tech company interest in a direct application?
Next are external tech recruiter submissions. These candidates didn't seek out the company specifically, but a recruiter matched their technical skills to the role.
While recruiter-submitted candidates are pre-screened for technical fit, they're often shopping multiple opportunities simultaneously, which reduces commitment perception.
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What's one downside of being presented by an external tech recruiter?
At the bottom are cold applications - developers who blast their resume to hundreds of software engineering postings without research or customization.
These get the least attention because they show no specific interest in the company's tech stack or engineering challenges.
