Software Development Engineer - Software Engineer Amazon Employee Review

1.0
Oct 17, 2012
Recommend
Business Outlook

Pros

Salary well above industry average. I also find agile development practices such as scrum and continuous delivery being very motivating.

Cons

From the start, the recruiting process is deceitful. I was approached by the recruiter. I told her I am only interested if I could be placed in an intermediate but not beginner position. Instead of telling me I may not be qualified to intermediate position, she sign me up for an SDE I anyway. I should have suspected it when my interview questions are standard algorithm/design questions that I could answered in my sleep. Then, I realized being SDE I is the least of my problems. I spend 80% of my time doing operational task and 20% on programming tasks. I am sucking at my job because I suck at operational tasks. Instead of testing me in computer science they should test me how well I can follow a huge amount of trivial instructions. But there is no possibility of changing position until I am here for 1 year. 1 year does not sound that long right? It's only been 4.5 months and my blood pressure has already went up. I can't quit my job either. I would have to pay back the relocation expense, which they did NOT explicitly mentioned in my contract.

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5.0
May 17, 2026
Recommend
Business Outlook

Pros

-Great team and manager -Lots of resources to learn -Flexible

Cons

-Pace can be brutal -Can have lots of meetings

5.0
Jan 10, 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
Business Outlook

Pros

Really smart people, a lot of opportunity for growth, always encouraged to be innovative, think big, and create something new. Competitive salary and benefits with other major tech companies. 100% self motivating work environment. No dress code and 4 legged friends are welcome.

Cons

You have to be self motivated. NO ONE will hold your hand and tell you that you're doing a great job. If you need constant affirmations from management, this company isn't for you.

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