How To Get A Job At Microsoft

Chances are, you’ve used at least one of Microsoft’s laptops, cell phones, Xbox game systems, or other electronic devices at some point.

Or, maybe you’ve used one of the company’s software programs. Microsoft Office Suite and a plethora of other programs are used in homes and companies worldwide.

It takes a significant workforce (about 163,000 employees, actually) to produce all of this while researching and developing new ideas, so there are generally many jobs available at the company.

If you want to work for Microsoft, keep reading to find out how to apply to an open position and tips on making a good impression with your resume and in your interview.

Types of Job Opportunities at Microsoft

While many of the jobs available at Microsoft are technology-based, this isn’t the case for all of them. Microsoft still needs accountants, HR representatives, marketers, and more, so be sure to keep an eye out for opportunities that fit your skills.

How To Find and Apply for a Job at Microsoft

When it comes to finding a job opening at Microsoft, your best bet will be to look at Microsoft’s Careers website.

Here, you can choose whether you want to peruse opportunities appropriate for students and recent graduates or openings for those who are farther along in their careers.

For students and recent graduates, Microsoft offers scholarship programs and internships in addition to full-time jobs. Microsoft will direct you toward positions that will fit with and further your career for more experienced professionals.

Once you’re on either of those pages, you can search for positions by location (Microsoft has a presence in over 100 countries), discipline, or both. Both pages are structured differently, but each one will guide you to where you want to go.

When you find a position you’re interested in, click on it to access the details, job description, and link to the application. You can also save positions you find interesting or create an account to get personalized job recommendations.

Microsoft even encourages you to apply for multiple positions if there is more than one that interests you. If you decide you don’t want one of the jobs you applied for, you can always withdraw your application.

You’ll need to create an account when you want to start an application, but you can use your LinkedIn, Facebook, or Google information to do so if you don’t have or want to create a Microsoft-specific account.

Once you have this account, it will walk you through completing an application and submitting your resume and other documents. You can also see your application status, withdraw an application, or submit an updated resume through this same account.

As you fill out your application, note that Microsoft does have a referral program, so if you know someone who already works at the company, be sure to ask them to refer you for the position you’re applying for.

Advice for Writing Your Resume and Cover Letter

Writing a resume and cover letter can be tricky, but luckily for you, Microsoft shares what it wants to see from these documents.

Like most companies, Microsoft wants you to use your resume and cover letter to talk about your strengths, applicable skills, and accomplishments.

The company says that while it does want you to share the responsibilities you had at previous roles, it also wants to hear about the projects and achievements you made while there. It even says you can include project samples as attachments if you want.

Microsoft also encourages applicants to share their non-work-related activities such as volunteer work or extracurricular activities. These help hiring managers to gain insight into your drive and love of learning and your personality and passions.

As you choose which experiences and skills to share, keep in mind the points on the description of the job you’re applying for as well as these other qualities Microsoft looks for in its employees:

• Desire to learn

• High intelligence

• Passion for technology

• Willingness to work hard

• Solid skills

• Entrepreneurial spirit

• Desire to excel

As much as you can, frame your qualifications in a way that demonstrates how you exhibit these traits and how your skills match the ones listed on the job description.

All of this content takes up some space, so even though it typically is a good idea to keep your resume to just one page, Microsoft says more than one page is acceptable. Just be sure to include the most important information on the first page.

Preparing for Your Interview At Microsoft

Once you apply, you’ll hopefully be invited to an interview. If you are, Microsoft’s Careers website provides some valuable information on how to prepare for your job interview no matter what role you’re applying to. Here are the tips the company shares:

1. Ensure you understand Microsoft, the team you’re interviewing with, and the particular position you’re applying for. Research Microsoft’s strengths, its competitors, and what makes it unique, then learn as much as you can about the particular job you’re applying for and the team you’d be a part of in that role.

   Ask yourself what you could add to that team and why you want to be a part of it. Practice answering those questions as if you were in an interview because you’ll likely have to answer similar ones.

   This is also a good opportunity to come up with some questions for your interviewer about the company because there’s a 99.99% chance that the last question of the day will be, “What questions do you have for me?” You never want to answer that one with a “Nothing.”

   Just make sure you couldn’t answer the questions you ask with a quick internet search.

2. Study Microsoft’s core competencies and how you fit into them. Microsoft kindly shares that many of the interview questions you’ll encounter will be based on your resume and on the company’s core competencies, which are:

   • Collaboration

   • Drive for results

   • Customer focus

   • Influencing for impact

   • Judgment

   • Adaptability

   As you prepare for your interview, think about how you’ve demonstrated these in your life and career.

   If you can come prepared with specific examples or at least train yourself to answer questions in a way that focuses on these core competencies, your interview will go much more smoothly, and you will leave a much better impression.

3. Get to know Microsoft’s culture. Companies want to hire employees who naturally fit with their corporate and team cultures.

   These employees have a better chance of sticking around for the long term and are easier to onboard and propel their teams forward rather than dragging them down.

   Because of this, you’re going to be asked questions that are intended to see if you fit Microsoft’s cultural values:

   • Growth mindset: “True learners who can acquire new skills rapidly and connect with others to help bring big ideas to life.”

   • Diverse and inclusive: “Being open to learning about your own biases and changing behaviors accordingly. Value differences, seek them out, and invite them in.”

   • Values: “When we come together, we treat each other with respect, we act with integrity, and we are accountable to one another for our words and actions.”

   • Manager expectations: “Our Managers help bring our culture to life. As they model, coach, and care, they help reinforce our culture and create the environment where everyone can do their best work.”

   Just like you did with the core competencies, think through how you’ve demonstrated these cultural expectations in your work history or personal life. If you can, come up with some specific examples that you can share if need be.

4. Think through your future career goals. At almost any interview you attend, you’ll find yourself having to answer a question like, “Where do you see yourself in five years?”

   Microsoft is known for moving and promoting people within its organization, so you’re even more likely to need to have an answer to this question ready to go.

   Prepare your answer by really thinking about where you’d like to be in the future. If you need to, you can even look up other job descriptions at Microsoft to get some ideas.

Tips for Interview Day

Once you’ve prepared for your interview, it’s time for the actual meeting(s). A typical interview process at Microsoft includes a series of hour-long, one-on-one meetings with three to six different people. These meetings may be virtual, in-person, or a combination of both.

If you’re traveling to your interview site, your interview may last up to three days and two nights so that you can get to know the area before you decide to accept a job and move there.

On its Careers website, Microsoft shares some tips for how to help your meetings go smoothly and how to make a good impression:

1. Remember that authenticity is important. Microsoft states, “We value authenticity and unique perspectives” and even encourages applicants to dress however they’re most comfortable instead of choosing an outfit to impress.

   This doesn’t mean that you should show up in jeans and a grungy tee shirt, but it also doesn’t mean that you should only wear that suit that you keep in the back of your closet for interviews. Instead, dress in a way that makes you feel like yourself while still looking polished and professional.

   This tip from Microsoft is also a good clue that you should let your personality shine as you interact with your interviewers while still being courteous.

2. Show that you know how to think. Microsoft shares that it wants you to know how to think more than it wants you to be an expert on a product or even in your field. (Although having a solid base of knowledge is also important.)

   To test this, your interviewers will likely ask you to solve a problem. This could mean anything from developing code to solving an interpersonal conflict, depending on the role you’re pursuing.

   No matter what the specific question is, as you answer, make sure you demonstrate your thought process, as hiring managers are just as, if not more, interested in seeing how that plays out as they are in your final answer.

   Ask questions to clarify the problem and what type of solution they’re looking for, share any assumptions you’re making as you solve the problem, and explain why you came to the solution you did.

   If you don’t know the answer, say so, but don’t just stop there. Continue to ask questions to try to figure it out or, at the very least, explain what you’d do to find the answer.

3. Share specific examples. The third tip Microsoft gives for acing your interview is to use the STAR(R) method to structure your answers. This is especially useful for those situational or behavioral interview questions that start with “Tell me about…” or “Describe a time when….”

   Think of a specific example of how you’ve used that skill or solved that problem and follow the STAR(R) acronym as you tell your story:

   • Situation

   • Task

   • Action

   • Result

   • Reflection

4. Ask for a timeline. As your interview wraps up, Microsoft recommends that interviewees ask their interviewers what the next steps will look like and when they’ll hear back.

   This is a good reference point for you so that you’ll know approximately how long you’ll need to wait and aren’t just in the dark, wondering if you should follow up or not.

5. Send a thank-you note. Microsoft also recommends that you send a note of thanks to your recruiter after your interview, as it will then make its way to hiring managers. This isn’t just a polite thing to do; it’s also a great way to do something to solidify your good impression and potentially set yourself apart from other candidates.

Skills Assessments to Prepare For

No matter what job you’re applying for, be ready to demonstrate your hard skills in your interview, whether that’s by giving examples of successful projects, providing a portfolio of your creative work, or simply explaining how you’d approach a difficult situation.

If you’re applying for a more technical role at Microsoft, you should be prepared for an interview focused on evaluating your job-specific skills.

So that you can prepare for this technical interview, Microsoft provides a list of examples of areas you might be tested in. This list isn’t comprehensive, but it’s a good starting point:

1. Engineering lifecycle

   • Problem-solving

   • Design

   • Coding

   • Testing

2. Technical excellence

   • Algorithms

   • Data structures

   • System design and distributed systems

   • Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning

   • Data science

   • Computer networking

Microsoft’s Technical Interviews page on its Careers website provides more details on each of these categories if you’d like more information. You can find the link to the Technical Interviews page on the Interview Tips page.

Five Common Interview Questions You Might Encounter

No matter what type of job you’re applying for, it’s a good idea to practice answering some commonly asked interview questions before you head to your meeting. Here are five that you’ll likely encounter in some form or another during your interview at Microsoft:

1. Why do you want to work at Microsoft?

   This is a common question that you’ll likely encounter early on in your interview process. It’s a chance for you to show off your research by explaining what you admire about the company and what you could learn from it and add to it.

   Hiring managers often ask this because they want to see that you’re invested in the organization and aren’t just applying blindly. They also want to know that you’ll be a team player and work to better the organization, not just your own career.

2. Tell me about an obstacle you faced at work. How did you respond?

   This is a great opportunity to use the STAR method in your answer. Talk about a situation that arose, the obstacle you had to overcome, the steps you took to overcome it, and the results of your actions.

   If you can’t think of a work-related obstacle, that’s okay. You can talk about an obstacle you overcame in school or during your volunteer work.

   No matter what example you use, the most important thing to highlight is the steps you took to overcome the problem. Hiring managers want to see that you’re a problem-solver and won’t just give up when something gets tough.

3. Why did you apply for this role?

   Similar to the question about why you want to work at Microsoft, hiring managers ask this because they want to see that you’ve done your research, that you’re invested in the company, and that you’re passionate about the role. Your answer will also help them better understand whether your personality and skill set are suited for the position.

4. Tell me about a time you collaborated with others.

   Again, stick with the STAR method as you answer and layout the steps you took to work as a team.

   Be sure to explain the results of your actions, whether that’s that your team got the project done, solved the problem, won an award, or got your proposal approved. A successful result gives the rest of your story credence.

5. How would you explain something technical to someone who had no frame of reference for what you were talking about?

   You might encounter a more specific version of this question depending on the position you’re applying for. Still, it’s good to be prepared to describe your communication process no matter what field you’re in.

   Interviewers don’t just want to hear the answer you’d give, though. They want to see how you go about thinking through what you’re going to say.

   If possible, share an anecdote demonstrating how you’ve done this in real life. If you can’t give a specific example, just walk them through how you’d go about explaining the information.

Author

Abby McCain

Abby is a writer who is passionate about the power of story. Whether it’s communicating complicated topics in a clear way or helping readers connect with another person or place from the comfort of their couch. Abby attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she earned a degree in writing with concentrations in journalism and business.