A Reddit user has ignited a heated online debate after claiming to have received a confidential internal hiring memo from a recruiter. The leaked document, which surfaced on Reddit two days ago, allegedly details the company’s strict candidate selection process, sparking concerns over elitism and exclusion in tech hiring.
Strict Selection Criteria Favoring Elite Universities
According to the leaked memo, ideal candidates must hold a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science from top-tier institutions such as MIT, Stanford, Carnegie Mellon, UC Berkeley, Caltech, UIUC, and the University of Waterloo. The document further states that exceptions could be made for graduates from other schools, but only if they achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA. Additionally, candidates are required to have between four to ten years of software development experience, with expertise in modern JavaScript (TypeScript, NodeJS, ReactJS) and AI/LLMs.
Recruiter accidently emailed me her secret internal selection guidelines 👀
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Blacklisted Companies and Employment Restrictions
One of the most controversial aspects of the memo is the explicit exclusion of candidates from major tech firms and consulting backgrounds. The document reportedly includes a blacklist of companies such as Intel, Cisco, HP, TCS, Tata, Mahindra, Infosys, Capgemini, Dell, Cognizant, and Wipro, stating that individuals with past employment at these firms are “not the right fit.”
The memo also imposes nationality-based hiring restrictions, stating that visa sponsorships will not be offered. Only U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and Canadians are eligible to apply.
Viral Reaction and Industry Backlash
The Reddit user who leaked the memo expressed frustration at the hiring policies, calling them “pretentious and elitist.” Despite personally meeting most of the listed criteria, he found the document troubling and exclusionary. The post quickly gained traction, with many users sharing their own experiences of being overlooked by similar hiring practices. One commenter noted, “I work for a big company and have been trying to move into tech for years, but they only hire from certain universities.”
Adding to the discussion, an ex-L7 Facebook engineer weighed in, suggesting that such selective hiring is common and that top-tier CS schools remain the primary path for early-career jobs in software development.
Debate Over the Memo’s Authenticity
While many users were outraged, some questioned the memo’s legitimacy, accusing the Reddit user of fabricating the guidelines. However, Michael Novati, a moderator of the subreddit “codingbootcamp” and a former Facebook employee, defended the post’s credibility. Novati confirmed that the original poster had provided additional confidential evidence supporting the document’s authenticity. While he admitted that it is impossible to verify the memo with absolute certainty, he stated, “If I had to guess, I’d say it’s more likely real than fake.”
As discussions continue, the controversy sheds light on the challenges of breaking into the tech industry and raises concerns over biased hiring practices within elite firms.
