SEVENTH ROUND AND THEY HIRED INTERNALLY

ok. deep breath. let me write this properly.

SDET role at a Pune product company. not my old company, a different one, good reviews, good team. i was so careful with this one. here is the loop:

1. HR screen
2. online test (java + SQL)
3. automation framework design: playwright, API testing, how i'd structure test data, CI integration
4. live DSA, two mediums
5. hiring manager round
6. director "culture fit" round
7. "one final chat with the VP, just a formality"

FIVE WEEKS. i cleared every single round. the hiring manager said "you're exactly what we need". the director said "looking forward to working with you". the VP chat was 25 minutes and mostly about cricket.

yesterday the email: "after careful consideration we have decided to move forward with an internal candidate."

AN INTERNAL CANDIDATE. WHO WAS PRESUMABLY INTERNAL FOR ALL FIVE WEEKS.

kay re. seriously. kay.

and today there was a family function. three separate relatives asked "job ka kya hua". one uncle suggested i "try for government job, safe hai". i smiled and ate four gulab jamuns.

what i learned (after the gulab jamuns)

• ask upfront: "how many rounds, and is there an internal candidate being considered?" they may not answer honestly but sometimes the pause tells you
• ask for the timeline in round 1 and hold them to it
• do not stop applying during a long loop. i slowed down for these five weeks because i was "almost there". mistake. biggest one.
• the referral economy is real. all 3 of my final rounds since march came from referrals, zero from cold applications

count since march: 302 applications. 7 months. still here. bas, that's all. going to sleep for 12 hours.