Academia to Industry: Meta UXR interview process and preps

Since May, I work as a Qualitative UX Researcher at WhatsApp, and I wanted to share my interview experience and the resources I found useful during the preparation. This list is not exhaustive, and things I found helpful might not be relevant to someone else. Moreover, this post is about Qualitative UXR interview preparation, and the process and requirements for other positions - for example, Quantitative UXR - could be different. Finally, I was quite anxious, so I might have forgotten something right after the last interview :)

Lengthy Background

Education background: I have Engineering and Computer Science Master’s degrees, Ph.D. in human-computer interaction (usable privacy and security, digital health).

Up to two years post-PhD, I always imagined myself on the academic career track. I knew it was hard to reach a tenured prof position, but the path was more or less clear (as well as the struggle), and for some reason, I did not doubt it. It’s funny because, since my Master’s degree internship and thesis, I have always collaborated with industrial partners, but usually I was an academic person on the team and not “on-site”.

My mindset changed during the pandemic when I realized how much I define myself through my work and how much space it takes up in my life. It was hard to answer the question “If I am not a researcher, then who am I?” Then, I also started reflecting on the academic career path and what it takes, I knew I probably have it but I was not sure I want to give it. Geographical location and personal factors entered the scene as well, I wanted to choose where to live with my partner, and not to move my entire life wherever I find the next position. Back then, I was in Ireland, and I knew it was not the country for our long-term plans, even though there were plenty of positions for someone in computer science: both in academia and in industry.

My first postdoc contract was ending, and I started applying for postdoc, assistant professor, and UX researcher positions in companies. The complicating factors were the “two-body problem” and the preference for geographical locations. Long story short, we both got postdocs at Aalto University, and here I talk about this transition (enthusiastically).

Still, the doubts about the academic career remained and grew, I met many assistant professors and learned about their struggles. I attended numerous panel discussions and talks on the “academia vs industry” in computer science, some friends switched from postdocs to companies, and I decided to give it a try (here is a bit more on those reflections). Next, I describe my process and the resources I used to prepare for the interviews.

My set-up for the virtual “onsite” interview

The process, briefly

First of all, I had a referral to Meta, which definitely helped me to get that first call with the recruiter. I had a great recruiter who provided a detailed description of the whole process, what questions will be asked, and what to expect. That was the most transparent and smooth hiring experience I ever had. Briefly, the steps were the following:

  1. A call with HR to talk about my CV with general questions about my experience and skills (based on what I put in my CV) and general info on the position (no defined team at this point).

  2. 45 mins UXR interview

  3. Virtual on-site starting from my presentation (I chose my Ph.D. project) and followed by 3 back-to-back interviews 45 mins each (UXR skills, communication and collaboration, and product sense). Usually, the interview process ends here.

  4. Additional 45-mins interview on UXR skills

Here are the articles that describe the UXR hiring process better than I would. They also provide a compilation of possible questions, and those were relevant:
- https://prepfully.com/interview-guides/facebook-ux-researcher
- https://blog.prototypr.io/cracking-the-ux-researcher-interview-81a797e86e62
- https://medium.com/@eleonorazucconi/46-interview-questions-for-user-experience-researchers-at-google-amazon-microsoft-and-facebook-c582827267b9
+ I strongly recommend checking glassdoor.com where people share questions they were asked during the interviews.

The resources

When I was preparing for the UXR interview and virtual on-site interviews, I was quite confident about my UXR skills from my Ph.D. and postdoc experiences, especially from my industrial collaborations. What I was not sure about is how to “pack” all this knowledge into concise and clear blocks or answers. I also wanted to learn more about the research process and type of projects at Meta to understand how I would fit in and tackle them.

Here are several resources I found useful. My preparation and using these were not focused on learning or improving UXR skills but rather on adapting the academic experience to the industrial context.

YouTube channels that I found useful and inspiring.

Facebook groups about academia -> industry transition and UXR

UX Research blogs I was reading to learn how to structure UXR knowledge and learn about UX research at Meta

Interview mockups and mentoring

I am extremely grateful to my network for all the help I have received, including the time they spent on my mockup interviews. First of all, I reached out to my network: those who were in the industry initially and those who moved from academia to industry. Another extremely helpful resource is ADPList, a mentoring network. I have had extremely insightful discussions and learned lots of tips that helped me during the interviews.

Honest discussions about “academia or industry” careers were also helpful to have a realistic idea of what to expect and whether it is something I personally would like to do.

My two cents on academic experience relevant to the industry

During my PhD and the postdocs, I strongly overestimated the achievements and results that are published and underestimated all the rest: skills, experiences, ability to tackle complex research topics, communication, problem-solving skills, etc. I guess it’s clear why: publications are - sadly - still the most important criteria of one’s career success in academia. Looking back, I realize that was not fair to me. My Ph.D. and postdocs were hard, sometimes opportunistic or lacking clear strategy (I was working on multiple projects and related topics), but I learned a lot. For instance, I went on internships in the Philippines and Paraguay that lasted 3 months each (minus 6 months from a 3-year limited PhD, not a joke) and they did not result in one single publication, but what I learned in those field studies is invaluable.

Here are my recommendations, which are definitely not too wise but I will give them anyways:

  • Consider all options, do not restrict your PhD to academia only or allow the idea that you might change your mind.

  • Keep a record of the experiences and skills you learn that might be relevant beyond the academic track, you never know what will be useful in the future.

  • Engage in industrial collaborations in a way that you can and makes sense to you

  • Do not underestimate “unpublished” or “not publishable” outputs of your work

Best of luck to those considering or undertaking the academia-industry UXR transition!

Leysan Nurgalievaacademia vs industry, academic career, ux researchComment