OpenAI·Software Engineer

OpenAI Software Engineer interview experience

No offer

Hard

Negative

United StatesPosted Apr 2026 · Candidate report, summarized by Dataford

I made it to a coding stage on a coder pad and managed to pass the technical portion.

Even after that, I was still rejected and didn’t move forward.

Honestly, it felt confusing because the result didn’t match what I thought passing meant. The only takeaway I could really form was that the process seemed to be driven by their internal plans or criteria beyond the single visible coding checkpoint.

I left the experience with low expectations going in, because getting through a coder-style screen didn’t automatically translate into progress. It was a reminder that acceptance isn’t always the same thing as doing well on the part you can see.

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