Real, anonymous reports from people who interviewed for Software Engineer at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, newest first and distilled into what to expect across the loop.
I started with a recruiter or admin reaching out to set up a conversation, and the first real step was usually pretty warm and resume-focused. I had informal chats where the questions largely centered on my background and experience, with room to ask about the work and the environment. When it was more explicitly structured, the call stayed around 30 minutes to an hour and mixed in behavioral prompts tied to how I’d work in real situations.
My experience skewed more intense and, to be honest, more narrowly focused than I expected. After an initial screen that felt short and very direct, the questions jumped into technical details and didn’t leave much room for discussion about work style, benefits, or culture. It also felt like the interviewer was looking for someone with a very deep technical history, and the conversation matched that vibe.