Before everything else, know why you're applying to Google. "Cause it's cool" is not gonna get you in, and there are a couple of other cool companies out there that could make you happier depending on your personality. You might want to try something else if ambiguity, volatility, and question marks make you feel uneasy, or if lots and lots of travelling is gonna keep you away from your tightly packed family.
Second, check out our offices across the globe, and their departments which differ a lot in terms of the working environment, and the projects carried out. I've been in touch with most of them, been visiting or working in different locations, so feel free to ask me if you're in doubt. You could also watch the Life at Google videos for a quick adrenalin pump. The abundance of food, colored walls and shiny balls are merely carrots for the youth. The real attraction is the possibility of working for a capitalist corporation, and yet, having the opportunity and the sources to change the world for good.
Now get real and note down three positions you want to apply, but take their prerequisites very seriously. There are hundreds of possibilities here so don't waste your time, hope and energy on obvious rejections. Next, send me your CV.
The procedure is pretty straightforward after that. You're called up for a 30 min phone screen if your CV makes it through the system. Then individual onsite interviews follow, quiet predictable, but you'll have 5 to 12 of them, which is the challenge. It does sound scary, but interviews are much fun. Your personality is put to test more than your cv-filler achievements, so if you're comfortable with who you are and with the asks of the position, you have little to worry about. I'm not saying it's easy, and it's not. But it's not inhumane, unfair or brutal. Plus, your CV is re-evaluated for other positions if you don't get in at the first or the second round. Timing is of little importance if you are patient enough to join the curious crowd.
