At WHOOP, we’re looking for engineers who are not only technically strong, but also a great addition to our culture. We care deeply about building teams where people feel motivated, empowered, and aligned with our mission to unlock human performance. In this post, I’ll walk through the application and interview process and share some tips to help you shine. As a bonus, I will also talk about using AI tools in the process. Even if you’re applying elsewhere, much of this advice still applies.
Application
The standard way to apply is to go to the careers website. Submit your resume, maybe a cover letter and done, right?
But here’s what’s not always obvious: a large number of candidates we talk to came through other channels. Some reached out directly to WHOOP employees via LinkedIn. Others met us at in-person or virtual career fairs. And, one of the most effective paths is through a referral, someone at WHOOP who knows your work and thinks you’d be a culture add.
Regardless of how you apply, a clean, concise resume matters. Aim for one to two pages. Tailor it to highlight relevant skills, and be specific about what you accomplished and the results. I recommend checking out the (STAR) (Situation, Task, Action, Result) if you haven’t already.
We’re also seeing more candidates use AI tools to polish their resumes or brainstorm how to describe past projects. That’s fair game! Just be sure the final version reflects your own voice and actual experience.
As for cover letters, I read every one. Since alignment with our mission and values is a big part of what we look for, I want to hear what drives you. This isn’t the place to rehash your resume. Instead, tell us something personal, what challenges you’ve overcome, how you found your way into engineering, or how you relate to WHOOP’s mission.
Interview
Congrats, you’re in the interview process! This is a chance for both sides to get to know each other. Our interviews are generally split into two areas: Technical and Behavioral. Depending on the role, you may go through multiple sessions to cover both thoroughly.
Technical
We look for strong fundamentals, and our technical interviews are designed to simulate how we work together in real life. We focus on coding, architecture, and problem-solving, but we steer clear of brainteasers or puzzles. We’ve found those aren’t great predictors of success at WHOOP. These types of questions also don’t work.
Instead, we want to collaborate with you on a real life problem and see how you approach it, communicate, and iterate. Think of it as a working session, not a test.
We encourage the use of AI tools during interviews as it’s now a part of modern development workflows. It’s also not expected that you be an expert with them, and using them won’t help or hurt your candidacy. What we care about most is the output and how well you understand what you’re generating. We may ask which tools you’re using, what specific parts of the generated code do, and what prompts you used. That helps us see how you reason through the problem and whether you can effectively work with these tools as part of a team.
Here are some tips to help you prepare:
- Think out loud – Let us hear your thought process. Practice talking through a problem with a friend or mentor. It helps!
- Ask questions – Make sure you understand the problem fully. If you stay silent, you might miss key context or build the wrong thing. We care more about a product mindset than just shipping code.
- Take the hints – If your interviewer suggests something, don’t ignore it. They’re helping you navigate. We want to see that you can collaborate and adapt.
- Start simple, then optimize – Don’t chase the perfect solution from the start. Build something that works first, then improve it if there’s time.
- Be honest – If you’re stuck, just say so. We’d rather work through it with you than see you get flustered trying to fake it.
Behavioral
This type of interview is where we get to know you as a teammate. We’re looking for engineers who are thoughtful, humble, and passionate. We do not hire programmers who are jerks. You don’t need to have the most experience in the room, but we do want to see that you’ll raise the bar for the team around you.
- Have a 2-minute pitch – Share your background, key projects, and why you’re excited about WHOOP.
- Come with stories – Think about moments where you led a tough project, dealt with ambiguity, or collaborated through conflict. Use the STAR format to keep it focused.
- Do your research – Read our engineering blog, WHOOP Locker, or follow us on Instagram. Having context helps you ask better questions and shows us you care about our mission.
- Ask questions – Don’t hold back. Ask about our tech stack, team culture, roadmap, whatever matters to you. It’s your interview too.
Final Thoughts
Applying and interviewing can be stressful. I still get nervous myself. But with some creativity and persistence, you can stand out. Use all the tools available to you whether friends, mentors, guides, and even AI to help you prepare and interview. Just don’t lose sight of what matters most: being yourself, staying curious, and aligning with the mission of where you want to work.
We know you’re taking time out of your life to apply and interview. We appreciate that. And, we’re genuinely excited to meet great people who want to grow, solve hard problems, and build something meaningful with us.
If that sounds like you, check out our open positions!