The E7 level at Facebook refers to the seventh and highest level in the company’s engineering career ladder. Reaching the E7 level signifies that an engineer has mastered their craft and made significant contributions to important projects and technologies at Facebook.
What are the engineering levels at Facebook?
Facebook uses the following engineering levels to classify and progress engineers in their careers:
| Level | Title |
| E1 | Software Engineer |
| E2 | Senior Software Engineer |
| E3 | Staff Software Engineer |
| E4 | Senior Staff Software Engineer |
| E5 | Principal Engineer |
| E6 | Distinguished Engineer |
| E7 | Fellow |
As engineers gain more expertise and make increasing contributions, they progress through the levels, from E1 up to the rare and prestigious E7 Fellow level.
What are the requirements to reach E7?
Reaching the E7 Fellow level at Facebook is extremely challenging and requires meeting stringent criteria:
- Have at least 15 years of relevant industry experience as an engineer or researcher.
- Be recognized industry-wide as a top talent and leader in their field.
- Demonstrate mastery of complex technical skills and knowledge.
- Make significant innovative contributions that have major impact on important products/technologies at Facebook.
- Serve as a role model and inspire/mentor other engineers through their expertise.
- Show expert judgment in making technical decisions that align with business strategy.
In short, E7 Fellows are the cream of the crop technically and have a proven track record of delivering substantial business results through technology innovations.
What are the responsibilities and privileges of an E7 Fellow?
Engineers who attain the E7 level enjoy the following responsibilities and privileges:
- Provide strategic technical guidance for key projects and products.
- Advise engineering directors and VPs on long-term technical investments.
- Represent Facebook as an industry thought leader in their field.
- Inspire and mentor promising engineers throughout the organization.
- Recruit talented engineers to join their teams.
- Have autonomy over their focus areas and projects.
- Access special engineering fellow job codes and compensation packages.
In addition to influencing Facebook’s technical direction, E7 Fellows enjoy deep respect and prestige within the engineering ranks at the company. Their opinions carry tremendous weight when proposing or critiquing major engineering initiatives and technologies.
How many E7 Fellows are at Facebook?
Due to the stringent requirements, there are only a handful of engineers who attain the E7 Fellow level at Facebook. Industry sources estimate there are between 10-30 current E7 Fellows out of Facebook’s thousands of engineers.
Some notable Facebook E7 engineering fellows include:
- Jerome Pesenti – AI Research Lead
- Jay Parikh – Infrastructure VP
- Sean Parent – Software Engineer
- Amjad Masad – Programming Languages Lead
Each of these individuals are pioneers and internationally respected authorities in their respective specializations.
What is the promotion process to reach E7?
Getting promoted to the E7 Fellow level at Facebook involves the following process:
- Meet the requirements of excellence and impact at the E6 Distinguished Engineer level.
- Receive strong recommendations from engineering directors and VPs.
- Be nominated for consideration by the engineering promotion committee.
- Undergo intensive packet reviews, panel interviews, and assessments by engineering promotion committee.
- Receive final approval from Facebook’s CTO and engineering leadership.
Given the prestige of the E7 rank, the promotion process is rigorous and comprehensive. Many outstanding E6 engineers who are strong contenders still do not make the final cut to E7 Fellow.
How is compensation for E7 Fellows structured?
As the pinnacle of the engineering ladder, E7 Fellows at Facebook enjoy lucrative compensation packages, which may include:
– Base salary of $500k – $1 million per year.
– Bonus earning potential of 150% – 300% of base salary.
– $1 million+ worth of Facebook stock grants and refresher grants per year.
– Additional special long-term incentive grants.
Altogether, it is common for E7 Fellows to earn annual total compensation of over $2 million at Facebook. They are richly rewarded for their world-class expertise and contributions.
What types of engineers become E7 Fellows?
Facebook E7 Fellows often specialize in the following crucial technical fields:
– Software infrastructure (databases, networks, distributed systems)
– Mobile/front-end development
– Core data science/machine learning
– Computer vision
– Programming languages/compilers
– Computer architecture
– Information/cyber security
– Privacy/safety
Engineers who become E7 Fellows are able to master highly complex domains and leverage their expertise to enable game-changing products and technologies.
Do engineers require a PhD to reach E7?
While some Facebook E7 Fellows obtained PhDs earlier in their careers, a PhD is not a requirement. There are examples of E7 Fellows like Sean Parent who do not have a PhD.
The key qualifications are being a top technical expert and leader in your field, and making substantial innovations that create major strategic impact. A PhD helps strengthen a candidate’s case but is neither necessary nor sufficient for the E7 promotion.
How long does it take to reach E7 from E1?
The fast-track benchmark timeline to reach E7 Fellow level at Facebook is:
– Reach E1 Software Engineering within 0-2 years out of college.
– Promotions to E2 Senior Engineer and E3 Staff Engineer over next 4-6 years.
– Promotion to E4 Senior Staff Engineer in 6-10 years.
– Promotion to E5 Principal Engineer in 8-12 years.
– Promotion to E6 Distinguished Engineer in 12-15 years.
– Promotion to E7 Fellow in 15+ years.
So optimistically, the climb from E1 to E7 may take around 15 years for the very top performers. But it often takes outstanding engineers longer than 15 years – promotion to E7 is more about overall career impact than just time served.
Do all companies use the same engineering levels as Facebook?
No, engineering levels and titles vary significantly between tech companies. While some companies like Google also use E1 – E7 engineering levels, many have different systems, such as:
– Microsoft: Software Development Engineer (SDE) – SDE II – Senior SDE – Principal SDE – Partner SDE
– Amazon: Software Development Engineer – Senior SDE – Principal SDE – Distinguished SDE
– Apple: IC1 – IC2 – IC3 – IC4 – IC5 – IC6
So “E7” specifically refers to the Fellow level only at Facebook’s eng hierarchy. But each company will still have advanced engineering expert levels equivalent to Facebook’s E7, with similar exclusivity and compensation.
Conclusion
In summary, E7 Fellow is the zenith of engineering achievement at Facebook. It signifies an engineer has mastered their domain and made substantial technical innovations with proven business impact. Due to the selective criteria and rigorous promotion process, few engineers reach this apex after careers spanning 15+ years. E7 Fellows enjoy prestige within Facebook and rich compensation packages over $2 million per year. They provide vital strategic guidance at the company while remaining hands-on technical leaders.