I've had that happen to me with Coinbase, down-leveled from senior to intermediate halfway through the process (in no part due to my performance on the screen).

I've had that happen to me with Coinbase, down-leveled from senior to intermediate halfway through the process (in no part due to my performance on the screen). Based on their comms, it seemed to have happened for budget reasons: they exhausted their "senior head" budget. Either that, or it was a hardball negotiation tactic (which lost them a head) Leveling is simply a byproduct of your alternatives, not your experience or skills. I bet you that higher paying companies like Stripe/Robinhood have a more even spread, while others need to level people as senior to compete. In my last interview bout, I've had some companies come back with senior leveling _after_ I told them I had competing offers. The blatant reality of "leveling" being tied to your negotiation prowess and not your engineering skill shocked even myself, as cynical as I am. (Edit: I should say that I had a great experience interviewing at Coinbase, and recommend others to do the same)