Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

On asking job candidates to code

philcalcado.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

371–380 of 524 posts

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#371

Post by [deleted] »

ElysianEagle wrote: post #294
jetcata wrote: post #157

I am in the midst of my job search, fortunately I'm not currently working (due to an international move) so I have more time. So far, I have completed around 12 1 hour phone coding tests, the same amount of 30 min chats with recruiters, I have 8x 5 hour on-sites scheduled, have spent about 4 long days on one take-home assignment, 6-8 hours on another, and have two more assignments to complete, both of which I estimat…

> This process has made me consider changing careers because it's so exhausting. Me too. I'm so put off by the entire process but it seems that to stay relevant, you have to get lucky and end up at a place that keeps your skills up-to-date with opportunities to learn and use the latest tech, or you jump ship every 2-3 years meaning you're once again dealing with this insane pressure of interviewing. Throw in ageism o…

[deleted]

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#372

Post by blakeyrat »

kazinator wrote: post #239
dominotw wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had nightmare of a interview experience with AirBnb in 2012. They asked me take 2 days off from work and fly all the way to SFO after I wasted couple of hours doing their coding homework. The first interviewer started with "your degree is not from a good school" like the very first sentence right to my face. He then asked me a string matching question, and insisted that I code up his brute force solution (with terr…

That's just incredibly rude. My degree's not from a good school? That's nothing; your shirt didn't exactly come off the best dressed mannequin in the Sears window.

I think just asking for a degree (in a computer-related field) is kind of a dumb idea. I don't have a degree, and I'm very successful at my software development job. The best programmer I know has a degree in Psychology; another has a degree in Biology.

From my own experience as an interviewer, "has a degree" was absolutely not even a factor when determining who was good and who wasn't.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#373

Post by solids »

dominotw wrote: post #215
ryandrake wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Often the "information sideband" is the very fact that the company decided to cut off all communication as a way to convey rejection. If they treat random people that way, how do you think they treat people who are obligated to be on their worksite every day? Companies: DON'T DO THIS! I, for one, actively discourage smart friends from interviewing at places that treat candidates like shit.

I had nightmare of a interview experience with AirBnb in 2012. They asked me take 2 days off from work and fly all the way to SFO after I wasted couple of hours doing their coding homework. The first interviewer started with "your degree is not from a good school" like the very first sentence right to my face. He then asked me a string matching question, and insisted that I code up his brute force solution (with terr…

There is no job in the world that can keep me in the building after hearing that insult.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#374

Post by jmiserez »

dpeck wrote: post #90

I just instituted a coding assignment with our hiring (exceptions made for those with extensive github/similar open source contributions), and so far only have had three candidates do it, but I'm a fan. Mine is crafted so a really competent developer could get it done in 30 minutes, and intermediate 2 hours and a junior probably not finish. I tell them to send what they have in after two hours that I'm as interested…

>I tell them to send what they have in after two hours that I'm as interested in seeing the structure and thought process than the final result.

While this seems like a good idea on paper, you know that people are not going to stop after 2 hours unless you force them to (i.e. by doing the assignment on-site).

>get it done in 30 minutes, and intermediate 2 hours and a junior probably not finish.

What kind of exercise could a junior programmer not finish? Give up or produce miserable code sure, but not being able to finish? Do you require some really strange domain-specific knowledge?

PS: The website in your profile doesn't seem to be working.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#375

Post by blakeyrat »

dominotw wrote: post #167
jcadam wrote: post #89

A couple of months ago I did a 'homework' assignment for an interview (it involved writing a simple REST service in go, even though I have at least one personal project demonstrating exactly this skill -- to an even greater degree -- in my github profile). During the phone-discussion after turning in the project, the mid 20-something lead developer couldn't find anything to nitpick (I could have) and even told me he…

I've noticed that your github profile doesn't even get looked at until you jump through all the standard phonescreen/homework hoops. Even after than many interviewers look at your resume like 10 minutes before the interview there is no chance that they would read through your code on github. github as your resume is overrated. I am curious to know if people hire or get hired purely based on their github profile witho…

I'm a professional software developer. I don't use GitHub, or StackOverflow. At all. I don't think that reflects on my skills.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#376

Post by neoCrimeLabs »

I just want to create a well documented simple resful API for applicants to use. If an applicant wants to apply for a job they have to write code in the language of their choice to apply using the API. Upon successful application, request their SSH public key and supply a git repository they can check their code into. A hook script will email me upon successful commit.

A moderately experienced dev will not spend much time to apply, and frankly would probably enjoy the interface better than most job application websites. :-)

A lesser experienced dev will end up spending more time, but really if they are successful we would still want to look at them.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#377

Post by wrong_variable »

seanp2k2 wrote: post #367
hnrodey wrote: post #41

I'm going through the interview process this week at two different companies. One of the companies I found through an ad on Stack Overflow whereby they publish two programming "exercises/puzzles" with the opportunity to earn $100 for a correct answer to each puzzle ($200 total for two correct answers). While I spent more than eight hours on both puzzles, I found them to be thought provoking and I learned stuff in the…

The flip side of this is that not everyone has the luxury of that much free time to focus on puzzle-type exercises just to get a foot in the door. This process seems to select for single people with a good amount of free time, which, depending on who you ask, is possibly what they want (if e.g. frequently greater than 40hr work weeks are expected). Edit: thinking more about this, it's good to see that it's a paid puz…

I understand your concern but you are actually talking from a privileged position. Its not really that hard to take a bit of time out of your evening or weekend to do some online programming exercise - IF that is the only thing that companies want. Anecdotally speaking I had to do these types of things while working full time to pay the bills.

Having a broader perspective - its maybe only in programming that the hiring process is so much easier. For almost any other job you need the right technical skills, years of expensive schooling, unpaid internships and have done a lot of networking ( cough nepotism cough ) - its only in programming that raw skills can get you anywhere.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#378

Post by ThrustVectoring »

ctdonath wrote: post #333
rbritton wrote: post #316

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm actually in the hiring process at a place currently, and their process is reasonable for someone in my position coming from freelance: 1. Phone screen amounting to about 45 minutes. 2. Skype interview with small code samples between two interviewers at 45 minutes each. 3. 2-week paid trial doing real work. I had #2 yesterday and am currently waiting to hear back from them about moving onward.

It's #3 that makes all the difference: a task that means something, and makes it worth one's while. Duolingo wanted a functioning nontrivial (albeit sparse) app, expected to take 10 hours to write. I found it amusing on its own, but interviewed & got multiple offers elsewhere in less time.

That's actually harmful for getting quality candidates - "hot" prospects nope out of the process when they get an offer elsewhere.

A clever option is emailing the recruiter at Duolingo with something like "hey, I've got a competing offer, so the 10 hour coding challenge is really not something I have time for at the moment. Is there any other way to proceed through the hiring process?" Either way they answer, you're okay with.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#379

Post by tangled_zans »

im_down_w_otp wrote: post #200
estefan wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because there are a lot of shit candidates. You might know you're worth talking to, but try hiring and you'll see why people want to separate the wheat from the chaff.

I have tried hiring. Many times. As recently as yesterday. Using a combination of (semi-)rigorous personality profiling (time constrained), and mapping the abstract problem domain of their prior work to the problems I actually have for them to work on, it's been possible to align new people with the work such that they're intrinsically motivated, and make sure all the bases are covered for the necessary roles (hacker…

Can you elaborate more on your middle paragraph? It sounds very interesting.

Re: On asking job candidates to code

#380

Post by blakeyrat »

jasode wrote: post #23
kasey_junk wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> For a company like Google Inc who is more selecitve than Harvard University Nitpick, but I'd love to see a citation on that. Google, like every technology company on the planet (modulo a small error value) goes to great lengths to recruit and hires lots and lots of people.

See my previous footnote about them receiving 1 million resumes to fill 1,000 slots. If that's true, it is more selective than any Ivy League university. Here's another one showing 75,000 resumes received in one week : http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Google-gets-record-75... When you have the luxury to pick the best, from the best of the best, you don't have to follow the advice given by HN armchair quarterbac…

And still they've yet to hire a single UX expert...
Post reply on HN