Re:Fizzbuzz isn't a coding test
by potatolicious on Sunday September 30, 2012 @12:39AM
(#4591995)
You misunderstand the demographic of people who apply to programming jobs.
The vast majority (in my experience, 80%+) have no business writing code at any level. We're not talking about bad programmers here, we're talking about people who cannot program, full stop.
I can deal with "I'm not nearly as good as I say I am", I cannot deal with "What's an if statement?", but yet the majority of applicants at most large software firms are like this.
If you are a competent dev, FizzBuzz isn't designed to trap you, it's designed to trap someone far, far, far, far, far, far, far, far less competent than you. Just jump through this hoop and we can start the real interview.
You also make the mistake that FizzBuzz is the whole interview. It isn't. I've run many highly rigorous interviews, FizzBuzz is just the bar for me to talk to you past the 5 minute mark.
What I still don't get is how these people even exist. It's like showing up to an accountant's interview with a box of crayons and a bib. It's disturbing.
The vast majority (in my experience, 80%+) have no business writing code at any level. We're not talking about bad programmers here, we're talking about people who cannot program, full stop.
I can deal with "I'm not nearly as good as I say I am", I cannot deal with "What's an if statement?", but yet the majority of applicants at most large software firms are like this.
If you are a competent dev, FizzBuzz isn't designed to trap you, it's designed to trap someone far, far, far, far, far, far, far, far less competent than you. Just jump through this hoop and we can start the real interview.
You also make the mistake that FizzBuzz is the whole interview. It isn't. I've run many highly rigorous interviews, FizzBuzz is just the bar for me to talk to you past the 5 minute mark.
What I still don't get is how these people even exist. It's like showing up to an accountant's interview with a box of crayons and a bib. It's disturbing.