Passing an exam or getting a degree proves only one thing - that you can pass exams. It doesn't prove the ability to think and actually solve real-world (as opp

Passing an exam or getting a degree proves only one thing - that you can pass exams. It doesn't prove the ability to think and actually solve real-world (as opposed to often contrived exam) problems. It also doesn't prove anything about the individual's abilities today, only about what they were able to do at the time of passing the exam. How do you know that they didn't become sloppy and aren't spending their days high producing BS? A successful exam has pretty much zero correlation with the (non)appearance of "creative code". E.g. if you expect a developer hired freshly out of school with no experience to write reasonable code, you are being completely unrealistic (and have already forgotten your own career start). But they did pass all their exams, right? Yes, there are many incompetent fools in the field. But most of them likely hold degrees already and one extra exam wouldn't solve anything there. E.g. I know a civil engineer who has passed all the required exams, holds all the required diplomas and professional certificates, has 20+ years of experience - and one of his buildings has collapsed and two more had to be torn down because of fatal design mistakes in them. This is why one hires for a trial period and asks for references and work portfolios at the interviews.