Still, it makes little sense if the applicant holds a BSc/MSc/PhD on the subject. These degrees require many more hours of commitment than the time you need to

Still, it makes little sense if the applicant holds a BSc/MSc/PhD on the subject. These degrees require many more hours of commitment than the time you need to master leetcode. Moreover, the scope of leetcode assignments is rarely broader or deeper than an advanced-course assignment. Just take 5' to go through their academic record, take their professional experience into account, and you're done. No need for dubious "magic" solutions and useless charades. Even if you include cheaters, what makes the recruiters believe that someone who has cheated their way through a comp-sci master's program will have trouble cheating to inflate their Hackerrank?