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I would not look at a college degree as an indicator that someone can overcome adversity. They are incredibly common. Almost everyone applying to certain catego

I would not look at a college degree as an indicator that someone can overcome adversity. They are incredibly common. Almost everyone applying to certain categories of job will have one. And I've personally seen a large number of people with at least one degree fall apart under the real pressure of a startup or FAANG job. The whole point of a leetcode interview is to separate the applicants who merely graduated from the ones who can handle very difficult questions under close observation. And I would be remiss of I didn't point out that people who go to college at all are more likely to be from well off families and have educated parents. It's a "great investment" for those who already have a huge head start.

colinmhayes 5y ago
I agree that there are better signals. As I said, the college degree is just the easiest one for employers to use. I think there probably will be a shift towards tech style interviews in other fields, but until they figure that out the degree is an important aspect of deciding who is able to be successful. >I've personally seen a large number of people with at least one degree fall apart under the real pressure There are of course false positive/negatives with every heuristic, I don't think that makes them worthless. > people who go to college at all are more likely to be from well off families and have educated parents. The studies on how a diploma effects future earnings obviously controlled for that, as well as many other things. You can go ahead and check the studies, they're pretty thorough. College is a great investment for many, even if it is much easier for the wealthy to obtain.
gruez 5y ago
>I would not look at a college degree as an indicator that someone can overcome adversity. They are incredibly common. Almost everyone applying to certain categories of job will have one. It might not be a good signal of "can overcome adversity" because everyone has one, but not having a degree could be a good signal for "can't overcome adversity".

colinmhayes 5y ago

I agree that there are better signals. As I said, the college degree is just the easiest one for employers to use. I think there probably will be a shift towards tech style interviews in other fields, but until they figure that out the degree is an important aspect of deciding who is able to be successful. >I've personally seen a large number of people with at least one degree fall apart under the real pressure There are of course false positive/negatives with every heuristic, I don't think that makes them worthless. > people who go to college at all are more likely to be from well off families and have educated parents. The studies on how a diploma effects future earnings obviously controlled for that, as well as many other things. You can go ahead and check the studies, they're pretty thorough. College is a great investment for many, even if it is much easier for the wealthy to obtain.

gruez 5y ago

>I would not look at a college degree as an indicator that someone can overcome adversity. They are incredibly common. Almost everyone applying to certain categories of job will have one. It might not be a good signal of "can overcome adversity" because everyone has one, but not having a degree could be a good signal for "can't overcome adversity".