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I don't love at home tests, but they've turned out to be legit opportunities for me in a few cases. Pretty sure one of them not only got me a job but gave the e
by wwweston 4y ago
I don't love at home tests, but they've turned out to be legit opportunities for me in a few cases. Pretty sure one of them not only got me a job but gave the employer a context which likely encouraged them to keep me after a project I was working on didn't go as planned in the first 3 months.
I've also designed at home tests. I tried to keep them under a half-day and invited people to send me something from a portfolio of past work instead if it corresponded. Work samples are good info. Work samples that are time efficient are even better.
Still, I've also had the really negative experience where I was sent tests that seemed poorly conceived or overdemanding and had no idea whether my work was evaluated or if so how. This is how I tend to do things now:
* If I haven't had a serious interview/screen from someone beyond a recruiter I'll do short well-defined tests (< 2 hrs, or about the amount of time one might expect for an early interview). If I'm asked for something longer, I'll ask if we can wait on that until I've spoken with the hiring manager or a prospective teammate and we both feel like things are plausibly promising.
* I ask if anyone internal has completed solutions and what their estimated time spent was. Also how many external applicants have have completed it and what the range of time invested by candidates who "passed."
* I ask if they have an evaluation rubric and if they're willing to share it with me (along with completed solutions) when I'm done, and what they hope applicants would do if at any point they're stuck.
If the answers to these questions seem well-considered and promising (along with other signals about the job), I'll invest in the test. If they seem poorly-considered or worse evasive, I'll think twice or politely pass. Good answers don't guarantee a positive outcome, but they make it more likely it'll be at least productive as an exercise.