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> Mark begins our call by saying: "I've read your essay responses. You say you didn't go to high school. Generally I only want people who are in the top 5%. You
by arp242 3y ago
> Mark begins our call by saying: "I've read your essay responses. You say you didn't go to high school. Generally I only want people who are in the top 5%. You obviously can't prove that applies to you. So tell me why I should believe you were the equivalent to the top 5% of your peers at 16."
What a silly take; generally brains aren't fully developed until the age of 25 or so and some people mature earlier than others. Whatever you were or weren't at 16 says very little about you if you're over 30, or even in your 20s. Never mind environmental factors which are often much harder to deal with at young ages, such as a less-than-ideal family situation, being bullied, and things like that.
But according to Mark a ~5-year window defines who you are for the rest of your life... Seems like a classic case of someone thinking their own experiences (or their perception of them, which may not necessarily align with reality) is the only possible path to be a good person.
I always assumed these questions about high school were mostly to writing capability more than anything else and that the content doesn't greatly matter. Well, guess it does :-/
- blub 3y agoWe’re talking high-school, not university. In the EU not graduating high-school opens the window for job opportunities such as garbage disposal, cleaning floors and package delivery. Probably McDonalds too. Shuttleworth is asking a legitimate question. That person should be happy they even got an interview, most HR departments would instantly screen them out.
- arp242 3y ago"Why didn't you finish high school?" is a fine question. Expecting someone to be "equivalent to the top 5% of your peers at 16" is not, and neither is banging on about it for someone with over a decade of experience. No one reasonable does that because, again, what you were at 16 says very little about who you are at 36. And no one has ever asked me my high school certificate in the EU, for any job, including software dev.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- cwmma 3y agoIt's not that she didn't graduate high-school, it's that she didn't GO TO high school, which probably meant that she was home schooled, which in America can mean a lot of different things and doesn't preclude you from going to university (as she implies in the thread she did)
- rcxdude 3y agoThis is a reasonable approach for someone who has no relevant work history. It's absolutely ridiculous to question someone with >10 years of experience in the industry about it.
- loloquwowndueo 3y ago“Didn’t go to high school” and “doesn’t have a high school diploma” aren’t synonymous. There’s GED for example.
- notaustinpowers 3y ago> But according to Mark a ~5-year window defines who you are for the rest of your life... He sounds like someone who peaked in high school.
- loloquwowndueo 3y agoI’d say he peaked when he sold Thawte to verisign at the age of 26. He founded Thawte at 22. So most likely after high school. But yeah it sounds like a very “I did this just out of college, what did YOU achieve?” attitude.