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I'm not sure anyone should be interviewed about algorithms. Asking someone how they'd build something and what types of changes they might make given certain constraints should be sufficient.
Coding algorithms is a skill based in part on wrote memorization. In reality, depending on the language, many libraries have functions that are a better choice than rolling your own. Why are we interviewing people for things they won't use on the job?
Why are we interviewing people for things they won't use on the job?
This. The best job interviews I've had have involved a take home "mini project" which basically tested how I would approach building a simple app. Use of any technology was allowed (though sometimes some were hinted as preferred) and any questions could be asked. I think this simulated a real project much more accurately than being thrown random questions on the specifics of certain languages. With the plethora of tech, patterns, languages, algorithms we're exposed to every day it's impossible to know everything which is why we all greatly rely on the Internet to assist us with our daily tasks. Why not expose that in a job interview?
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I'm not sure anyone should be interviewed about algorithms. Asking someone how they'd build something and what types of changes they might make given certain constraints should be sufficient.
Coding algorithms is a skill based in part on wrote memorization. In reality, depending on the language, many libraries have functions that are a better choice than rolling your own. Why are we interviewing people for things they won't use on the job?
This. The best job interviews I've had have involved a take home "mini project" which basically tested how I would approach building a simple app. Use of any technology was allowed (though sometimes some were hinted as preferred) and any questions could be asked. I think this simulated a real project much more accurately than being thrown random questions on the specifics of certain languages. With the plethora of tech, patterns, languages, algorithms we're exposed to every day it's impossible to know everything which is why we all greatly rely on the Internet to assist us with our daily tasks. Why not expose that in a job interview?