From the smallest startup, to Google, almost everyone I've ever interviewed with has required unpaid project work.

I rarely, if ever, get feedback on these projects. In later rounds, it's obvious most interviewers haven't seen the project or even know you did it.

Why is software engineering the only industry I'm aware of that requires you to prove that you know how to do things you've been doing for years and years? Your projects on Github, degree in your field, and resume don't matter and are rarely discussed.

Unpaid projects, over and over.

Companies are too lazy to do their own work and we are all getting screwed.

How many hours of free work have you had to do, only to get ghosted, denied without feedback, or see your work turn up in their product later?

It isn't that hard of a problem to fix: stop being cheap and pay people for their time.

"But we can't afford it..." - nonsense! Esp. big companies. Poppycock.

If it's "too expensive", you need to have a better funnel upfront before the project stage.

Properly compensating for interviews would be a huge differentiator for recruiting.

Great engineer A: "I interviewed at Company X, and didn't get it. But they paid me $1000 for a day's work. It was pretty cool."

"Rockstar" engineer B: "Wow, that sounds neat. Too bad you didn't get it!" (Maybe I'll interview there too...)

vs. ill-will from unpaid

Great engineer a: "Yeah I interviewed with company X and they made me do a 3 day unpaid project. I didn't get any feedback and they made me do a technical interview AFTER I had already submitted the project, where they just asked unrelated trivia. One line rejection e-mail."

"Rockstar" engineer B: "Yeah that sucks. They sound awful. You dodged a bullet" (continues working where they are)

If I do work for you, pay me for it. If I do work for you, give me feedback. If I do work for you, respect my time.

user:	killerjoe
created:	January 21, 2020
karma:	13