Subj : Re: Aptitude tests "not test well" (was: Software Job Market Myths)
To   : comp.programming,comp.software-eng
From : Richard Heathfield
Date : Fri Aug 19 2005 09:16 am

Robert Maas, see http://tinyurl.com/uh3t wrote:

>> From: blm...@myrealbox.com
>> >if I were designing an application form, I would
>> >not bother to put an age field on there, or even a DOB field, despite my
>> >earlier point about it being a useful indicator. And that's because I
>> >wouldn't bother putting a former employer section or a qualification
>> >section on the form. Instead, I'd put in an aptitude test.
> 
>> it seems to me that it would screen out people who don't "test well",
>> i.e., people who aren't very good at demonstrating their abilities
>> under a particular kind of pressure that doesn't seem entirely relevant
>> to what you'd want them to do on the job.
> 
> IIRC that kind of pressure mostly applies when contestants are
> called into a room at a particular time with a standardized test
> with a limited amount of time to finish the test.

Please note that we are talking about an aptitude test that is done in the 
comfort of one's own home, in one's own handwriting, and submitted along 
with the application form. There is no call, no room, and no time limit - 
except, of course, that if you defer too long, the job will be given to 
somebody else.

In my experience, good candidates will not struggle at this point.

-- 
Richard Heathfield
"Usenet is a strange place" - dmr 29/7/1999
http://www.cpax.org.uk
mail: rjh at above domain

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