Assessment tests are a standard recruiting procedure in the tech industry. As a fresher IT developer, you will need to clear the tests to proceed to the next screening rounds. But if you are wondering why the leading IT companies have entrance tests, let us show you why.
5 Reasons Why Big IT Firms Conduct their Entrance Test
Try getting in the shoes of the recruiter. Currently, the tech industry has a solid reserve of talented programmers, but not everyone has the expertise to put their skills into use at a professional workplace. So being good enough at work increases your chances of getting hired. However, recruiters still look for something more than just solid coding skills.
So, here we will shortlist the top 5 reasons you have to give entrance exams to get selected for big software companies.
1. Subject Expertise
Coding is in itself a vast field. There are many programming languages, specialisations, platforms and so on. The degree of specialisation varies from company to company. Large companies focus on hiring individuals with a specific skill set and creating a niche around them. Small and mid-sized companies prefer having a wider breadth of skills so that one person can take on various types of problems.
In addition, the platforms also differ. As a coder, you could specialize in coding websites and apps or working with databases and cloud technology. Azure and Amazon Web Services are spearheading the shift to the cloud; Big Data, Machine Learning and Data Science are expected to bring about massive disruptions in the industry.
Recruiters of today are looking for people who can solve the problems of tomorrow. And their requirement varies with each role.
2. Domain Expertise
Data Science is a much-talked-about field today. It has been dubbed as the “sexiest job of the 21st century” by Harvard Business Review. Instructors predict that data science is applicable to every industry in our world, from hospital medical records to basketball game analytics. Ever wondered what makes a good data scientist?
Data Science is all about domain knowledge. A good data scientist can combine various data science tools with their specific domain knowledge to derive insights from data patterns. So if a data scientist who studies the real estate market is asked to derive insights about marine biology expeditions, he or she will have a difficult time doing so.
The same logic is applicable to the various job roles in the coding world. The different assessment tests set by a particular IT company aim at testing the domain-specific knowledge just as much as the broader technical skills.
Interests and businesses differ from company to company in the IT industry. For example, Amazon focuses more on e-commerce and digital streaming, while Accenture delivers branding, marketing and business solutions.
Standard interview questions like “Why do you want to work for this company?” usually cover this for entry and early professional-level roles. In later stages, the domain-specific knowledge is integrated into the assessment tests.
3. Company-specific knowledgeÂ
A further subset of domain-specific knowledge is company-specific knowledge. This goes further than just knowing what the company does. It involves understanding the company’s work ethics and expectations from the role. In the assessment, companies usually give situation-specific cases, and candidates are expected to write how their approach to the problem will be.
Situation-based scenarios are highly company-specific. Since this segment forms an important part of the assessment, it is one of the primary reasons why different IT companies have various assessment tests. For Company X, team working and team building might be important, while Company Y may be looking for independent workers capable of executing a project from end to end.
Further, company requirements also differ from time to time. The hiring parameters of 2020 may not be the same in 2021.
4. Time ManagementÂ
A typical coding challenge has questions ranging from easy to hard. While undergoing assessments, recruiters observe how candidates approach the questions. Typically, they expect the easy ones to be solved quickly and efficiently. But sometimes, they look out for the candidate’s approach to the harder problems. Are they engrossed? Are they able to keep track of time? Do they sacrifice the easier problems in favour of cracking the harder ones?
Recent studies have shown that at senior positions, coders hate undergoing assessments. Hiring managers have developed the concept of take-home tests, where coders can get cracking on the problem in the most comfortable atmosphere. What matters in these cases is how effective the code is rather than being a quick fix.
5. Behavioural Traits
Some companies put more weight on the employee’s behavioural traits. The candidate may be an exceptional coder, but if they don’t possess good team-working abilities, display unfavourable traits and bring down the morale of the team, he is a bad hire.
The reason is simple. Bad hires cost money and reduce the team’s productivity, as outlined in this study. The loss is almost palpable in small and mid-sized companies with limited resources. In such cases, removing the bad hires isn’t a quick solution, as great resources have already been invested in them. So, companies only want employees who fit in with their established culture. Large companies often require candidates to undergo a personality test to judge the right fit.
What you can do to ace the assessments
If you’re clear about the kind of company you want to work for, the type of work you’re interested in and whether or not the company culture is a good fit for you, it will help narrow down your job search. At later stages, this will help you plan your career accordingly. When taking personality assessments, it’s always best, to be honest.
Your coding skills are given the most weightage in interviews. So, you must be up for the challenge. CodeQuotient has a rigorous coding programme and focuses on providing its learners with an environment akin to that of a working place. It also connects industry mentors to learners so that learners can have an insider’s point of view of the industry. This way, learners can evaluate their options. If you are thinking about a career in development in full-stack development, enrol today.
