Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Job Applicants

Unlike most people that have written “falsehoods programmers believe” lists, I am not a programmer. However, I have been actively looking for work for at least five years now and am often frustrated by the broken user interfaces of many job application software, particularly those by third-party developers. As someone with a seemingly unusual job history, I find these forms frequently frustrating to manage, particularly when aspects of my jobs history don’t match up to the assumptions of the software’s original developers.

Here are some assumptions about job applicants and their job histories that aren’t necessarily true. Some of the assumptions about names, genders, and addresses also apply here.

1. One job is associated with one company only.
2. One job is associated with one role only.
3. One job is associated with one supervisor only.
4. Jobs always have supervisors or managers.
5. Jobs have a set start date and a set end date.
6. Jobs only take place during one period of time; when that period is done, it’s done.
7. Jobs take place in a physical location.
8. Jobs take place in only one physical location.
9. A job is paid a regular salary.
10. A job is paid in the same currency as the country of the job being applied to.
11. A job is paid.
12. A job has regular hours.
13. A job is legal.
14. A job has a clear job description.
15. A job has a clear job title.
16. A job has a supervisor.
17. A former supervisor is easily contactable.
18. The company of a former job still exists.
19. The applicant has a mobile phone number.
20. The applicant has a phone number that is local to the job being applied to.
21. The applicant has a phone number.
22. The applicant has a local address.
23. The applicant has an address that is not a PO Box.
24. The applicant has an address.
25. The applicant has an email address.
26. The applicant went to a conventional school or university.
27. The applicant went to school or university.
28. The applicant either earned a BA or a B.Sc.
29. The applicant either earned an MA or an M.Sc.
30. The applicant’s degrees fit a narrow set of subjects.
31. The applicant’s grades were scored on a GPA basis.
32. The applicant’s grades were scored in a manner similar to the convention of the country or city of the job they are applying to.
33. The applicant’s core job qualifications & experience involve either a conventional degree or a regular job.
34. The applicant is not their own manager.
35. The applicant has a linear job history.
36. The applicant has a linear study history.
37. The applicant’s experience or education is similar to the job being applied to.
38. The applicant’s references are former supervisors.
39. The applicant has a temporary visa with a clear end date.
40. The applicant had the same name across all jobs.
41. The applicant’s job history is based in the same country as the job being applied to.
42. The applicant went to school in the same country as the job being applied to.
43. This is the only job the applicant is applying to.
44. The applicant does not have any other demands on their time or energy.

If you can think of any others, please feel free to add!

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