I don't think you'll ever regret advocating for yourself.. You have to listen to your gut. At the very least, there are ways to make a design test/interview process more equitable instead of heavily favoring the employer..

I'm sorry.. I've been there. 

I think companies underestimate peoples' abilities to do their jobs, which is annoying.. Like, so much energy is spent on not hiring the "wrong" person that it's just assumed that.. Everyone sucks? It's weird lol

Go Jamie! It’s really awesome for you to speak up and protect your boundaries. I’m still starting out as a designer and I really want to say no to a take home! I have fell into that trap once and it sucked!

An exercise should be:
- paid
- includes research
- includes existing design material your work integrates with
- contextual to specific questions that an interviewer needs to evaluate that’s unique to their needs
- internal documentation for criteria for reviewing

I’ve probably put 60 hours into them over the last 3-4mo. I used to turn them down and after this saga of my life will probably go back to that. They’re BS. I think there’s ways to maybe do them well but they almost never are.

I feel like there was something like that at some point.. But I could be making that up lol 

In lieu of that, I just try to leave these hiring companies with some food for thought.. Hopefully make things a little better off for whoever comes next in the pipeline

I haven't heard a great argument for why they're better than a portfolio review, tbh.. In this case the main reason seemed to be an equal playing field. But then it isn't *exactly* equal because it was supposed to be an app critique using an app of that person's choosing (c)

Given the criteria they were looking for, it just didn't make sense anyway. I included that example of user research as the most obvious one lol 

Portfolio reviews can be tedious, overwhelming, a lot of effort to prepare.. But they are better than design tests in every way

If I was already employed I would *definitely* not want to deal with one

That's one reason (of many) that I don't do them, tbh.. They aren't exactly designed to set-up applicants for success. Just adds a lot of unnecessary noise to the process, especially when it's a non-designer doing the evaluation.

I'm curious about this test now 👀

Interview processes as a whole need a revamp.. Maybe that will be my next Medium article lol

Really dislike how this is becoming a standard everywhere. At this point in life I wouldn’t even know how to find the time for a take home assignment.

I've seen other roles have to do various types of tests but I don't think *anyone* should have to do them. There's always the possibility of that company just farming for free work 🤷🏻‍♀️

When I was earlier in my career I was more open to them but I've had plenty of bad experiences since.. And it's not like I've gotten any of my jobs with one lol

well I'm about to throw myself into several over the next few weeks so lmk if you need research candidates lol

There was a website by the agency Porto Rocha asking people to sign a manifesto against free pitches. 

Someone should start something similar against take home exercises.

It sounds like this test didn't match what they were really looking for, which is a huge problem with most tests I've seen.. It may not be intentional but regardless, it's shows a lack of understanding of how to properly vet designers. And that's a huge red flag in itself

It's tough because even if you "pass", it's still not a guarantee that you'll get a job in the end.. Ideally you'd get something out of it (compensation, feedback, etc)

thanks for putting in the work! amazed this still happens, been telling people off for years. replace take-homes with live problem solving sessions or design critiques.

Honestly this recruiter was very nice but if/when I deal with someone not-so-nice about design tests I'll just link them to this thread as proof no one likes them lol

The thing that makes me laugh/cry these days is people justifying layoffs by saying "all those people must suck at their jobs lol!" but that's basically saying all these companies suck at interviewing if they're hiring all these people who are ~bad~ at their jobs lol

But lbr, these tests are usually early in the process before there's even a chance to talk to anyone.. It seems to be a tool to eliminate as many people as possible more than anything else. It doesn't find the "best" person for the job

Yeah, this made me realize that doing a design test to appease non-designers is 99.9% going to be a waste of time just based on that.. (c)

Great job on standing up for your boundaries in front of recruiters. It takes a lot of strength.

Honestly I'm learning from past mistakes when I did a design test thinking "this will be the one" and then.. it isn't lol

It is something that started with tech roles and made its way into design. No one asks an architect, or a CEO to do a test. It’s non sense. A proper interview with the right questions and a bit of intuition is enough. And if not, that’s what probation periods are for.

Having them before a portfolio review just feels wrong.. Like, at least judge me on my actual work before pressuring me to do *more* work lol 

Also, let me at least talk to the hiring manager/another designer to better understand how much I want this job.. 🧐

Oh interesting. I’ve only had them late in the process. Even now, as much as I need a job I won’t do one at the *start*. No way

Yeah, I know I would've excelled in the role, which is why I was so excited for it. But, oh well.

This is powerful! I recently bombed a take home test. Which in hindsight I see a lot of red flags. No clear context or background or limitations. Plus directly related to what the role would be working on. Going to be very vary about these moving forward

I agree, especially with tailoring the test/sharing evaluation criteria.. But apparently that's asking too much lol 

You would think for there to be a test at all, there must be a grading system in place.. I'm guessing most of the time that's not actually true, though lol (c)

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