> Many of the best co-workers that I remember had physics degrees. In fact, it was so pronounced I personally consider a physics degree to be a top tier signal of programming ability, but that's my own personal prejudice.
You're basically just using it as a proxy for general intelligence, the _average_ physics major's IQ is around 130.
And that reason was legal precedent: it's illegal to administer an IQ test as a condition of employment. So they administer a disguised IQ test in the form of Leetcode questions instead.
I guess there are military aptitude tests. And I am curious about which big companies administer an undisguised IQ test to applicants.
It appears that an IQ test can be administered if it can be argued that a certain score is required to do the job, and the test is not simply a way to discriminate. It sounds like a court case waiting to happen though: how does one prove what score is required? Easier if your defense is "we never administered an IQ test, tour honor".
For knowledge work jobs there's no defense required. Again: gigantic, risk-averse corporations, household names, do IQ tests (or equivalent tests) for some of their positions. The Wonderlic company exists specifically to market these tests for job search programs.
The reason everyone doesn't test IQ is that it's not very useful, not that it's legally risky.
People think it is because there's an subtext that everybody would hire straight off IQ scores if they could, which supports a (frankly gross) biological essentialist argument a lot of edgy nerds are fond of. But the whole argument is fractally mythological.
Huh? They used to ask brain teaser like questions, not anything that I would consider to actually be an IQ test or really even all that close to one in a legal way.
Yep. IMO that's the way ANY degree is looked at (aside from Medical, Law, etc.. you know the drill).
You want a lower level administrative job? You better have a degree so we know that you're not stupid. Now you get to pay off your loans with 20 bucks an hour.
I worked at a fortune 50 company that hired engineering graduates with masters degrees as contractors to break down cardboard boxes and manage stockrooms.
The degree was just a fancy filter if could read and write. If they worked out, they would be eventually hired direct into less mindless tasks.
You're basically just using it as a proxy for general intelligence, the _average_ physics major's IQ is around 130.