Re: New TECHWR-L Poll Question

[kcronin -at- daleen -dot- com]

One or two.

For the first tech writing job I ever applied for, there was a lengthy
logic test, followed by a writing test.

I was asked to document 1) washing a car, and 2) a stapler, assuming no
familiarity on the part of the user. I enjoyed the tasks, providing a list
of required materials for the car washing one, and giving the stapler a
funny name based on the name of the company that was interviewing me. I
was grateful for the opportunity to prove I could write. I felt like I did
well on both tests, and I got the job.

I was particularly interested in the logic test - it was quite
challenging. I asked the interviewer (who became my boss when I took the
job) about the logic test. He said that people who had done well on it had
always done well on his team. I guess I did okay on it; it was hard, but I
thought I got a lot of them right. They never told me the actual results.

Later on, while I was still a newbie to this list, faced with interviewing
writers for my company, I posted a query about writing tests and was
amazed at how heated some reactions were. People who "didn't test well"
thought it was unfair, while experienced writers thought it was insulting.

I've never seen the big deal. Tech writing is almost always done under
pressure, so a writing test doesn't seem out of line to me. And if you're
experienced, it should be that much easier for you to ace the test.

But, as I found out, that's just MY opinion. Other people's mileage varied
greatly on that issue.


-Keith Cronin
________________________

I suspect that those of us who consider ourselves "voracious readers"
probably use terms like "voracious" to make the act of reading sound
somehow more action-packed and exciting. Doing so suggests that we're not
just sitting on our couch with a book in one hand and some cheese doodles
in the other.

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