Job Description Writing
Practise writing clear, inclusive, accurate job descriptions for engineering roles in professional English.
0 / 25 completed
1 / 25
Which job description requirement is most likely to deter qualified candidates unnecessarily?
Requiring more years than a technology has existed signals inflated or copy-pasted requirements. Such errors reduce candidate trust and diversity — self-imposed experience limits discourage qualified applicants.
2 / 25
Which phrase in a job description is most inclusive?
Exclusionary terms (rockstar, ninja, young, hungry) are gendered or ageist and reduce diversity. Clear, skill-focused language attracts a broader, more qualified pool.
3 / 25
What is the difference between 'required' and 'nice to have' in a job description?
Clear required vs nice-to-have separation helps candidates self-select accurately. Listing 20 required skills when half are actually nice-to-have discourages qualified candidates from applying.
4 / 25
Which job description opening is most effective?
Effective openings give context (what the company does), scale (500M DAU), and specificity (Platform team). This helps candidates assess fit immediately.
5 / 25
The phrase 'competitive compensation' in a job description typically means:
Competitive compensation is a vague positive signal but does not specify the range. Increasingly, candidates and regulators prefer actual salary bands — many US states now require range disclosure.
6 / 25
Sarah: 'Hey team, just finished implementing the new user authentication flow. It's fully tested and integrates with the existing API. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: User Authentication
Implemented a new user authentication flow using OAuth 2.0.
* Added support for Google Sign-In.
* Updated the API endpoint to handle authentication tokens.
* Included unit tests for all authentication methods.
@john.doe Please review.
The best option accurately reflects what a good PR description should include. While the provided example isn't *perfect*, it does successfully outline key features and request a specific review. Options A and B are too critical or overly simplistic; a PR description doesn't need to cover every possible edge case immediately, nor does it necessitate naming every single reviewer. Option C is far too vague – developers need sufficient information to assess the changes.
7 / 25
John left this comment on a PR describing the new data processing pipeline:
"This is great! The use of Kafka Streams seems like a good choice for real-time data. However, I'm concerned about monitoring the latency of each stage – we need to ensure it stays within acceptable limits. Could you add some metrics dashboards to visualize this?"
Which of the following best describes John's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?John's comment is valuable because it moves beyond simply acknowledging a good decision and focuses on critical aspects of the system – performance metrics (latency) and how to ensure they're being met. This demonstrates an understanding of operational considerations and proactively suggests ways to mitigate potential problems. The incorrect options either miss this point, offer overly simplistic interpretations or misrepresent the role of monitoring in a real-time data pipeline. It's crucial to suggest *how* to monitor, not just state that it's needed.8 / 25
David posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new microservice for processing image uploads:
"This service is fantastic! The use of S3 and Lambda seems efficient. However, I'm worried about potential bottlenecks with large images – have we considered implementing some form of thumbnail generation or compression to reduce upload sizes? Also, could you add logging around the image processing steps for debugging purposes?"
Which of the following best describes David's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?Option B is correct because David's comment isn't just about immediate performance; he's raising concerns about potential bottlenecks and future scalability. The other options misinterpret his suggestion – it's not simply a demand for optimization (A), nor an overly negative critique (D). Instead, David is offering valuable suggestions regarding image processing strategies and logging, reflecting a more strategic approach to development and highlighting proactive problem-solving skills which are crucial in a tech review context.
9 / 25
Alex posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new API endpoint for retrieving user profiles:
"Great work on this! The response format is clean and well-documented. However, I noticed that we're returning all user data – including sensitive information like address and phone number – even for public users. Could you consider implementing role-based access control (RBAC) to only return the fields necessary for a given user's access level? This would improve security and reduce bandwidth usage."
Which of the following best describes Alex's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?
This question tests understanding of a common code review scenario: suggesting improvements to security and efficiency. The key misconception here is that RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) is *always* needed. While it's often good practice, Alex's comment correctly identifies the immediate issue – returning unnecessary sensitive data – which is a more direct problem to address in this PR. Option A is irrelevant; Option C misinterprets Alex's suggestion, and Option D focuses on error handling, not the core concern of data exposure.
10 / 25
During a Slack discussion about a new feature for an e-commerce platform, Maya writes: 'Just finished implementing the checkout flow. It's responsive across all devices and integrates with Stripe for payment processing. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: Enhanced Checkout Flow
Implemented a responsive checkout process using React and Redux.
* Integrated with Stripe API for secure payments.
* Added support for guest checkout.
* Optimized form validation.
@team, please review. Focus on performance and security.
```
Which of the following best describes Maya's intention in this Slack message and PR description, and why is it important to explicitly state 'Focus on performance and security'?
The correct answer is 3. Maya's inclusion of 'Focus on performance and security' demonstrates a proactive approach to code reviews, which is crucial for mitigating risks. Explicitly directing the review team to these areas ensures that potential bottlenecks, slow response times, or vulnerabilities are identified early in the development cycle – something often missed if left unspecified. Options A & B are incorrect because they downplay the importance of critical considerations; option C is a harmful misinterpretation prioritizing speed over quality and security.
11 / 25
Sarah: 'Hey team, just finished implementing the new user authentication flow. It's fully tested and integrates with the existing API. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: User Authentication
Implemented a new user authentication flow using OAuth 2.0.
* Added support for Google Sign-In.
* Updated the API endpoint to handle authentication tokens.
* Included unit tests for all authentication methods.
@john.doe Please review.
The best option accurately reflects what a good PR description should include. While the provided example isn't *perfect*, it does successfully outline key features and request a specific review. Options A and B are too critical or overly simplistic; a PR description doesn't need to cover every possible edge case immediately, nor does it necessitate naming every single reviewer. Option C is far too vague – developers need sufficient information to assess the changes.
12 / 25
John left this comment on a PR describing the new data processing pipeline:
"This is great! The use of Kafka Streams seems like a good choice for real-time data. However, I'm concerned about monitoring the latency of each stage – we need to ensure it stays within acceptable limits. Could you add some metrics dashboards to visualize this?"
Which of the following best describes John's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?John's comment is valuable because it moves beyond simply acknowledging a good decision and focuses on critical aspects of the system – performance metrics (latency) and how to ensure they're being met. This demonstrates an understanding of operational considerations and proactively suggests ways to mitigate potential problems. The incorrect options either miss this point, offer overly simplistic interpretations or misrepresent the role of monitoring in a real-time data pipeline. It's crucial to suggest *how* to monitor, not just state that it's needed.13 / 25
David posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new microservice for processing image uploads:
"This service is fantastic! The use of S3 and Lambda seems efficient. However, I'm worried about potential bottlenecks with large images – have we considered implementing some form of thumbnail generation or compression to reduce upload sizes? Also, could you add logging around the image processing steps for debugging purposes?"
Which of the following best describes David's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?Option B is correct because David's comment isn't just about immediate performance; he's raising concerns about potential bottlenecks and future scalability. The other options misinterpret his suggestion – it's not simply a demand for optimization (A), nor an overly negative critique (D). Instead, David is offering valuable suggestions regarding image processing strategies and logging, reflecting a more strategic approach to development and highlighting proactive problem-solving skills which are crucial in a tech review context.
14 / 25
Alex posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new API endpoint for retrieving user profiles:
"Great work on this! The response format is clean and well-documented. However, I noticed that we're returning all user data – including sensitive information like address and phone number – even for public users. Could you consider implementing role-based access control (RBAC) to only return the fields necessary for a given user's access level? This would improve security and reduce bandwidth usage."
Which of the following best describes Alex's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?
This question tests understanding of a common code review scenario: suggesting improvements to security and efficiency. The key misconception here is that RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) is *always* needed. While it's often good practice, Alex's comment correctly identifies the immediate issue – returning unnecessary sensitive data – which is a more direct problem to address in this PR. Option A is irrelevant; Option C misinterprets Alex's suggestion, and Option D focuses on error handling, not the core concern of data exposure.
15 / 25
During a Slack discussion about a new feature for an e-commerce platform, Maya writes: 'Just finished implementing the checkout flow. It's responsive across all devices and integrates with Stripe for payment processing. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: Enhanced Checkout Flow
Implemented a responsive checkout process using React and Redux.
* Integrated with Stripe API for secure payments.
* Added support for guest checkout.
* Optimized form validation.
@team, please review. Focus on performance and security.
```
Which of the following best describes Maya's intention in this Slack message and PR description, and why is it important to explicitly state 'Focus on performance and security'?
The correct answer is 3. Maya's inclusion of 'Focus on performance and security' demonstrates a proactive approach to code reviews, which is crucial for mitigating risks. Explicitly directing the review team to these areas ensures that potential bottlenecks, slow response times, or vulnerabilities are identified early in the development cycle – something often missed if left unspecified. Options A & B are incorrect because they downplay the importance of critical considerations; option C is a harmful misinterpretation prioritizing speed over quality and security.
16 / 25
Sarah: 'Hey team, just finished implementing the new user authentication flow. It's fully tested and integrates with the existing API. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: User Authentication
Implemented a new user authentication flow using OAuth 2.0.
* Added support for Google Sign-In.
* Updated the API endpoint to handle authentication tokens.
* Included unit tests for all authentication methods.
@john.doe Please review.
The best option accurately reflects what a good PR description should include. While the provided example isn't *perfect*, it does successfully outline key features and request a specific review. Options A and B are too critical or overly simplistic; a PR description doesn't need to cover every possible edge case immediately, nor does it necessitate naming every single reviewer. Option C is far too vague – developers need sufficient information to assess the changes.
17 / 25
John left this comment on a PR describing the new data processing pipeline:
"This is great! The use of Kafka Streams seems like a good choice for real-time data. However, I'm concerned about monitoring the latency of each stage – we need to ensure it stays within acceptable limits. Could you add some metrics dashboards to visualize this?"
Which of the following best describes John's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?John's comment is valuable because it moves beyond simply acknowledging a good decision and focuses on critical aspects of the system – performance metrics (latency) and how to ensure they're being met. This demonstrates an understanding of operational considerations and proactively suggests ways to mitigate potential problems. The incorrect options either miss this point, offer overly simplistic interpretations or misrepresent the role of monitoring in a real-time data pipeline. It's crucial to suggest *how* to monitor, not just state that it's needed.18 / 25
David posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new microservice for processing image uploads:
"This service is fantastic! The use of S3 and Lambda seems efficient. However, I'm worried about potential bottlenecks with large images – have we considered implementing some form of thumbnail generation or compression to reduce upload sizes? Also, could you add logging around the image processing steps for debugging purposes?"
Which of the following best describes David's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?Option B is correct because David's comment isn't just about immediate performance; he's raising concerns about potential bottlenecks and future scalability. The other options misinterpret his suggestion – it's not simply a demand for optimization (A), nor an overly negative critique (D). Instead, David is offering valuable suggestions regarding image processing strategies and logging, reflecting a more strategic approach to development and highlighting proactive problem-solving skills which are crucial in a tech review context.
19 / 25
Alex posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new API endpoint for retrieving user profiles:
"Great work on this! The response format is clean and well-documented. However, I noticed that we're returning all user data – including sensitive information like address and phone number – even for public users. Could you consider implementing role-based access control (RBAC) to only return the fields necessary for a given user's access level? This would improve security and reduce bandwidth usage."
Which of the following best describes Alex's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?
This question tests understanding of a common code review scenario: suggesting improvements to security and efficiency. The key misconception here is that RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) is *always* needed. While it's often good practice, Alex's comment correctly identifies the immediate issue – returning unnecessary sensitive data – which is a more direct problem to address in this PR. Option A is irrelevant; Option C misinterprets Alex's suggestion, and Option D focuses on error handling, not the core concern of data exposure.
20 / 25
During a Slack discussion about a new feature for an e-commerce platform, Maya writes: 'Just finished implementing the checkout flow. It's responsive across all devices and integrates with Stripe for payment processing. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: Enhanced Checkout Flow
Implemented a responsive checkout process using React and Redux.
* Integrated with Stripe API for secure payments.
* Added support for guest checkout.
* Optimized form validation.
@team, please review. Focus on performance and security.
```
Which of the following best describes Maya's intention in this Slack message and PR description, and why is it important to explicitly state 'Focus on performance and security'?
The correct answer is 3. Maya's inclusion of 'Focus on performance and security' demonstrates a proactive approach to code reviews, which is crucial for mitigating risks. Explicitly directing the review team to these areas ensures that potential bottlenecks, slow response times, or vulnerabilities are identified early in the development cycle – something often missed if left unspecified. Options A & B are incorrect because they downplay the importance of critical considerations; option C is a harmful misinterpretation prioritizing speed over quality and security.
21 / 25
Sarah: 'Hey team, just finished implementing the new user authentication flow. It's fully tested and integrates with the existing API. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: User Authentication
Implemented a new user authentication flow using OAuth 2.0.
* Added support for Google Sign-In.
* Updated the API endpoint to handle authentication tokens.
* Included unit tests for all authentication methods.
@john.doe Please review.
The best option accurately reflects what a good PR description should include. While the provided example isn't *perfect*, it does successfully outline key features and request a specific review. Options A and B are too critical or overly simplistic; a PR description doesn't need to cover every possible edge case immediately, nor does it necessitate naming every single reviewer. Option C is far too vague – developers need sufficient information to assess the changes.
22 / 25
John left this comment on a PR describing the new data processing pipeline:
"This is great! The use of Kafka Streams seems like a good choice for real-time data. However, I'm concerned about monitoring the latency of each stage – we need to ensure it stays within acceptable limits. Could you add some metrics dashboards to visualize this?"
Which of the following best describes John's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?John's comment is valuable because it moves beyond simply acknowledging a good decision and focuses on critical aspects of the system – performance metrics (latency) and how to ensure they're being met. This demonstrates an understanding of operational considerations and proactively suggests ways to mitigate potential problems. The incorrect options either miss this point, offer overly simplistic interpretations or misrepresent the role of monitoring in a real-time data pipeline. It's crucial to suggest *how* to monitor, not just state that it's needed.23 / 25
David posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new microservice for processing image uploads:
"This service is fantastic! The use of S3 and Lambda seems efficient. However, I'm worried about potential bottlenecks with large images – have we considered implementing some form of thumbnail generation or compression to reduce upload sizes? Also, could you add logging around the image processing steps for debugging purposes?"
Which of the following best describes David's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?Option B is correct because David's comment isn't just about immediate performance; he's raising concerns about potential bottlenecks and future scalability. The other options misinterpret his suggestion – it's not simply a demand for optimization (A), nor an overly negative critique (D). Instead, David is offering valuable suggestions regarding image processing strategies and logging, reflecting a more strategic approach to development and highlighting proactive problem-solving skills which are crucial in a tech review context.
24 / 25
Alex posted the following comment on a Pull Request describing a new API endpoint for retrieving user profiles:
"Great work on this! The response format is clean and well-documented. However, I noticed that we're returning all user data – including sensitive information like address and phone number – even for public users. Could you consider implementing role-based access control (RBAC) to only return the fields necessary for a given user's access level? This would improve security and reduce bandwidth usage."
Which of the following best describes Alex's suggestion and its purpose in a PR review comment?
This question tests understanding of a common code review scenario: suggesting improvements to security and efficiency. The key misconception here is that RBAC (Role-Based Access Control) is *always* needed. While it's often good practice, Alex's comment correctly identifies the immediate issue – returning unnecessary sensitive data – which is a more direct problem to address in this PR. Option A is irrelevant; Option C misinterprets Alex's suggestion, and Option D focuses on error handling, not the core concern of data exposure.
25 / 25
During a Slack discussion about a new feature for an e-commerce platform, Maya writes: 'Just finished implementing the checkout flow. It's responsive across all devices and integrates with Stripe for payment processing. Here's the PR description:
```markdown
## Feature: Enhanced Checkout Flow
Implemented a responsive checkout process using React and Redux.
* Integrated with Stripe API for secure payments.
* Added support for guest checkout.
* Optimized form validation.
@team, please review. Focus on performance and security.
```
Which of the following best describes Maya's intention in this Slack message and PR description, and why is it important to explicitly state 'Focus on performance and security'?
The correct answer is 3. Maya's inclusion of 'Focus on performance and security' demonstrates a proactive approach to code reviews, which is crucial for mitigating risks. Explicitly directing the review team to these areas ensures that potential bottlenecks, slow response times, or vulnerabilities are identified early in the development cycle – something often missed if left unspecified. Options A & B are incorrect because they downplay the importance of critical considerations; option C is a harmful misinterpretation prioritizing speed over quality and security.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the "Job Description Writing" exercise cover?
Practise writing clear, inclusive, accurate job descriptions for engineering roles in professional English.
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This exercise has 25 questions. Each one gives instant feedback with an explanation, so you can see exactly why an answer is right or wrong.
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Yes -- use the "Try again" button on the results screen to reset your score and go through all the questions again from the start.
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This exercise assumes basic familiarity with IT terminology. If a term feels unfamiliar, check the site Glossary for a plain-English definition before attempting the questions.
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