Job-seeker loses data engineer role over missing comma, internet calls hiring process unfair
A job seeker was rejected over a missing comma, sparking debate on harsh hiring standards.
Discussions about the competitiveness of the job market and the strict evaluation criteria used by employers have been ongoing. A recent Reddit post has intensified the debate, with many questioning whether hiring standards have become overly rigid.
(Also read: Billionaire heiress stood in line for hours to land job at her own company: 'Nobody knew who I was')
A Reddit user shared his frustration after being rejected for a Data Engineer role over a minor error—a missing comma in a SQL query. In his post, titled "Got Rejected Over a Missing Comma – This Market Is a Joke," the applicant expressed disbelief at the reason for his rejection.
A small mistake, a big consequence
The candidate explained that he had successfully cleared the first interview round at a well-known company, whose name he hinted at as resembling "quantity." During the second round, he was required to write a SQL query in Notepad. Although he answered everything correctly, he forgot to place a comma between two column names.
“The interviewer spent 20 minutes lecturing me about over-reliance on AI tools and IDEs, completely disregarding my experience in handling complex analytical queries and building ETL pipelines at a leading CDP,” he wrote.
The Redditor, who was transitioning from a Data Analyst to a Data Engineer role, added, “It was a simple oversight, not a lack of knowledge, but I still got rejected for it. Frustrating, to say the least. Any advice on navigating my first transition from DA to DE?”
Check out the post here:
Social media reacts
The post quickly gained traction, sparking a discussion on Reddit. Many users sympathised with the job seeker, while others debated the fairness of hiring processes.
One user commented, "This is ridiculous. Everyone makes mistakes. If they are rejecting skilled candidates over a missing comma, maybe they need to rethink their hiring criteria."
Another said, "If the role involved constant manual query writing, maybe I’d understand. But expecting someone to be flawless without an IDE? Unrealistic."
A frustrated job seeker added, "Interviews nowadays feel like they are designed to find reasons to reject candidates rather than assess their actual abilities."
However, some defended the hiring decision. One person remarked, "Attention to detail is critical in data engineering. A missing comma can break an entire script. Maybe the interviewer was testing how he handles pressure."
Another countered, "It’s not about the comma itself. It’s about whether small mistakes are acceptable in critical systems. It’s tough, but that’s the industry."
