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Assess candidates against the work they will actually do: define the role’s essential tasks, choose practical assessments that reveal the required skills, and score every candidate against the same criteria. A degree is one possible selection criterion—not a substitute for showing that a person can perform the job.
Start with the work, not the credential
Before removing or retaining a degree requirement, identify the role’s important tasks and the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics needed to do them. This job analysis gives you a reasoned basis for deciding what to assess and how to judge performance. In 2007 testimony to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), industrial-organizational psychologist Kathleen K. Lundquist described this connection between job analysis and selecting procedures that measure characteristics necessary for successful performance. Read the EEOC testimony.
Translate broad expectations into observable evidence. Instead of listing “strong communicator” or “culture fit,” specify what the person must do: explain a technical issue to a customer, write a clear incident summary, or prioritize competing requests. Include a degree only if you can explain why it is necessary for the role and why other evidence would not adequately establish the relevant capability.
Choose an assessment that reflects the skill
Use the least burdensome method that gives useful evidence about an important job requirement. EEOC testimony identifies work samples, video simulations, and assessment-center exercises as methods that can more closely resemble job behavior than less direct measures. That does not make any one method best for every occupation; the exercise should fit the role and be set at an appropriate level of complexity. The testimony explains the role of job-related assessment.
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- Work sample: Ask the candidate to complete a representative task or produce a realistic work product, such as diagnosing a simple issue or drafting a response. Keep the assignment tied to work the role actually requires.
- Simulation: Present a realistic scenario that reveals an important behavior, such as handling a customer escalation or responding to a changing priority.
- Structured interview: Prepare job-related questions in advance, ask the same core questions as consistently as practicable, and evaluate answers against defined criteria.
- Assessment-center exercise: Use an exercise that allows observation of multiple relevant behaviors when those behaviors are important to the role.
EEOC material for employers also describes work samples, simulations, and other selection procedures in relation to job requirements. See the EEOC’s small-business hiring guidance.
Set the scoring rules before candidates take part
Decide what counts as strong evidence before reviewing responses or work products. A useful rubric focuses on observable features that matter for the role—not polish, similarity to the interviewer, or an evaluator’s general impression.
- For a work sample, define relevant criteria such as accuracy, completeness, reasoning, or safe execution, but include only criteria the job genuinely requires.
- For an interview, prepare the same core questions and a point-based score sheet. Describe what a strong, partial, or insufficient answer demonstrates.
- For a simulation, identify the behaviors evaluators should record and how those behaviors map to the role’s requirements.
EEOC federal-sector barrier-analysis prompts identify advance preparation, point-based score sheets, consistent questions, and objective grading as features that can be examined in an interview process. View the EEOC barrier-analysis questions.
Apply the process consistently and make it accessible
Use the same standards for candidates applying to the same position. Consistency makes comparisons more meaningful, but it does not by itself make a process fair: the task, format, or scoring criteria may still create an irrelevant barrier. Consider reasonable accommodations where required, and make sure the assessment measures the target skill rather than an incidental obstacle. The EEOC advises employers to screen applications consistently and accommodate applicants where required by law. See its hiring guidance.
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Compare methods on job fit and practical burden
When more than one assessment could measure a requirement, weigh the trade-offs before choosing. These questions apply the EEOC material on job analysis, consistency, accommodation, and adverse impact; they are a practical decision aid, not an official EEOC checklist.
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| Consideration | Question to ask |
|---|---|
| Job fidelity | Does the exercise sample an important task or output? |
| Scoring clarity | Can evaluators apply the same criteria and reach reasonably consistent ratings? |
| Candidate burden and access | Is the exercise proportionate and accessible, with accommodations where required? |
| Fairness monitoring | Can you review outcomes for disparities and investigate alternatives? |
| Practicality | Can you administer the method consistently without unnecessary time, expense, or privacy burdens? |
Review outcomes and revise the process
Keep a record of the job-related reason for each hiring factor, the assessment criteria, and how scores are assigned. After selection, review outcomes for potential disparities and consider whether the measures reflect or predict performance in the role. If a selection procedure has adverse impact, EEOC compliance-manual material discusses the need to justify it through validity or business necessity and to investigate suitable alternatives with substantially equal validity and less adverse impact. Read the EEOC compliance-manual material on discrimination theories.
Removing a degree requirement does not automatically make a hiring process fair or legally compliant. A work sample, interview, or other screen can also create barriers. The legal analysis can depend on the employer, occupation, jurisdiction, and circumstances; employers evaluating a specific process should consult qualified legal or testing professionals.
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