We often see job postings that require “five years of experience.” This may inform you about the number, but nothing more.
Of course, requiring a certain level of basic experience makes sense when hiring an employee. This is important if candidates have work experience ranging from 6 months to 1 year. It usually takes about that long to grasp the essence of the job, start understanding the idioms of the micro-culture, learn to use the relevant tools, and so on.
However, after that, the development curve levels off. There is surprisingly little difference between candidates with 6 months of experience and those with 6 years. The real difference lies in individual traits, personality, and intellectual level.
But how can we actually measure work experience? What does five years of experience really mean? If you spend a few weekends experimenting with something over five years, can that be called five years of experience? And how does a company intend to verify such claims? It’s all murky water. The significance of how long someone has been engaged in something is often overstated. What truly matters is how well they did it.