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+1 and Agree. It's wrong to get free work. However, just out of curiosity how would you have felt if the employer has actually paid you for those "small projects"? (To be clear: No guarantee that you will get the Job, but payment is guaranteed for the hours you put in)

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Payment, or even a donation to charity for a token amount - say 1/3 the value of the work - would go far, but I still think it is the wrong approach.

Companies requiring this sort of project work should be aware it smells funny to the applicant and the only way to tell if the applicant did the work him/herself is a tear-down / code defence.

You have not saved any effort from the hire process - only tested if I am willing to jump through a hoop and made me question the company.

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