[maverick_iceman]

Standard algorithms and data structures stuff are not that esoteric. I think companies are absolutely right in insisting that candidates know such basic topics like big O notation or various sorting algorithms. Nobody is asking them to go major in CS, it's perfectly possible to learn these things on one's own.

[stillsut]

As we know in math intense subjects, being familiar with != performs well on a contrived question, for example you'd probably fail your calculusII exam if you took it right now, at least I would. Even though you might have a better intuitive understanding of integration after having worked in the real world and forgotten the exact rules. Same for big-O factoids.