You may never know why. The email will arrive and reasons offered for your rejection might be the real ones—or not. Companies do not always like to admit that they have been scrolling through your information posted on your social media sites. Yet many, particularly the big ones, are doing just that. And in increasing numbers, they are acting on what they find when deciding whom to hire and whom to pass over.

Even before the pandemic, online checks on applicants were common. Research in 2017 found that 28% of large companies had turned down applicants after carrying out such checks. Reed Screening, a large agency doing this work, was asked to run over a third more social-media checks in December 2021 than a year earlier. And in 2022, the UK government gave the practice approval when the Department for Education said schools and colleges “should consider carrying out an online search (including social media) as part of their due diligence (尽职调查)”.

The way screening works is simple. Any “problematic” behaviour will be marked with a red flag. There are laws governing such online screening. David Erdos, Co-Director of the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Law at the University of Cambridge, says that companies are supposed to warn candidates before screening their social media and tell them that they have the right to refuse consent (同意). Some companies follow these rules, but others may not. As for the right to refuse, it is hardly practicable. “Who on earth is going to be that person who says ‘Hang on a minute — I’m not happy about that’?” says Mr Erdos. “That itself is likely to be a red flag.”

All agree that the spread of online screening is alarming, as it is so unforgiving. People may be unable ever to be free of their online past, says Mr Erdos. Some footballers recently were punished for comments made almost a decade ago when they were but teenagers, as they have found to their cost.

Those within the industry think laws should be tightened, with punishment for illegal acts. In the meantime, caution (谨慎) is advisable. In talks with university students, Keith Rosser, director of Reed Screening warns them what companies will do to their social media when they apply for jobs. They are “universally terrified”, he says. And rightly.

The release of GPT-4, the latest language model developed by Open AI, has raised concerns about its potential impact on the job market. In the finance industry, fears around AI disruption are particularly severe, as many jobs involve the processing of data that could easily be done by machines.

This has prompted questions about what it means for the CFA Institute, which offers chartered financial analyst qualifications to humans who pay a considerable fee to take the exams. If an AI algorithm (算法) can pass the CFA exam, it could threaten the CFA Institute’s revenue (收入) model and potentially affect several hundred thousand bank employees.

However, recent experiments have shown that GPT-4 is not yet capable of passing the CFA exam. The simulation scored only 8 out of a possible 24 points, demonstrating that faking logical thought is very different from fake reasoning through the application of arbitrary rules and definitions. Humans still retain an upper hand in this area.

The CFA exam relies heavily on memorization and pattern matching, rather than processing the meaning of each question. This has allowed humans to continue to excel at the exam compared to machines that rely on algorithms and logical deductions (推理).

While the development of advanced AI may pose a threat to some industries, including finance, it appears that in the case of CFA accreditation, humans still have the upper hand. For now, those working in financial regulations and those responsible for setting exams in this field can breathe a small sigh of relief knowing their jobs are safe — at least for a little while longer.

In conclusion, the release of GPT-4 has sparked concerns about its potential to disturb the job market, especially in finance. However, experiments have demonstrated that AI still has limitations, particularly in areas requiring fake reasoning through memorized answers. While this news may reassure those in the finance industry, there is no denying that AI technology continues to transform many aspects of work and life.

Mariana Bechtel isn’t exactly someone who avoids stress. Throughout her, she has pursued high-pressure management jobs: “I’m hard core,” says the 44-yearold wife and mother of two. “I wanted to be on top at work, and I wanted to be a great mom” –one who could attend baseball games, drive and help with homework even after an hour-long commute （通勤）on workdays, more often than not, with a5 a.m. marathon-training run.

However, after months of losing sleep, dropping weight and feeling pushed to lose her mind, Mariana Bechtel decided she had to address her stress-and turn it to her advantage. The new job she recently switched to still has its share of pressure, but with more support from her boss and more flexibility in her schedule, she says she feels great.

Contrary to popular belief, stress doesn’t have to be a soul-sucking, health-damaging force. But few people know how to transform their stress into the positive kind that helps them reach their goals.

A recent research confirms that gaining control over job demands, doing work with meaning and purpose and enjoying support and encouragement from co-workers are all linked to beneficial stress. Simply changing attitudes and expectations about stress-through coaching, training or peer-support groups-can also develop the constructive kind of stress.

“Stress is paradoxical,” says Alia Crum, a research scholar. “On one hand, it can be the thing that hurts us most. On the other, it’s fundamental to psychological and physical growth. The attitude that we view and approach stress will shift the outcome.”