Numeral usage in job postings

Written by: Another Guy with a Computer
Date: March 9, 2024
Last Edited: June 15, 2025

Students of the English language, are taught when expressing a specific number of items through the written word, you write the word for the number if it is less than ten or twenty or sometimes one hundred. As an example, one would write, The horse ate four apples rather than The horse ate 4 apples.

When it comes to job postings, exceptions to the rules are frequent and sometimes with puzzling implications. Postings for technical positions typically call for a Bachelors degree with some asking for an Associates or even just GED. On the other end of the spectrum, a Masters degree is sometimes requested and this is where things get interesting.

If a job posting requests a level of education, it is reasonable to assume a level of knowledge and vocabulary mastery. Yet some job postings, despite calling for a high level of education are seemingly written for those with little or no education.

As an example which parallels something found in an actual job posting:

Our ideal candidate will have seven (7) years experience managing teams.

Observe the usage of both the word seven and the numeral representation 7. Why is this sentence written in this fashion? What requirement is satisfied?

Consider the image depicting a matching exercise for a child. The lines matching the words to the numerals were drawn by a five year old. If a five year old can understand and correctly identify seven and 7 represent the same concept, why is space wasted in job posts tailored to those with college level educations?