Yes, that was the old way. My hubby used to tell me stories all the time of parents getting their children in with no experience over other qualified individuals. That's not how it should be.

Once I tried to get my daughter who was in the 12th grade a summer position at my company. They made her fill out an application, screening, interview and test. I appreciated that because she got the job on her own merit. She received such good marks on her performance that the HR lady gave her a personal contact number for when my daughter graduated college to give her a call. I was stunned when my daughter called her, and she recommended her for a position at another company and wrote her a recommendation letter.

Long story short, my daughter got the position and has been there for the past 20 years. She never forgot the HR lady.