# Job description

A job description is the internal reference document that lists a role's responsibilities, required qualifications, and reporting line, serving as the source recruiters and hiring managers pull from when they write a job posting or plan interview questions.

A candidate typically never sees this version, only what gets built from it.

**Job description** — A job description lays out what a role actually involves: day-to-day responsibilities, required and preferred qualifications, who the position reports to, and often the team or department it sits within. It's written primarily for internal use, giving a hiring manager, recruiter, and interview panel a shared, specific reference for what the role needs, rather than a pitch aimed at candidates. Because it's detailed and specific, a job description is also the source material for two other documents: a job posting, which is a shorter, external version written to attract applicants, and the interview plan itself, since the qualifications listed usually map directly to what gets tested in the process. A well-written job description separates required qualifications from preferred ones clearly, so screening decisions can be made consistently instead of one recruiter treating a nice-to-have as a hard requirement and another treating the same line as optional. Vague or outdated job descriptions are a common source of mismatched hires, since interviewers end up evaluating candidates against expectations that were never written down anywhere specific.

A job description usually gets written or revised right after a requisition is approved, before recruiting or a public posting starts. Hiring managers and recruiters typically draft it together, since the hiring manager knows the day-to-day work and the recruiter knows what phrasing and structure tend to attract the right applicant pool. Some companies keep job descriptions as living documents, updated as a role evolves, while others treat them as a one-time artifact written for the original opening and rarely touched again, even after the actual responsibilities shift.

## Frequently asked questions

### What's the difference between a job description and a job posting?

A job description is the internal, detailed reference for what a role involves. A job posting is the shorter, external version written to attract candidates, usually adapted from the job description.

### Who writes a job description?

Typically the hiring manager and recruiter together, with the hiring manager covering the day-to-day responsibilities and the recruiter shaping how it's structured and worded.

### Should a job description separate required and preferred qualifications?

Yes. Keeping them separate makes screening more consistent, since it's clear which qualifications are actually necessary and which are a bonus rather than a hard requirement.

## Related pages

- [Job posting](/glossary/job-posting)
- [Job requisition](/glossary/job-requisition)
- [Browse open roles](/jobs)

## Prep against the actual role

Intervieux can build a full practice interview directly from a real job description, so your prep matches the actual role instead of a generic question bank.

Start practicing free: https://www.intervieux.ai/register · Hire with Intervieux: https://www.intervieux.ai/employers/signup