The modern workplace requires employees with advanced skills and proper training, yet falsifying educational backgrounds has emerged as a common form of resume fraud.
As the job market has become increasingly competitive, some applicants feel the need to exaggerate — or completely fabricate — their educational credentials. Such false information can lead employers to make costly hiring mistakes that can damage the reputation of a business and increase liability risk.
Why should you verify prospects’ educational backgrounds before hiring, and how can you begin the education verification process?
Simple Oversight — or Intentional Falsehood?
In many cases, verifying educational information can uncover candidates’ honest mistakes or oversights. For example, prospective employees may misstate the name of their educational institution. Or, they may fail to provide the name of their specific campus within a sprawling university system. The candidate might provide the wrong graduation year or mistakenly list the incorrect course of study.
A professional background screening firm specializing in education verification for employment can confirm whether an individual has had a name change since attaining a degree. The process also can be useful for employers that need to verify information from international universities.
An education verification check also will identify applicants who choose to falsify information about their educational backgrounds. An applicant may have earned a different type of degree than listed on a resume, such as a two-year associate degree rather than a four-year bachelor’s degree.
If an applicant attended college but did not graduate or lists a degree from a so-called “diploma mill” — an unaccredited organization that provides fake credentials for a fee — a professional education screening can provide confirmation.
How to Verify a Degree
In recent years, technology allowing applicants to create real-looking diplomas and other falsified credentials has improved significantly. Employers that fail to conduct comprehensive educational background screenings may unwittingly hire applicants who lack the appropriate training and knowledge for specific jobs.
A majority of employers report that many candidates exaggerate — or provide outright false information — during the hiring process. By working with professional verification service providers, many employers protect their businesses by screening out candidates who falsify educational information.
By working with a professional screening firm, employers can verify:
- • Educational institutions attended
- • Dates attended and degrees attained
- • Fields of study, including majors and minors
- • Academic honors and grade point average
- • Attendance and graduation from international universities
- • Name changes that affect educational records
Why Choose Global Verification Network?
Incorrect educational information should serve as a red flag during the hiring process. By working with a professional screening firm, you gain access to accurate information and can determine whether a candidate intentionally falsified data. After confirming information — including institutions attended and credentials earned — you can move forward with a candidate confidently.
Global Verification Network assists employers in making sound hiring decisions with comprehensive education verification services. By confirming educational details, you gain peace of mind about hiring only qualified candidates. To begin an education verification check, please contact Global Verification Network.