Things to keep in mind when conducting education verifications
In a competitive job market, a prospective employee’s educational background could be of significance. Employers will often use this information to determine whether or not applicants have the right qualifications for a specific job.
As an HR or hiring manager, you have a responsibility to verify all vital information that an applicant might present on their resume. That’s why education verifications should be a normal part of the hiring process.
About Education Verifications and How to Proceed With the Process
Education verifications are documents or phone calls that serve to verify an applicant’s degrees, diplomas, certifications, date of attendance, graduation date(s), and area of study.
First, the HR or hiring manager needs to gather pertinent information from the applicant. The most important information would be the applicant’s name of record with the educational institution, the dates they attended, and any credentials they earned. That becomes the information that needs verification.
Verifications can be done by leveraging a trusted background screening firm like Private Eyes. In some cases, verifications can be done via a phone call to the educational institution(s) in question.
Why Are Education Verifications Important?
An applicant’s education credentials will matter a great deal if they lack work experience. They also matter if certain credentials are absolutely required in order to qualify for a position.
Unfortunately, not all applicants are forthright on their resumes. If an employer doesn’t verify an applicant’s education experience, they run the risk of hiring someone who will be unable to do the job in question.
In addition, the company might later make representations to the public related to the credentials of certain employees/directors. If the information were to turn out to be false or misleading, it could result in embarrassment and penalties for the company.
Given the simplicity of this process, you and your company should make it a regular practice to verify all education claims.
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