Little white lies are common. “I’ll be there in five minutes,” or “Sorry, I didn’t see your call.” Typically, these little white lies are harmless and well-intentioned. But did you know that one in three (32%) people have lied on their resume or during the hiring process? Among these fibs, education was the most-lied about topic, with 44% of respondents admitting they stretched the truth about their academic record.
Some creative resume enhancements may not be the end of the world, but other lies can increase your risk of hiring inexperienced candidates and potentially damaging your company’s reputation and mission. That’s why countless organizations like yours are utilizing Education Verifications during the background screening process.
Let’s explore what education verifications are, why you should conduct education verifications, and how to easily implement verifications in your background screening process.
An education verification background check authenticates a candidate’s academic credentials and qualifications during the pre-employment screening process. Education verification checks can help you confirm applicants have the stated knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the role. Typical education verifications include enrollment and attendance, degrees earned, and graduation dates from high schools, colleges, universities, and vocational schools.
Education verifications let employers:
Like state and federal background checks, education verifications empower employers to make more informed hiring decisions. Let’s break down the ways verifying an applicant’s academic credentials can improve your hiring strategy:
Some positions require formal education or degrees, while others demand specific knowledge and skills to perform the role's duties. Hiring unqualified candidates wastes crucial time and money that could be spent focusing on other business needs. Education verifications help identify candidates with the necessary skills and prerequisites for the position, saving you time and energy while reducing the costs of a bad hire.
Employees must have the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform their job. If you do not verify that employees have the proper education and qualifications for the role, you can face potential negligent hiring lawsuits. Screening applicants before hiring them can help reduce the risk of hiring an unqualified candidate and protect your employees and clients.
Conducting education verification background checks helps you comply with local, state, and federal guidelines. Specific industries, including healthcare, education, legal and insurance, and more, have strict academic requirements for people to be allowed to practice their job legally. Hiring someone without the necessary qualifications can expose your company to significant liability.
While some organizations may opt for DIY education verifications, the most effective way to conduct these checks is by implementing them in your pre-employment background screening process. If you are already utilizing a background screening provider, they should offer this product to you. Screening providers can verify education information faster, more efficiently, and more accurately than conducting verifications on your own.
Education verifications shouldn’t be a roadblock to better hiring. Verified First streamlines the background screening and education verification process to save you time and help ensure you’re hiring more qualified candidates. Our average turnaround time is 42.8 hours (compared to the industry average of 2-5 business days), with a 94.5% success rate.
For institutions utilizing the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), we will submit a request directly to them. If the NSC needs additional research to verify the information, we inform our clients immediately.
If an institution’s vendor is unknown, our verifications team will attempt all points of contact for five business days to verify a candidate’s education directly with the institution. This process helps us ensure a high success rate per search.
Verified First also offers Transcript Retrieval, which can be added to any education search. In several states, governments require an applicant’s transcript in addition to education verification. Our transcript retrieval process collects applicants' transcripts in compliance with these government organizations.
Our verifications team will attempt all points of contact for five business days to verify directly with the high school if the institution utilizes no known vendor. We will pass through any fees associated with these services.
All GED Verifications are verified through the state’s Department of Education. We will work with a vendor to complete this verification. We will pass through any fees associated with these services, as well.
Are you interested in implementing education verification checks to improve your hiring strategy?
We are proud members of the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA)
Verified First is NIST 800-53 compliant.
© 2024 Verified First, LLC | Privacy Policy | Legal
