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Verifying your education is an important part of the hiring process, and employers will generally verify your educational history to ensure you are honest and to check for any red flags. 

It’s important to be totally accurate on your job applications and to make sure your background check report is free from errors regarding your educational history. This will make the job screening process much smoother. 

Our article gives you more details on how employers verify education and what you can do to prepare for this process.

Why Would an Employer Need to Verify Education?

There are several different reasons why an employer might need to verify someone’s education. The main reason for this is because education verification is done as part of an employer’s due diligence. An employer must vet and screen potential employees, especially ones in high-stakes careers, to ensure that the new employee does not pose a threat to the workplace.

Employers will also want to make sure that a potential new employee has the education and training necessary to handle the job. This is especially important if the career requires specialized knowledge or degrees. Additionally, checking someone’s educational history can help an employer verify that they are being honest and prove the potential employee’s integrity.

Careers With Strict Hiring Policies

While every job you encounter could double-check your educational history, some career fields are stricter about hiring policies and background checks than others. The following jobs are much more likely to ensure you have the right educational background and applicable licenses or degrees before you are eligible for hiring:

  • Medical careers
  • Child caretaking or teaching
  • Nursing home careers
  • Security positions
  • Careers with necessary security clearances
  • Government careers
  • Legal careers

Other careers outside this list may also have strict hiring processes. So, it’s important to check directly with the job you are applying for to confirm any details you are concerned about.

How Do Employers Verify Education?

Employers may verify your education in a few different ways. The top three ways for verifying your educational history include background check reports, references, and reviewing copies of your transcripts and diplomas.

With background check reporting, an employer will follow all state guidances to ask you for your consent to a background check report. You will generally be told what the report is looking for and provided with a copy of the official report for your own records. 

Your potential employer will review all of your personal history on this report, including your educational history and any degree programs completed.

In addition to background check reporting, your employer will likely contact your references. These references could be professional or personal, or they may contact the institution where you received your degrees and certifications from directly. 

After speaking with your school and references, your employer can confirm and verify the educational details included on your application.

Finally, your potential employer may ask for a copy of your diploma or a copy of your transcript from your most recent educational program or degree program. You can request official copies be sent to your employer, or you can provide them with a photocopy or digital copy of these files.

Do I Need to Consent to a Hiring Background Check?

The majority of states require that you consent to a hiring background check by providing your signature. 

State and federal laws also require your potential employer to inform you that a background check will need to take place as part of the hiring process. Potential employers are required to allow you to review the report and dispute or expand on any specific details in your background check report that may be raising red flags with an employer.

It’s important to check state laws in your area for more details on background check reporting and consent for background checks.

Will My Employer Contact My Degree Program?

Your employer could potentially contact your degree program if they want more information about your time in the program. They may also want to speak to someone you worked closely with in the program to find out more information on your capabilities. 

Your employer might also be looking for verification that you enrolled and completed your degree within the timeline that you listed on your job application.

Do I Need to Request Official Transcripts for My Job?

You may need to request official transcripts for your job, though this does depend on your employer’s hiring and screening process. If you do find that you need to request official transcripts sent to your employer, you can work with your degree program or most recent educational program to complete this step. 

Keep in mind that you may need to pay a small fee to have your transcript materials sent to an employer.

Is It Illegal to Lie About Your Education?

It can be illegal to lie about your education, depending on the state. Certain career fields may take falsified educational documents, certifications, licenses, and degrees much more seriously than others. 

For example, if you lie about a medical degree or training in order to get a job in a hospital or nursing home, you can face serious criminal charges if you are discovered. Falsifying your educational information can have serious impacts on patients and others, and many states might consider this a felony.

Additionally, even if you lie about your education in a more low-stakes position and you are found out before or after hiring, this can cause issues. This is true regardless if the state you are in doesn’t treat it as a crime. 

Employers do not want to work with an employee who is comfortable falsifying their educational documents, as this creates trust and integrity issues. Plus, if you are fired for this, you may have trouble getting good references and pursuing a rewarding career in the future. 

Will I Be Fired for Providing False Education Information?

If you have already been hired, you may face issues with keeping your position if you are found to have lied about your educational history. 

Depending on the nature of the job, you may be fired on the spot. However, it’s possible that you may be given a chance to finish your education and obtain the degree or certifications that you need to officially be appointed to the position.

It’s essential to avoid falsifying your educational information and to obtain your degrees or licenses the proper way if you want to work in a specific career. Doing this will avoid future issues and help you avoid putting your future career prospects at risk.

How Do You Fail a Hiring Background Check?

Failing a hiring background check is somewhat subjective. Different career fields have different policies and regulations for what is allowable on a background check and what might be seen as a red flag. 

In general, the following items can cause you to fail a hiring background check or require further discussion and clarification with an employer:

  • A history of drinking or using substances on the job
  • DUIs and felony DUIs
  • Criminal convictions, especially violent offenses and sexual offenses
  • Lack of educational history or falsified educational history
  • Improper training or lack of degrees
  • Large gaps in employment history with no explanation

It’s important to keep in mind that jobs that work in high-security fields, government agencies, and those that work with vulnerable populations will generally have much stricter hiring policies. Therefore, they likely have a lower tolerance for potential red flags on your background check report.

Verifying Your Educational History

For many careers, the right education and training is essential to ensuring that you can handle the position you are applying for and that you are not impacting the safety of a workplace. While some career fields are stricter than others when it comes to verifying educational history and degrees, you should be prepared for every employer to check out this information in some way. 

Make sure that you are always honest on your job applications and disclose any potential issues that might appear on your background check report ahead of time. This way, your employer can work with you during the hiring screening process.

Mark Simon

Mark Simon

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