Education Verification: Why it Should Become a Part of Your Hiring Process

When making a hiring decision, there are often many factors that you consider. You consider how the candidate presented himself– was he polite and dressed professionally? You recall how the candidate answered a particularly challenging interview question. You consider his employment history and the feedback his professional references provided. Then you note the particularly impressive educational background listed on his resume. You’ve already verified his past employment and spoken to his references. How important is it, you wonder, to verify his education before making a hiring decision?

Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for applicants to inflate their qualifications by making false educational claims. These claims can include dishonesty about schools attended, dates of attendance, degrees earned, and more. Education verification can help screen out these falsehoods by verifying the candidate’s degree or certification, attendance dates, graduation date, and any type of graduation honors received.

If you’re still uncertain about whether or not education verification should be part of your hiring process, consider the following reasons why it’s a beneficial idea:

• It’s an honesty check. It’s a simple enough concept; you want the employees you hire to be honest people. If a candidate begins her relationship with your company by misleading you about her educational history, chances are she isn’t the trustworthy employee you are hoping to hire.
• It helps to ensure that the candidate meets the basic job requirements. Education is often a key indicator of on-the-job success. If a candidate lacks the education required for the position, he might also lack the necessary skills and training required for the position.
• It helps to protect the employer against negligent hiring claims. The more information you have about a potential candidate, the more likely you are to be protected against negligent hiring claims.
• It protects against fraud. Verifying the education of a candidate can help the employer screen out candidates who have purchased a diploma from so-called “diploma mills”.

For more information about the process and benefits of education verification, please contact us