Diploma Mills and Education Verification

Are you hiring for a position which requires a specific certification or degree? If so, then the education listed on applicants’ resumes is a critically important piece of the hiring process. And yet, statistics show that a significant percentage of applicants misrepresent their educational credentials. To make the problem even worse, hundreds of diploma mills exist, which allow candidates to purchase faux degrees to put on their applications.

An education verification check is your best defense against such misrepresentation. Here’s what you need to know.

What Is An Education Verification Check?

An education verification is a tool which allows employers to confirm a candidate’s representation of their training, certification, and/or educational history. It weeds out any false information about such claims. In some cases, a consumer reporting agency may perform such a check on behalf of employers.

What Does An Education Verification Show?

An education verification reveals whether or not an applicant actually attended a school they claimed to have attended. It can also show the dates of attendance and any certifications or degrees which were earned.

How Long Does An Education Verification Check Take?

Often, employers decide not to bother with education verification checks, assuming they will take too long, slowing down the hiring process. But this is a mistake. By not verifying education, you open yourself up to the cost and delay of starting all over again if you find you’ve hired someone who is unqualified for the position.

Why You Should Perform Education Verification Checks On Applicants

Education verification checks help you ensure that you are hiring the people with the best qualifications for the job, protecting you from costly liability due to negligent hiring.

Using a Third-Party Service

Hiring a third-party background check service like Veriswift is the quickest, easiest, and most effective way to approach education verification checks in the hiring process. In most cases, it only takes a few hours to verify any educational claims made by the applicant.

DIY Education Verification

Some employers opt to conduct their own education verification checks. This means contacting each educational institution directly and providing them with the information the applicant has given you. However, you may run into problems if the applicant has provided false information or if the institution only allows informational access to former students.

International Education

When verifying international education credentials, it’s best to use a third party, which has the ability to check universities worldwide. This ensures that you’re hiring someone who is qualified to do the job.

A Word About Diploma Mills

Instead of paying tuition and earning a degree, some individuals opt to purchase diplomas or transcripts from diploma or degree mills. Some of these mills simply create fake diplomas, while others may go so far as to pretend to be a fake university.

Why Fast Degrees Are a Red Flag

When you’re purchasing a degree instead of earning one, it tends not to take as much time, because no class attendance, papers, or exams are required. Be skeptical of any degrees which took a few weeks or even days instead of a number of years.

As you can tell, a thorough education verification check should be included as a key piece of your evaluation of a candidate. With the help of Veriswift, you can quickly filter out the fake diplomas and find the employees with the qualifications you need.