What Are Diploma Mills & How Do They Lead To Resume Lies?
Diploma mills and fake degrees are increasingly common, and may lead to resume lies whether it’s intentional or not. Here’s what you need to know about diploma mills.
Education Verification
Education Verification Background Check
Make more informed decisions with an Education Verification background check. Verify that your candidate’s degree, education credentials, or professional license is valid.
Trust & Safety
The Importance Of Education Background Checks
An Education Verification search confirms the education, degree, training, or certification claims of a candidate are true and identifies potential discrepancies before you hire. Sometimes referred to as an Education Background Check or an Education Check, this service is used to confirm educational experience at high schools, universities, colleges, and vocational schools.
Education Verifications help you:
- Hire qualified, educated candidates more quickly
- Mitigate risk of hiring a candidate with false education credentials
- Protect your organization against liability claims
- Comply with federal, state, local and industry regulations
Results
What Does An Education Verification Background Check Show?
Education Verification checks contact the universities, colleges, vocational schools, and high schools provided by the candidate to verify credentials:
- Enrollment
- Dates of attendance
- Type of degree obtained
- Major completion status
- Graduation date
Employment Screening
When To Use Professional License Verifications
Since some positions require both specific training as well as an active professional license, a Professional License Verification ensures your candidate is licensed to work in a specific vocation and reports the credential title, current status, and issue and expiration dates.
Licenses may be checked for positions such as:
- Counselor & teacher license verification
- Accountant, CPA & attorney license verification
- Plumbing, electrician & land survey license verification
- Cosmetologist & massage therapist license verification
- Health care license verification (dentists, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, therapists)
Search Options
GoodHire’s Suite Of Education Verification Checks
GoodHire offers a full suite of background checks and employment screening services. The following table shows Education Verification checks offered, what each verifies, and types of degrees or licenses covered.
Education Verification
SEARCHES
The high school, college, or university specified; US institutions only.
VERIFIES
For one school: attendance dates, majors, and degrees, diplomas or certificates earned.
International Education Verification
SEARCHES
The high school, college, or university specified; available for institutions in 226 countries.
VERIFIES
For one school: attendance dates, majors, and degrees earned.
Professional License Verification
SEARCHES
The professional license issuing authority specified.
VERIFIES
For one license: issue date, expiration date, credential title, and current status.
Education Verification – Canada
(Contact Sales)
SEARCHES
Canadian and non-Canadian institutions.
VERIFIES
For one school: attendance dates, majors, and degrees earned.
Resources
Learn More About Education Verification Checks
Compliance
What You Need to Know When Running Education Verifications
Employers using a Consumer Reporting Agency (CRA), like GoodHire, to run background checks to assess candidates during the hiring process have important responsibilities to ensure a fair and respectful process for the candidate, and to comply with various laws and regulations that govern employment screening.
Disclosure & Authorization
The FCRA requires employers to inform the candidate that they intend to run a background check, and obtain the candidate’s permission to do so.
Adverse Action
If the results of a background check prompts a decision to deny employment, the FCRA requires employers to follow specific adverse action steps.
Education Verification: Your Guide To Education Background Checks
This article will explain what an education background check is, as well as answer common questions about education checks, and explain how to do them so you can be confident in your hiring decisions.
Introduction
Education verification helps employers confirm a candidate’s academic background and verify whether information they provide during the hiring process is accurate. When included as part of a comprehensive pre-employment background check, it helps employers make more informed hiring decisions. According to a Resume Lab survey, 70% of respondents admitted to lying on their resume, and 11% said they lied about their education credentials.
What is an education background check?
An education background check is a type of screening used by employers to confirm the education, training, or certification claims of candidates and to identify any potential discrepancies. It confirms a candidate’s academic background, including high schools, universities and vocational schools they attended, dates of enrollment, and diplomas, degrees, and certificates earned. It can help employers identify potential discrepancies between what a candidate reports on their resume, in a job application, or during an interview and the records academic institutions have on file.
Typically, education background checks do not verify a license to work in a specific vocation, which is a different type of screening called a professional license verification
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How do employers verify education?
To verify a candidate’s educational history, employers can have their hiring team conduct an education verification check or partner with a consumer reporting agency (CRA), like GoodHire, that provides education verification services. Employers that choose to handle education verification in-house may register with and request educational records through the National Student Clearinghouse or directly from the academic institutions the candidate attended.
However, it can be time consuming for hiring teams to conduct education verifications —especially if you need to contact multiple institutions—because it requires identifying and getting in touch with the appropriate contact person at each school. This may require multiple phone calls and waiting to hear back, which can extend the time it takes to complete the process.
Working with a qualified background check provider, like GoodHire, is often more efficient and frees up your hiring team to handle other parts of the hiring and onboarding process. GoodHire’s advanced technology delivers fast, accurate results, speeding turnaround times so you can fill roles more quickly.
Why do employers need to verify education history?
Education verification for employment helps confirm that a candidate has met the educational requirements for a position, verifying they have the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform job functions.
With the proliferation of what are often called “diploma mills”—online organizations that provide documentation of degrees for a price but don’t actually deliver or provide education—it’s increasingly easy for applicants to obtain fake degrees and other misleading credentials. False reporting of educational qualifications can put employers at risk of placing candidates in roles for which they don’t have the required education.
Additionally, education verification helps employers in certain industries and jobs remain compliant with hiring regulations that require employers to verify a candidate’s educational history. Including education verification in a comprehensive background check program helps employers build trustworthy teams and protect organizations from reputational risk.
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Employers may conduct an online education verification using the National Student Clearinghouse, a web-based service that provides access to records from thousands of academic institutions throughout the United States. Employers can verify degrees earned, diplomas awarded, and the current enrollment status of candidates at the schools included in the Clearinghouse database. However, it does not have records from every educational institution a candidate might have attended.
Employers that don’t use the Clearinghouse may contact educational institutions directly to confirm a candidate’s academic details. This requires your hiring team to find the appropriate contact person and wait for them to verify a candidate’s information. When handling education verification internally, it’s not uncommon for hiring teams to encounter uncooperative institutions and outdated records that may delay the completion of the screening.
Employers looking for a more efficient and streamlined option, often choose to work with a CRA, like GoodHire, that offers education verification services. GoodHire streamlines the education verification process so you can quickly get the assurance you need that your candidates have the education background they claim.
Benefits of using a background check service
Background check services, like GoodHire, save employers time and free up hiring teams to work on other tasks. We leverage both automation and human review to build efficient and accurate reports that keep the background check process moving smoothly and speed the hiring flow so you can fill roles faster. Our built-in compliance tools make it easier to manage risk and ensure consistency across your team. Plus, our mobile-first candidate experience keeps candidates engaged and provides status updates from start to finish.
Frequently asked questions
How long does an education verification take?
Education verification takes just a few days in most cases. However, turnaround time is dependent on the responsiveness of the educational institution being queried and how readily available the information is to them. In some cases, they may need to access hard copy records which may take longer.
How far back does an education background check go?
How far back education background checks go depends on the scope of the search, as defined by the employer. Employers often only complete an education verification on the highest degree, certificate, or diploma earned. Depending on the candidate’s history, this might be a high school diploma, a GED, or a college certificate or degree. Less often, an education background check may provide an overview of a candidate’s entire education history.
The federal FCRA restricts how far back many types of background screenings—such as criminal records checks—can go. However, there are no such restrictions on education verification screenings.
Does an education verification include GPA?
Education verification does not usually include GPA. If you want to see a candidate’s GPA, you typically need to ask them to provide a copy of their transcripts.
Does an education verification include degrees?
Yes, an education background check includes degree verification, certificates a candidate has earned, the academic institutions they attended, and the dates they were enrolled at each institution.
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Education background checks are an important part of the screening process when considering candidates for many jobs. They help provide assurance that candidates have the education and skills required for the job and minimize liability risks that employers may face if employees do not have the appropriate education.
Partnering with a background check company, like GoodHire, can speed the process and help you hire with confidence. In addition to education verifications, GoodHire offers 100+ screening options so you can build a comprehensive background check program that fits your hiring needs. Get started.
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Disclaimer
The resources provided here are for educational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. We advise you to consult your own counsel if you have legal questions related to your specific practices and compliance with applicable laws.