I’m applying for sysadmin type jobs and feel a lack of degree is holding me back. Should I simply lie? Can’t see most employers actually checking on a degree I would have earned 30+ years ago.
I’m applying for sysadmin type jobs and feel a lack of degree is holding me back. Should I simply lie? Can’t see most employers actually checking on a degree I would have earned 30+ years ago.
I just started a new job and I had to dig up a copy of my high school diploma as part of the background check. Ridiculous? Yes. But also, they just outsource to a third party company to verify everything. And that company doesn’t seem to actually do what they’re paid for and they just kicked back all of the work to me.
In any case, I agree with the comments that you shouldn’t need a degree. I’ve been a manager in tech for a long time, including 10 years at Google, and have a lot of experience hiring. I don’t have a college degree. And once someone had work experience, I never paid any attention to their education. Lying about it is only going to risk getting caught.
Question about this since I’ve never been asked - they asked for a photo copy of your diploma? I landed my tech job without them even checking or asking for my college diploma, let alone my high school diploma (both of which I would be willing, but it’s strange to me)
Sorry I took forever to answer this.
None of my previous jobs (including Google) checked references at all. They may have done a criminal background check, I don’t remember.
This latest one outsources their background check to a company that I’m sure charges them tons of money to do very little. I was disappointed to see from their web site that they are selling their use of AI to screen people. So that’s great.
But anyway, yes, what happened was that I had to fill out a form on the third party web site and give them a bunch of information - driver’s license, SSN, but also education, previous employers, job titles, manager’s names, etc. Then a few days later I got an email from the HR person at my new job telling me the third party company was unable to verify any of the information, so could I please send them a copy of my diploma, a letter from my former employer, etc. Basically I had to do all the legwork that they paid for, apart from checking a few databases to confirm I’m not a felon.