Twisting the Truth on Your CV

Telling pork pies on your CV can land you in some serious hot water, as a host of high-profile CV embellishers have found out to their cost. Yet despite the embarrassing implications of what has been labelled ‘education fraud’, many jobseekers still think employers don’t check their credentials and references. Apparently, this is not always the case.

Education fraud has reached the highest echelons of the corporate ladder. Sir Alex Ferguson was not amused when it was discovered that Alison Ryan, whom he interviewed for the post of communications manager at the club, claimed she had attained a first-class degree from Cambridge. Initially, Ryan impressed in the interview and got the GBP 125,000-a-year position. However, her euphoria soon evaporated when it was discovered she had falsified her University qualification. In fact, Ryan had only achieved a second-class certificate and was promptly sacked and banned from practising law as a result.

Three Degrees

More tall tales were exposed when Patrick Imbardelli, now CEO of Pan Pacific Hotels group claimed he had attained two degrees from Cornell University in the US and another from a University in Australia. Although Imbardelli attended classes at both institutions, he did not graduate from either. After the fiasco, Mr. Imbardelli resigned in 2007, only to be somewhat fortuitously appointed president and CEO of Pan Pacific Hotels Group in 2008.

Graduate Fabrication

These cases are indicative of a more widespread trend that seems to be ending up in the inboxes of more and more potential employers when a position is advertised. As many as one in five applicants falsify information on their CVs, according to an official survey conducted recently, and many applicants are unperturbed by the threat of being outed and shamed.

One such individual, graduate Neil Wilson, claimed in a recent Telegraph article that he had fabricated information on his CV when he applied to a retail banking chain. Wilson added a month’s work experience he had never done to make his CV look better suited to the position. “I thought I’d better show that I had worked in a bank before, so I put down that I’d done a month’s unpaid work in a local branch where I grew up. That branch had closed, anyway, so I knew they’d never be able to check,” he claims.

Far from being repentant, Wilson stood by his actions saying he would repeat the fraud if necessary. “There’s no way they could have found out, and when I asked for feedback, they said it was because they had been inundated with applications from high-calibre graduates. I would consider doing it again in similar circumstances,” he adds.

Barefaced Cheek

Other stories include listing former bosses purely because they have impressive sounding job titles. In fact, the referee or boss listed may have had little or no contact with the applicant. One case even occurred where a candidate claimed he knew someone who worked at the company he was being interviewed by. The candidate was rumbled, somewhat unsurprisingly, during the interview, when it emerged that their “bosom buddy” was part of the interview team.

White Lies

The survey, which was carried out by Staffbay, found that 20 percent of the people asked (25,000 in total) would fabricate information on their CVs if it meant it would impress a future boss. Staffbay founder Tony Wilmot told the Telegraph there are a number of reasons why people are prepared to pull the wool over employer’s eyes; “Obviously, these figures are shocking, but with as many as 80 people chasing the same job, it’s hardly surprising that some jobseekers are prepared to bend the rules a little to enter the world of work.”

With many online sources like LinkedIn showing crucial employment details, even applicants who aren’t lying might be tarred with the same brush. If the details don’t match up, it can look suspicious, despite there being no intention to conceal the truth. No longer are paper-based CVs the be-all and end-all. Employers can use this to their advantage when they receive a CV and do their homework before inviting those they believe are suitable.

The tide of falsified CVs is especially noticeable amongst university-leavers (where it has become known as ‘Degree Fraud’), competing for the dwindling number of positions. The most common lies found in applications from graduates, according to a May 2012 graduate prospects survey, are:

To give a higher grade than has actually been achieved (47 percent)
Claim to have completed a course when it was only partly completed (29 percent)
To offer a different course subject to suit the job requirements (13 percent)
To say they have a degree when they don’t (11 percent)

The survey also found that dishonesty may stem from the rise in University tuition fees. Almost half of those surveyed said this was a reason for lying. Another interesting statistic from the survey was that 68 percent said buying a fake degree would be tempting.

In response, the UK Department of Business, Innovation & Skills and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) have launched an online service which is in contact with every publicly funded university and college in the UK (165 currently exist). The service provides employers with a database so they can verify the credentials of applicants. At this time, only a handful of employers check the validity of qualifications on CVs. The HEFCE hopes to counter this by appealing to both large- and small-scale companies.

The Truth Will Out

If an education fraudster is successful in their application, a lack of experience or insufficient knowledge required for the position will almost certainly surface. But until checking becomes more ubiquitous, the glut of potential candidates with embellished CVs will continue to plague the employment landscape. Only the individual can decide whether it is too risky not to play by the rules, but employers are cottoning on fast.

D.L.

VOCABULARY
to tell pork pies – łgać, kłamać w żywe oczy
to land sb (in sth) – wpakować kogoś w coś
(to be) in hot water – wpaść w tarapaty
a host of – duża ilość
high-profile – znany, głośny
embellisher – przyozdabiacz, tu: kłamca
to sb’s cost – tu: na własnej skórze
despite – pomimo
embarrassing – żenujący
implication – implikacja, konsekwencja
to label – zaszufladkować, opatrzyć etykietą
fraud – oszustwo
jobseeker – poszukiwacz pracy
credentials – kwalifikacje, referencje
to reach – dosięgnąć
echelons – eszelony (władzy), szczeble (np. najwyższe)
amused – rozbawiony
to discover – odkryć
to claim – twierdzić
to attain – osiągnąć, zrealizować
degree – stopień
initially – pierwotnie, wstępnie
to impress – zaimponować
to evaporate – ulotnić się
to falsify – sfałszować, podrobić
to achieve – uzyskać
promptly – natychmiast
to sack – zwolnić
to ban – zakazać
tall tale – opowiastka, zmyślona historyjka (najcz. US)
to expose – ujawnić
CEO (Chief Executive Officer) – dyrektor naczelny
to attend – uczęszczać
to graduate from sth – ukończyć szkołę/studia gdzieś
to resign – ustąpić (ze stanowiska)
fortuitously – przypadkowo, szczęśliwym trafem
to appoint – wyznaczyć, mianować
fabrication – zmyślenie
to be indicative of sth – być znamiennym dla czegoś
widespread – rozpowszechniony
inbox – skrzynka odbiorcza
to advertise – reklamować
applicant – ubiegający się (o pracę)
according to – zgodnie z, według
survey – ankieta
to conduct – przeprowadzić
unperturbed – niezrażony
threat – groźba
to out sb – nakablować na kogoś, ujawnić prawdę o kimś
to shame – zawstydzić
individual – osoba
retail – detaliczny
chain – sieć (np. sklepów)
suited – dopasowany, pasujący
to put down – zapisać, odnotować
unpaid – niepłatny, bezpłatny (np. urlop)
branch – filia, oddział
repentant – okazujący żal, skruszony
to stand by sth – upierać się przy czymś, trwać w czymś (np. przekonaniu)
feedback – opinia zwrotna
to inundate sb with sth – zalać kogoś czymś
to consider – rozważyć
circumstances – okoliczności
barefaced – bezczelny, prosto w twarz (o kłamstwie)
cheek – tupet, bezczelność
to include – wliczać
to list – wyszczególniać
former – były
job titles – opis stanowiska, nazwa pozycji
referee – osoba udzielająca referencji
to occur – wydarzyć się
to interview sb – przeprowadzać z kimś rozmowę (o pracę)
to rumble sb – przejrzeć kogoś, zdemaskować
unsurprisingly – jak można się było spodziewać
to emerge – tu: wyjść na jaw
bosom buddy – serdeczny przyjaciel (pot.)
to carry out – przeprowadzić
in total – łącznie
founder – założyciel
to pull the wool over sb’s eyes – zamydlać komuś oczy
figures – statystyki, dane
to bend the rules – nagiać przepisy/zasady
to enter – wejść, wkroczyć
crucial – decydujący, rozstrzygający
to tar sb with the same brush – potraktować kogoś tak samo, mierzyć kogoś taką samą miarą
to match up – zgadzać się
suspicious – podejrzany
intention – zamiar
to conceal – skryć
the be-all and end-all (of sth) – szczyt (czegoś), wszystko co najważniejsze (w czymś)
to use sth to sb’s advantage – wykorzystać coś z pożytkiem dla siebie
tide – fala, napływ
especially – zwłaszcza
noticeable – dostrzegalny, zauważalny
amongst – pośród
leaver – absolwent (np. school-leaver – osoba kończąca lub która ukończyła szkołę)
to compete for sth – rywalizować o coś
dwindling – kurczący się, malejący
prospects – szanse, perspektywy
grade – stopień, ocena
to complete – ukończyć
partly – częściowo
requirement – wymóg, wymaganie
dishonesty – nieuczciwość
to stem from – wywodzić się z, być spowodowanym
tuition fee – opłata za szkołę, czesne
fake – podrobiony, sfabrykowany
tempting – kuszący
in response – w odpowiedzi/w reakcji
skill – umiejętność
council – rada
to launch – rozpocząć, wprowadzić
publicly funded – fundowany ze środków społecznych
to exist – istnieć
to provide sb with sth – dać komuś coś, dostarczyć komuś czegoś
to verify – zweryfikować, sprawdzić
handful – garść
validity – ważność, zasadność
to counter sth – przeciwdziałać czemuś
to appeal to sb – pociągać kogoś, zainteresować kogoś
small-scale – niewielkich rozmiarów
the truth will out – prawda zawsze wyjdzie na jaw
insufficient – niewystarczający
to surface – wyjść na jaw
ubiquitous – wszechobecny
glut – nadmiar, zalew
to plague – dręczyć, nękać
landscape – krajobraz
to play by the rules – grać zgodnie z zasadami, nie oszukiwać
to cotton on – skapować, załapać