Why Resume Lies Always Get Found Out

While it's true that a resume should present you and your skills in the best light possible, you should never lie on your resume.

Resume lying, or resume padding as it's sometimes referred as, is much more popular than it should be. It's also much more common than people think. While no statistics have ever been recorded on how many people lie on their resumes (and really, would they admit it?), but some experts like placement firms guess that number is between 10 and 30 percent of all resume writers. Moreover, as far as resume cheating college students, some statistics cite as many as 90 percent admit they have or would cheat to get a job.

With statistics that high, it's no wonder that hiring personnel are on the alert to resume fraud!

While there are all types of lies people put on their resumes, there are a few that seem to be more popular choices than any others. The most popular resume lie is enhancing job title and embellishing job duties and achievements to make it sound like the job seeker is more skilled and responsible than he or she really is. Lying about the level of education received is also common. This type of lie is probably most common in those who are only a few credits short of a degree, and never bothered to finish up those few credits.

Some job seekers even go so far as to invent employers. Others stretch the dates of employment to cover employment gaps. Still others lie about the reason they quit their last job. Let's say someone was let go for reasons based on poor work performance. Sometimes these job seekers will lie on their resumes and claim they were let go because of company cutbacks.

However, every time someone lies on a resume, those lies are usually discovered. Especially if the lies are about something significant.

While you may think that no one will discover a resume lie, is it really worth the risk to your integrity and reputation to pad your resume? Are you willing to suffer embarrassment and humiliation when your lies are discovered?

With the increase in resume fraud, a lot of companies are wising up to resume cheaters. That's why many companies are checking up on applicants before the actual interview process.

Companies can easily find out if you're telling the truth about your employment history by completing an employment background check. Some conduct full background checks including a credit history check. As far as verifying education level? That's easy enough to do by contacting the educational institution to discover current or past student status.

Resumes are not legal documents. If you lie on one you're not going to be put into jail. The worst that can happen is that you won't get the job, and your name and reputation will be tarnished within the industry.

However, keep in mind; if you lie on your resume, you'll also need to lie on the official job application form. And job application forms are legal documents with legal repercussions for lying.

Resume lying is always discovered. Maybe not immediately. But if you get hired because of a resume lie, your lack of skills, experience and knowledge will eventually show.

Save yourself the stress. Be ethical. Be honest. Make yourself look good on your resume, but never lie.

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