How does an education background check work?

mike_h: How does an education background check work?
I am up for a position and they are in the process of running different background checks on me. The one that concerns me is the education background check.

I am exactly one class shy of earning the BS degree that I claimed on my CV. I walked during graduation and everything, but I never got the *incomplete* for that class cleared up and, hence, never completely fulfilled my graduation requirements.

In an education background check, do companies verify that you have the degree or just that you attended the university during the dates you claimed?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Answers and Views:

Answer by amy p
Depends on the position and industry…

If having a degree is required for the position, they will verify that the degree was actually achieved. If not, attendance is what they will be looking for.

Be aware though that lying about your level of education, whether the degree is required or not, tells them loads about the type of employee you are. Even if they don’t require you to have the degree and they find out you lied, that alone could eliminate you from the running.

Answer by Linda N
Hey Mike:

An education background will show:
1. Your GPA for the time you were in that school;
2. Your degree status (in this case incomplete);
3. The month and year that the degree was awarded to you (if at all).

If you haven’t told the employer this, you should do it now. An employer usually has language in their application that nullifies an applicant’s status if the information given is not correct or is incomplete. This means that you are at risk for losing this opportunity with this company.

Call the recruiter immediately, and let them know that this is what they may find in the educational review. Also, be prepared to tell them how you have corrected the problem.
If you haven’t, get on the phone right now with your university to clear this up now. Good luck.

Answer by Alex Z
Check out www.v1g.org just click one of the sub links and you can read up about it.

Answer by backgrounds003
An education verification typically will verify the highest level of degree obtained. If you did not actually graduate, then it will be reported as such. Many colleges and universities have chosen to outsource their verifications to a third party, so the background screening company usually does not even talk to the school to find any additional information. I would suggest clearing this up. As a follow up, there are fewer companies that verify education backgrounds then criminal backgrounds.

Answer by Dipankar R
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