Applicants Based on Their Resume

¶ … applicants based on their resume information. The writer explores some of the more common themes of resumes and what it tells the reader about that applicant. There were five sources used to complete this paper.

When an employer has an opening for a position resumes are often accepted before interviews are set up. The resume is the first impression the applicant gives the potential employer and is often the key to whether or not the applicant is given a job interview. Resumes are representative not only of the applicant's job experience and education but also of the personality of the applicant. This can often be determined by the style of resume that the applicant chooses to use. There are several things that can be determined about an applicant by looking at their resume.

Methodology

The methodology that was chosen for this study was a literature review. The reason the literature review was chosen was so that the research could draw on the examination and research of others. There are several methods that were also examined, considered and discarded. Survey methods, case studies, in person interviews and mail outs were also considered and rejected either because of time constraints, study limitations or other reasons. The literature review provides concrete data from which conclusions can be drawn.

In determining what one can learn about applicants by looking at their resumes one must first be able to spot untruths or fabrications. That, in and of itself of course tells the potential employer something about the applicant as it lets the potential employer know that the applicant is a liar.

Studies conducted to determine how many applicants have lies on their resume found that 30% of applicants that send in resumes are lying on those resumes (Babcock, 2003).

In fact, about 30% of all job applicants make material misrepresentations on resumes, according to some staffing experts. ADP Screening and Selection Services, a unit of the Roseland, N.J.-based ADP payroll and benefits managing company, says that in performing 2.6 million background checks in 2001, it found that 44% of applicants lied about their work histories, 41% lied about their education, and 23% falsified credentials or licenses. "

The study found that applicants do not feel bad about lying on their resumes. They believe the attitude stems from the tough job market and the competitive nature of job seekers (Babcock, 2003)."

The research indicates a significant number of job seekers lie on their resume, but experts caution not to be to skeptical, just careful when using resumes to seek job applicants.

So experts advise HR to be alert. "We're not telling HR professionals to assume that all their applicants are lying," says Lester S. Rosen, an attorney and president of Employment Screening Resources in Novato, Calif, most applicants "operate on good faith and at face value," he says. "But one bad hire can just wreek an organization and create a legal and financial nightmare for a company." At a minimum, hiring a liar can burden you with the extra costs of recruiting, hiring and training that employee's replacement. At worst, your company might face lost business-or even lawsuits (Babcock, 2003)."

Research has indicated that applicants do sometimes put things on their resumes that are not true or correct. Whether it is an inflating of actually job experience or education studies have shown that it is not uncommon to stretch or inflate that aspect of work life on a resume.

Some interviewees tell lies that they have ingrained in their life story-identities and legends of their own creation -- and thus aren't fabricating on the spot, says Rosen. "They put it on their resume and talk about it and tell their friends about it, and it becomes part of their personality, because they've told it so often," he says. "To them, it's second nature-they're not sitting there making it up (Babcock, 2003)."

Applicants may claim to have work experience that they do not have. In addition, they may exaggerate their educational background or what they did for job duties on their last job. If one suspects things on the resume are fabricated one can call references, schools etc. To check the facts out. If something turns out to be untrue then the resume tells the employer that the applicant is a liar and dishonest.

Resumes are the first introduction to the potential employer. Everything about the resume tells a story about the person who sent it. The type of paper it is printed on, the layout and the format and other things that are automatically overlooked can be telling regarding the applicant.

A resume that does not list chronological experience but instead lists general experience first without dates may be telling. The applicant may have periods of unemployment he or she is trying to mask, or the applicant may have had many jobs in a short period of time and not want that to be obvious. The resume that has experience listed with no dates should raise a red flag to any potential employer but should not rule out the potential candidate as a possible employee.

Resume writing is a difficult task for most job applicants, but minority students face unique challenges as they decide what information to present to a potential employer (Clive, 2003). A minority applicant's name, address, education, work history, extracurricular activities, and choice of references may trigger unfavorable assumptions by the reader and unfairly influence the selection process. To reduce the chances of "detection" and being eliminated prematurely, some minority students Anglicize their names, use street addresses of relatives and friends in more desirable parts of town, and downplay ethnic-specific education, jobs, and affiliations (Clive, 2003)."

This is one of the reasons one should not automatically reject an applicant that lied about their address or another detail on the resume. That applicant may simply be trying not to draw attention to their ethnic place because of past problems with racism.

A resume tells the potential employer about job experience. Each job should have listed with it the job duties that were performed at that job. While the applicant may exaggerate the duties that were performed an experienced employer will know if the duties claimed on the resume were feasible and reasonable duties given the job being discussed.

Another thing that can be discovered about the applicant on a resume is the educational background of the applicant.

Resumes often list degrees held and areas of study. Resumes often make or break the ability to get the job. An applicant that puts together a substandard or sloppy resume provides information about himself to the potential employer (Alleyne, 2003). If the resume is sloppy, unkempt or not formatted well it is an indicator that the applicant may not pay attention to job details or may not focus on the job at hand. A neat and well formatted resume indicates the applicant knows the importance of professionalism and applies it from the very first step, the resume.