ACADEMIC QUALIFICATION – A CORPORATE FARCE?


INTRODUCTION

A multinational corporation hired a candidate for a managerial position at their regional headquarters. As a standard practice, they were looking to conduct pre-employment background screening and employed Stern Screening for this task.


CHALLENGE

Candidate’s academic background was questionable as Stern Screening analysts were unable to identify the institution’s affiliation and physical presence.


INVESTIGATION

The candidate had claimed to have graduated from an engineering college in India. As a mandate, engineering colleges in India need to be affiliated with the Government portal of engineering and management colleges. However, the candidate’s college was not. 


Further, the college website was found during open desktop searches and a grave discrepancy was spotted – the website was registered in 2011 although the candidate had graduated in 2004. 


Following which, a Stern Screening operative visited the institute at the address identified from the website. On-site investigation found a travel agency at the institute’s address. Local enquiries revealed that the institute shut down a year and a half back.


Client was informed about the above and supplied Stern Screening education background check with an alternative email contact for verification. Soon, candidate’s academic credentials were confirmed via email. Even so, the email belonged to a free domain which is not considered a credible source for pre-employment education check investigation.


Furthermore, complete online study detected negative college reviews by the stakeholders and many users describing it as a fake institute.


Due to the absence of trustworthy verification channels, this matter was closed on the basis of academic dishonesty.


TAKEAWAYS

Below listed steps can prevent your company from an educational deceit:-

  • Verifying the educational establishment’s affiliation body is a must. Any unauthorised establishment will be a sign of falsification.
  • The concerned educational establishment should be checked for a physical presence.