Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Think Twice When You Screen Those New College Graduates

Smart and ready to prove themselves, new graduates can infuse fresh thinking and new insight into a company. Employers know that not all graduates are created equal. Making sure a recent graduate is a good fit for a business can be tricky.

In 2014, approximately 57% of employers say they plan to hire new college graduates, up from 53% last year1. The fact that more companies are hiring from the talent pool of 1.6 million students graduating with bachelor’s degrees, is positive news. But before you even start the interview process, you need to prepare a special pre-employment action plan for this pool of raw talent.

Of course, you want to acquire information about near and long term goals, willingness to persevere in the face of adversity, and attitude. You probably also want to know if a candidate has the ability to show up on time, drug-free and ready to use the stated skills. This may be a complex issue that requires a special kind of background screen.

Screening recent graduates is a little different than you might expect. You are working with a talent pool that may not have past employers, a credit history, or public records that are easy to find. Communicating and working with these candidates may require unique approaches. Your background screening provider should know how to reach out to this unique group, to procure a thorough profile.

Research has shown that 70% of college students would lie on their resume in order to get the job they want. In addition, 21% state fraudulent degrees, 27% provide inconsistent references, and 53% contain some kind of falsification2.

Gathered from years of experience and thousands of background checks, Aurico recommends performing a fit-gap analysis between interview content, an application, and a graduate’s resume. During the Aurico Audit™, it is possible to uncover subtle inconsistencies that may reveal whether facts match up.

Common distortions may include exaggerated degrees or scholastic honors, distorted majors or minors, incorrect dates of internships or employment, or embellished job duties or pay. Graduates may claim to possess a skill that has been used in an academic, rather than professional, environment. You shouldn’t overlook reasons for termination, checking for attitudinal issues, work ethic, and cultural fit. Comprehensive drug screening to detect the presence of illegal substances may also be relevant.

Recommended Background Screening Program
  • Criminal background check in areas lived, worked, and educated
  • Driver’s history
  • Education verification
  • Employment verification (include internships)
  • References (personal, professional, academic)
  • Hair follicle drug test
  • Skill assessments

The candidate experience is particularly important to tech savvy graduates. They want mobile solutions, online consents, multiple language options, and human touch that meet their schedules. A background screening provider must be sensitive to these needs and address them in clear and specific ways.

There are a few other considerations employers should contemplate. Graduates are concerned about data privacy and will want reassurances that their personally identifiable information (PII) is protected. Hiring college graduates is cyclical, and the use of job fairs and special events yields ebbs and flows in background screening processing that a provider must be able to accommodate.

New graduates have ideas and skills that can make a huge difference to a company’s bottom line. Aurico can provide you with guidance and best practices to create a legitimate and ccomprehensive background screening program. After all, your intention is to hire graduates who will fit your individual corporate culture and succeed.

  1. http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2014/04/24/college-graduates-jobs-careerbuilder/8017155/
  2. http://hireeq.com/2012/05/17/does-your-resume-tell-the-truth-the-whole-truth-and-nothing-but-the-truth/#sthash.2dakc4Wz.dpuf

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