Survey finds 7 in 10 people lie on their resumes and cover letters – with 1 in 3 doing so frequently
Meeting job candidates who lie during the recruitment process is a universally shared experience for recruiters.
A new report, however, was able to pinpoint a certain group of jobseekers who are more likely to lie to you in their resumes, cover letters, and even during interviews.
ResumeLab recently uncovered that seven in 10 jobseekers lie on their resumes, with 37% saying they do this frequently and 33% saying they've done it at once or twice.
What do they lie about? More than half said they embellish their responsibilities in general (52%) and try to make their job title sound more impressive (52%). Other things they lie about include:
- How many people they manage (45%)
- Length of time they were employed at the job (37%)
- Name of the company that employs them (31%)
- Made up the entire position (24%)
- Inflating metrics or accomplishments (17%)
The lies don't stop there - as the report found that 76% of employees also fabricate information on their cover letters, where 50% admit to doing it frequently.
These lies bleed even during interviews, where eight in 10 confessing this, including 44% who admitted to doing it frequently.
Who's more likely to lie to you?
But among applicants, a certain group of jobseekers are revealed to have higher incidence of lying during recruitment than the rest.
Who are they? It's job applicants with Master's or doctoral degrees.
According to the report, job applicants from this group had the highest incidence rate of lying on resumes, cover letters, and job interviews.
More than half (58%) of job candidates with Master's or doctoral degrees confessed to frequently lying on resumes, while 27% have lied once or twice, for a total of 85%.
On cover letters, 73% from this group said they frequently lie on them, while 17% have lied once or twice, for a total of 90%.
During job interviews, a total of 88% of job seekers with Master's or doctoral degrees admitted to lying. This includes 63% who frequently lie and 25% who have done it once or twice.
According to ResumeLab, lying during recruitment could attributed to jobseekers' insecurities, their need to impress others, and desperation to secure a job quickly.
