Lying on your resume will expose you to many risks

You want a job really bad, and your favorite employer posts a job advertisement. You have every qualification they ask for except the degree they want. So you decide to tweak the title of your degree on the resume a little to qualify. What if you get the job? Are you going to confess your lie? What if HR decides to audit their files 3 months into your job? The Monster Future of Work: 2021 Outlook survey found that 66% of employers agree that their candidates exaggerate skills and competencies on resumes.

Did you know that more than 55 percent of Americans admit to lying on their resume at least once? Getting caught in a lie by your employer is one of the worst things ever. Here are some lies you must avoid on your resume:

Lying about past employers

Being able to list the name of a big tech player or a real estate mogul in the career summary of your resume is a big deal. While a potential employer will be impressed with the fact that you are skilled enough to work for a big business, they will certainly not look down on you if you have only worked for small businesses your entire life. Instead of creating stories about working as a tech assistant at Twitter, highlight how you rose through the ranks at a business startup. Not sure of how to list multiple jobs under the same employer in a resume? Read this article.

Lies of omission

The job advertisement for your dream job called for a degree in international banking, so you went ahead and enrolled yourself in a related online degree. You got the job because the employer saw that you were willing to upskill yourself, but you never completed that degree. What happens when the employer finds you incompetent due to a lack of relevant knowledge after a few months?

Half-truths

It is tempting to omit your career gap or a bad termination from your resume to make your career summary look impressive. However, most employers perform their own background checks on candidates before hiring. If your lies get exposed during screening, the employer will throw your job application away without a second thought. Instead of glossing over career gaps, mention them upfront on your resume. Planning to take a career gap shortly? Learn how you can adopt a few strategies so you don’t have to lie on your resume through this article.

Exaggerating your experience

A lot of candidates lie about their job titles on resumes to build their brand. Avoid calling yourself a Human Resource Manager if you worked as an HR Assistant. Imagine having your lies crumble apart when an employer asks a STAR interview question about your management days! Avoid sabotaging your job search by lying on your resume.