Background checksHello. To aid my change of careers after 20 years in the workforce, I went to Grad School and earned a Master's Degree. I know the job market is tough, but I'm beginning to get concerned because I've had some interviews that have gone very well, but have yet to land a job. There are no major skeletons in my closet, but I admit that immaturity on my part sometimes made me a less than an ideal employee at the beginning of my career. I know that employers go to agencies to get detailed background checks these days: is there a dependable one I can use to see what sort of stuff might be floating out there about me? Thanks. Check out www.myreferences.com. Depending on how much depth you want, you can buy different versions of both a background check as well as references checks - where they actually contact your old employers to see what nasty things they are saying about you. You should also get a copy of your credit report to make sure that there isn't a problem buried somewhere in here. You can get a free one from: www.annualcreditreport.com.
That's not a bad idea. However, it is worth knowing that official referencing has become more a Name, Rank, Serial # process these days as companies have buttoned down on what they are willing to say to prospective hiring organizations. Are you following up with thank-you notes promptly? Do you feel like you are understanding the real requirements of the role and connecting your past experience, offering prof, and demonstrating that you get it and have the background to be successful in the role? Have you offered professional references from past employers - ideally former managers, or people more senior to you? Offering strong references can offset their need to dig things up on you. Anything on Google search results, Facebook and other sites that might make a hiring manager think twice about hiring you? Ian Christie Career Changers Coach
Thank you for your suggestions, and I'll follow up on them.
I send thank you notes, usually on the same day as the interview, via e-mail. (Do you prefer written notes?) I'm usually satisfied regarding your second query, based upon how the interview went. I give references from three past supervisors, but two of them are from my Grad School internships (Is that balance OK for you?) My name googled produces only professional information, although if they dig very deep, they might be able to see some excessively heated discussion on a music website (arguments about music can excite strong passions). I'm pretty sure I'm safe in that regard, though, since the postings are 7 years old. Thank you for your response and time.
what is facebook and what does it or any other site have to do with getting a job? isn't htis getting rediculous?
No one should be calling an employer from 20 years ago about you. Your resume shouldn't be going back more than 10 years unless there's some special skill from before that time you need to highlight. Going back too far can actually throw you out of the running by making them think that you're overqualified, out of touch, too old or too wordy, etc..
Tess Thanks for your input. The date I received my BA gives potential employers a good idea of my age, and being considered overqualified is a problem I've been facing. I spent almost 9 years in my first job, and there are skill sets associated with that position I'd prefer not to leave out. Maybe I should try a skills resume? (I've rewritten the thing so many times, I might as well.) You also made me realize that I could have been more specific in my original query: are there databases (not counting credit histories) that HR people commonly tap into for information about prospective employees, and if so, what are they?
You can take the date of your degree for the purposes of the resume. They know that you are trying to hide your age when you do that, but it is a common way of trying to increase your chances of getting into the interview room. Ian Christie Career Changers Coach
I am not making up rules - just reporting on the tools that an increasing number of employers are using to informally reference prospective hires. Facebook is a social networking site. Ian Christie Career Changers Coach | |
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