Lying on resumes is becoming a popular tactic to land a dream job, according to News.com. A new website helps students to do so, but AU students are unsure it's worth the risk.
Fakeresume.com helps its customers lie on their resumes to get the jobs they "deserve." Over 53 percent of job applicants lie on their resume, and 70 percent of college graduates lie on their resumes to get hired, according to the Web site.
Derek Johnson, the founder of the site, said the idea came to him out of frustration with the application process.
"I started the Web site because too many people are lying, and those that don't are losing jobs to those that do," Johnson said. "The other thing that amazed and frustrated me about being a recruiter was how rigid and myopic many employers were about their job requirements."
During his time as a recruiter, Johnson said he found that many of his smarter applicants were lying on their resumes, but only in ways they could back up if asked about it. It was this revelation that gave him the idea to write an underground guide on faking resumes.
"That's awful and I would never do it because it takes away jobs from people who are honest," said Samantha Kalman, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences.
The Web site offers two services to its customers - they can buy the guide for $19.95 or they can have a professional "tune up" their resume and receive the guide for free for $94.95. Johnson said he has been pleased with the site's success.
"I've been amazed at how many people have downloaded the guide," Johnson said. "There have been many human resources managers that purchased the guide so they could be aware of the different methods that people lie on their resumes."
The Career Center at AU discourages the practices Johnson promotes, said Rae Ann Bories-Easley, director of the marketing and outreach at the Career Center.
"The Career Center always strongly advises students to be truthful about their experience and GPA when applying for jobs," Bories-Easley said. "Fortunately, American University students rarely lie."
She suggested avoiding fibs on resumes, such as rounding up a GPA or generalizing skills.
However, Alex Harnett, a first-year graduate student in the School of Communication, feels differently.
"White lies can't hurt ... Yes, it's sad but true that I have lied on my resume but I would call them exaggerations, not lies," Hartnett said. "I think people lie so that they have a shot at a job and sometimes to give themselves confidence in what they have to offer."
"If you are conversationally strong in a foreign language and indicate that you are 'fluent' in that language, you better be prepared to demonstrate oral fluency in an interview and on a written test," Bories-Easley said. "Also, if you round your 3.446 GPA up to a 3.5, be prepared for the employer to feel that you were not 100 percent truthful when you produce your transcript."
Bories-Easley said students are sometimes confused about the ethics of applying for a job. She advises students not to interview for a job if they have no intention of accepting it or to keep interviewing after they have agreed to work with an employer. Students should contact the Career Center if they have questions about the application process, she said.
Students at AU want good jobs and internships, but worry that lying could hurt them in the long run.
"I've never lied on a resume because it's not worth it to lose a job later on in life because of it," said Dave Brown, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. "Students lie, though, to make themselves look better to employers"
