Can You Pass a Background Check



According to Spherion Corporation's8217;s latest Workforce Study, 79 percent of respondents say they now run background checks on prospective employees, and over half say they'sve increased their use of the pre-employment screening tool in the last five years.

's8220;Preparing for a background check is as important today as updating your resume. The best candidate in the world won's8217;t get hired if he doesn's8217;t pass the background check,'s8221; says Jan Maxwell, author of A Job Hunter's8217;s Secret Weapon: How to Survive a Background Check and Get the Job You Really Want! (http://www.jobhunterssecretweapon.com)

Almost five million background checks were run in 2005, and about half of them found discrepancies in the information provided on job applications.

's8220;Many candidates don's8217;t realize that companies use their job applications, rather than their resumes, to run a background check,'s8221; says Maxwell. 's8220;A job application asks for a lot of detailed information that's8217;s not on a resume, and a candidate needs to make sure that everything can be verified. If a hiring company finds discrepancies, lies, or unexplained employment gaps on a candidate's8217;s job application, he won's8217;t get hired.'s8221;

Maxwell offers five tips for filling out a job application that will sail through pre-employment screening:

> Tell the truth -- Nothing will take you out of consideration faster than lying.

> Be neat -- Your mother may be able to read your handwriting, but she's8217;s not the one checking your background. If you can type your application, do it. If not, print clearly.

> Be complete -- Provide as much employment and education history as you can fit on the application. Spell out company and school names. Supply a complete address and phone number for every employer that you list, and make sure the information is up-to-date.

> Account for your time -- Hiring companies don's8217;t like to see unexplained gaps in employment. If the time between jobs is three months or more, let them know what you were doing.

> Prep your references -- Make sure they's8217;re willing to speak on your behalf, find out when and where they want to be contacted, and let them know what skills and attributes you's8217;d like them to talk about.

's8220;It's8217;s a good idea to contact your former employers to make sure your records are available,'s8221; says Maxwell. 's8220;It's8217;s surprising how many employment records are not where they's8217;re supposed to be. If you find that your records are missing, or if a former employer has gone out of business, you need to prepare an alternate way to verify that information.'s8221;

A Job Hunter's8217;s Secret Weapon: How to Survive a Background Check and Get the Job You Really Want! is the first book that shows job applicants how to prepare themselves for a background check. Using real-life examples, the author explains how to fill out each section of a job application so every piece of information can be verified.

The book is available as a downloadable PDF or on CD. It can be purchased at http://www.jobhunterssecretweapon.com, where applicants can also read the book's8217;s Table of Contents and a sample chapter. The ebook normally retails for $12.95, but summer job applicants can purchase it for $9.95 through August 31st.

Jan Maxwell is a freelance writer whose work has appeared online and in print publications such as Northern Virginia Magazine and Experience. She spent eighteen years as a pre-employment screener and saw many qualified applicants fail to get hired because the information on their applications had holes and discrepancies or was impossible to verify.

Book Name: A Job Hunter's8217;s Secret Weapon: How to Survive a Background Check and Get the Job You Really Want!

Format:    Ebook (PDF), CD

Length:    164 pages

ISBN:     0-9779383-0-1

Released: 05/16/06

Contact: Jan Maxwell - Author
    703-753-5370 (Tel)
    703-753-1029 (Fax)





Can You Pass a Background Check