CHICAGO–While one study found 5% of all job applicants admit to lying on their resumes, a new survey has found millennials are more than twice as likely to lie on their résumés, with 11% of adults ages 25 to 34 admitting to lying at least once.
“Of course, there's a good chance that, since these numbers are self-reported, they are far lower than what's really going on,” observed Peter Economy. “In fact, former human resources director Amy White believes lying on résumés is far more common than people admit to. She says, “Outright lying...is only 15% to 25%, but exaggerating skills or making job titles sound more appealing...happens 50% to 60% of the time.”
So, asked Economy in a piece published on Inc.com, exactly what is it that Millennials and others are lying about on their résumés? As it turns out, pretty much everything, he said,
According to the results of the survey, Economy said the most common résumé lies were in these specific areas:
- Work experience
- Dates of employment
- Job titles in a previous role
- References
- College education
- Previous responsibilities
- GPA
- Internship experience
“These results match up with the results of another survey question, which asked why exactly respondents felt compelled to lie on their résumé. Of those who admitted to lying on their résumés, 24% said they lied to hide gaps in their employment, while 22% of people said they had a lack of necessary job experience,” wrote Economy. “Although people of all ages lie on their résumés, Millennials--the age group that admits to lying on resumes the most--may feel justified in their actions because of a mistaken belief. Twenty-three percent of Millennials are convinced that lying is the norm, and believe that more than half of the population lies on their résumés--a percentage much higher than the actual self-reported figure of 5%.”