Career-searching Fords have a wealth of opportunities for exploration including the College’s online recruiting systems, on-campus info sessions and interviews, and recruiting events not to mention the many job search engines available to the general public. Although the vast majority of opportunities are presented with professional recruiting standards, it is unfortunate that fraudulent and unethical “recruiters” exist and some have identified college students as targets for their scams. The Center for Career and Professional Advising is alert to some of these fraudulent recruiters and we do our best to keep these bad players out of our recruiting sphere. However, identifying fraudulent recruiting practices is a partnership with our students who sometimes are the first to detect that a recruiter is not acting in good faith.
How do you detect a recruiting fraud or scam?
Here some questions to ask which will help you identify potentially fraudulent recruiting practices.
Do the communications, email or otherwise, from the recruiter have vague contact information, misspellings, or other unprofessional errors? Is the communication unsolicited without reference to Haverford’s recruiting platforms such as Handshake?
- Be on the lookout for suspicious emails like these. If you come across one, do some investigating to determine whether the offer is a scam.
Does the company or organization have a well-developed website with clear contact information?
- If not, further due diligence is required to determine the legitimacy of the opportunity.
Does the company require you to pay money up-front for recruiting consideration? Have you received a check from the employer before employment?
- If so, it probably is a sign of a pyramid scheme or other type of scam.
Does the recruiter’s email address match the organization’s internet domain?
- If not, it may be a sign that the “recruiter” is not actually affiliated with the organization. Fraudulent recruiters sometimes use legitimate companies as a cover for their scams.
Do they offer a job or internship without an interview or have you work on a “trial basis”?
- A low bar for entry into an opportunity is a flag for questionable business practices.
Is the compensation for the job mostly or 100% commission?
- This is another red flag that further investigation is needed to determine if the job is viable or not for you.
Are they asking for personal information that is not on your resume, including ID (college or driver’s license), social security number, passport, birth certificate, etc.?
- This is likely a scam leading to identity theft. Do not share any personal data!
Does the entity or recruiter make you feel uncomfortable?
- This kind of gut check about a recruiting opportunity is important. If it does not feel right, reach out to the CCPA for more guidance.
If you have questions about a recruiting tactic or worried
that you have been a victim of a scam, contact Laura Reiter in the CCPA and Campus Safety
For more information about recruiting scams, check out the following resources:
