The survey, which polled more than 2,500 hiring and HR managers, asked employers were to recall the most memorable CV mistake they have ever seen, ranging from innocent spelling mistakes to outright lies.
The 10 most memorable CV blunders were:
- One applicant claimed to be a former CEO of the company to which they were applying.
- The candidate claimed to be fluent in two languages - one of which was pig Latin.
- An applicant introduced himself in his cover letter by saying "Hey you".
- One hopeful aiming for a customer service position gave “didn't like dealing with angry customers” as the reason for leaving her last job.
- A candidate claimed to have worked in a jail when they were really in there serving time.
- A applicant claimed to have attended a college that didn't exist.
- One applicant for a driver position claimed to have 10 years of experience, despite only having had a driver’s license for four years.
- A candidate listed a reference an employer from whom they had embezzled money and who had an arrest warrant out for the applicant.
- One hopeful who claimed to be HVAC certified later asked the hiring manager what “HVAC” meant.
- A candidate claimed to be a Nobel Prize winner.
Mary Lorenz, corporate communications manager for Careerbuilder, said that researching candidates thoroughly could reveal if their resume is honest. “One of the ways HR professionals can check up on candidates is by looking them up on social media or by doing a general internet search to look for any inconsistencies between job titles, companies worked for, educational institutions attended, degrees earned or the like,” she said.
“While it takes a little more time, checking references is one of the best ways to verify if a candidate’s claims are legitimate. If a candidate is hesitant to provide references, that could be a red flag that there is something they are hiding.”
