The possibility of being caught lying on a resume is enough of an incentive to be truthful on applications and resumes, a university professor said.

According to technology website spectrum.ieee.org, grim economic times mean an increase in resume fraud.

John Thompson, executive director of career services, said that he has not encountered students embellishing resumes because of the current economic times and has not heard of employers catching students falsifying their educational or work experience.

Thompson said that most employers are now performing background checks on potential employees and at this time, drug tests are also extremely common.

“[Employers] will find out something that you were not truthful on your application or on your resume,” he said.

Kendall Harlan graduated from the university in May with a degree in advertising and public relations and said the competitive nature of the job market at this time might influence a recent graduate’s decision to embellish their resume.

“It is high pressure right now because the job market is so tough,” she said.

Getting a job during this time is challenging when so many people are also searching for jobs, she said.

Harlan said that the background checks performed by potential employers have been very thorough and do a good job of identifying discrepancies on resumes.

Thompson said to compete against other job applicants, students should instead engage in internships that allow for them to make valid contributions to the companies they work for and put in valuable face time.

“You always have to have something that’s going to make you better than all the other applicants,” he said.

Amanda Doull, senior accounting and finance major and who graduates in December, said she is intimidated by graduating during this current period of economic instability.

Doull said the economy creates much more competition during job searching, but it does not impact resume embellishment.

“I do not see a whole lot of people lying straight out on their resume,” she said.

People might, however, be more likely to exaggerate on their resumes during times like these although they will not likely tell outright lies, Doull said.

She said that she will instead rely on her persistence and personal connections during her job hunt.