Have you ever conducted a background check and noticed that your employment candidate lists as his college background some obscure college or university? Have you noted, too, that sometimes a candidate will list as a past employer some obscure IT group or business that doesn’t sound quite right? That’s because the college in question may be a diploma mill, and the employer in question may be what amounts to an employment mill.
What are diploma mills and employment mills? Simply put, the diploma mills issues a graduation certificate that isn’t worth the paper it is printed on. The diploma from a diploma mill comes form either an non-existent college or university or one that has its only presence on the Internet and lives only in the mind of its creators. For a few hundred bucks, or whatever the market will bear, a diploma mill with provide a Bachelor’s Degree, where the candidate is credited for “life experience,” whatever that is. For a few bucks more the alleged student can obtain a master’s degree or bachelor degree. No classes are offered, not even online, and there are no teachers. Sometimes, in the more elaborate set ups, the supposed student might have to answer a round of questions, before being awarded his degree.
The employment mill is a bit different, but still fraudulent. The employment mill is a front. It is an online site that provides employment verifications for companies that do not exist. The employment mill will provide pay stubs, if necessary and if the price is right, or any other documents that substantiate your job candidate’s claim that he actually worked for this company. You will receive the start dates, end dates, position held, and sometimes even the salary. It all looks good. I should. The employment candidate paid for the company to verify his employment. The only thing is, the company your candidate supposedly worked for is total fiction.
There are hundreds of diploma mills and employment mills. Many are based in India, but there are a fair number in the United States. When you are running background checks it is sometimes difficult to determine if a university or an employer is for real or not. Corra Group researchers are generally familiar with most diploma mills and we have the ability to conduct business research to determine if the employer is actual or another fiction. Realize that with passing time the mills become more sophisticated and work hard to camouflage their fraudulent practices. Having the tools to conduct a more thorough business investigation enables us to route them out.
So be careful. Diploma Mills and Employment Mills are growth industries and prey on those who conduct pre-employment background checks. More about this later.
