In a 2023 survey with 1,900 US employees, 7 out of 10 workers admitted to lying on their resume and  37% confessed they lied “frequently.” Many of today’s applicants are cushioning or going as far as fabricating accomplishments on their resumes.

These seemingly harmless lies can be very dangerous. For example, imagine falsifying a medical degree, building engineering, or pilot degree. That’s more than a little lie, that’s deliberately putting people’s lives in danger for money. 

As an employer, degree verification forms help you ensure that these lies don’t go unnoticed when recruiting new employees to join your company. It enables you to confirm the academic records of a prospective candidate’s education and credibility.

Understanding Degree Verification Forms

As an industry that directly impacts human safety such as medicine, engineering, education, and law,  degree verification is mandated by law or regulatory bodies to ensure credibility and trustworthiness. A degree verification form allows you to verify the authenticity of a job applicant.

Typically, the degree verification form will be completed by an official at the institution, who will confirm the candidate’s details such as name, the completion date, grade, and the degree awarded. This helps you collect all the information you need at once and avoid any mistakes that usually occur with informal requests.

Also, the degree verification form is just for employers to dig up candidates’ past, they have to comply with privacy regulations ensuring the information is released only to authorized parties.

Components of Degree Verification Forms:

Degree verification forms typically consist of several key components designed to streamline the process and ensure accurate information:

• Requestor Information: This includes the requesting organization (employer, licensing board, etc.) and their contact details for any questions or follow-up.
• Student Information: the student’s full legal name as it appears on their academic records, date of birth as an extra layer of verification, and sometimes student ID for fast reference.
• Degree Information: candidates may not lie about the school but they could lie about what they studied and their grades. So, you should ask for the specific degree awarded (Bachelor of Arts, Master of Science, etc.), their major (public health, civil law, nuclear science, etc), their graduation date, and enrollment status for current students.
• Authorization: This includes a signature from the student authorizing the institution to release their degree information. The candidate could also specify a timeframe for when the verification can be released.

Importance of Comprehensive Degree Verification Form

The following are the major reasons why you should use a well-structured degree verification form:

• Accuracy and Efficiency: When you request all the necessary information, the institution can quickly find the student’s records and validate their degree. Omitting information such as date of birth, student ID, etc. means you need additional steps for verification, wasting time and resources.
• Fraud Prevention: A detailed form makes it harder for someone to fake a verification. Requesting important information such as student ID, birth date, and specific degree details, helps you to easily identify people with falsified information.
• Compliance with Regulations: Degree verification is not all about the employer, candidates have a right to their privacy, and educational institutions have a legal obligation to protect their students’ privacy. A comprehensive student privacy form ensures that the information is authorized by the student.

Key Features of an Effective Degree Verification Form

The following are the qualities of an effective degree verification form:

• Clarity and Conciseness: Use concise and direct language to ensure the form is easy to understand. Also, use a simple layout so the form is easy to navigate with clear instructions and labels for each section.
• Comprehensiveness: Include all the necessary details for accurate verification, such as student information, degree details, authorization section, and verification response section (for the institution). 

• Optional Sections: Offer optional sections for additional information like coursework verification or GPA (with student authorization).
• Security and Privacy: A signature from the student authorizing the release of their degree information.

• Data Security: If you verifying with online forms, use encrypted forms. For example, the Formplus degree verification form is encrypted with 256-SSL to prevent anyone from tampering with the form. You can also make the form private to ensure only specific people within the institution can access it. However, if you’re using physical forms, give proper instructions for handling them.
• Release Date: Allow students to specify a timeframe for when the verification can be released, adding an extra layer of control over their information.
• Efficiency: Offer both online and physical form options to accommodate different preferences and situations. Also, provide clear instructions on how to submit the completed form, including your contact information for the institution’s verification office if they have questions.
• Accessibility: If the institution is in a different region with a different official language, offer the form in multiple languages for better accessibility.

Streamlining the Verification Process With Formplus

Formplus is a user-friendly form builder that allows you to collect and store data effortlessly. Here are some of the ways Formplus simplifies your candidate degree verification process:

• Customizable template: Formplus offers a secure degree verification form template that saves you the hassle of creating yours from scratch. This form includes fields for name, completion date, and the school that awarded the degree. You can also customize the form fields by adding your company logo, brand color, or even more questions.
• Privacy Access: Add an extra layer of security to your degree verification with Formplus by allowing only authorized personnel to interact with the form.
• File upload Feature: You can also add a file upload field for the institutions to upload copies of the candidate’s record.

• Reduced Errors: Give clear instructions as an introduction page to prevent errors and provide a stress-free experience for the institution to submit the form.

Best Practices for Implementing Degree Verification Forms

Here are some best practices to provide the best degree verification experience:

Communication and Training (For Institutions)

• Educate Candidates on their Rights: Communicate the availability and purpose of degree verification forms to past and present students, and inform them about their rights and responsibilities regarding data privacy.
• Staff Training: Train staff who handle verification requests on the process, security procedures, and data privacy regulations.
• Employer Resources: Provide resources for employers to guide in verification request submissions and how to interpret verification responses.
• Turnaround Time: State clear turnaround times for processing verification requests. This sets expectations for students and requesting parties.

Form Designs (For Employers)

• User-friendliness: Prioritize clarity and ease of use in your degree verification form. Make it as simple as it can be, what truly matters is how well it communicates the information you need not the aesthetics.
• Accessibility: Ensure the form is accessible for users with disabilities and use clear fonts and layouts for paper forms.
• Multilingual Options: Consider offering the form in multiple languages if the institution has a different official language.

Process and Procedures (For Employers)

• Clear Instructions: Provide detailed instructions on how to complete and submit the form, including contact information for the verification office to ask questions if they have any.
• Multiple Delivery Options: Offer both online and paper form options for flexibility. 
• Security Measures: Prioritize student data privacy by using secure online forms with encryption, following data security best practices for storing information, and having clear protocols for handling physical forms.
• Privacy Compliance: Ensure the form and verification process comply with all relevant data privacy regulations, and obtain clear student authorization for releasing information.

Continuous Improvement (For Employers and Institutions)

• Monitor and Evaluate: Track the performance of forms and the effectiveness of the verification process. You can do this by monitoring usage, identifying bottlenecks, and collecting feedback from candidates, institutions, and employers.
• Update and Adapt: Regularly update the form and procedures based on feedback and changes in regulations

Conclusion

The degree verification form is an important tool for employers and organizations to ensure only qualified people are placed in the right positions, protecting employers from fraud, and promoting trust within professions. 

Also, your degree verification process is only as good as the tool you use. So use a secure, efficient, and user-friendly degree verification form. Formplus offers a customizable degree verification form template, allowing you to create user-friendly and comprehensive degree verification forms. Sign up with Formplus to get started!