Going to college requires serious effort, and it can take years to earn a degree. Today, there are tons of companies popping up that offer a fast track to starting your career. Some of these companies outright offer a fake college degree that they claim looks just a real as an authentic one. These fake degrees may even tout known university names, and they may be available all the way up to the graduate level.
Other companies offer what people tend to call diploma mill degrees. These businesses try to claim that the degrees that they issue are authentic, but they never require you to actually attend any educational courses. Instead, they issue credit for life experiences and other so-called proof of your knowledge and abilities. The problem is that there is no way of knowing if you actually have the skills that are necessary to function in a position that requires a similar level of education.
A fake college degree may put you on the fast route to scoring that coveted position, but it is nothing but a ticking time bomb that you can eventually ruin your life. While the certificate might look real to the casual observer, employers have caught on to the growing issue. Choosing to go to an actual college helps you avoid these costly effects down your career path.
You May Never Get Past the First Cut
Technology may have made it possible to get a fake college degree, but that same concept also makes it easier for employers to check out the truth regarding your credentials. An employer may check out your claims of having a degree by using the following methods:
- asking to see a transcript
- requesting a copy of the actual certificate
- contacting the school to verify attendance
- calling personal references from your educational history
- researching to find out if a university is real
If any of these don’t check out, then you can expect to not be called in for an interview. Using a fake degree can essentially destroy your chances of being hired before you even manage to get a face-to-face meeting.
You Will Miss Out On Higher Education Opportunities
Many companies offer higher education perks to attract the top talent in their industry. These may include things such as tuition reimbursement for taking continuing education courses or working on a higher level degree.
Having to turn down these perks is embarrassing, and it can raise alarms. At worst, you may even get stuck on the career ladder since you cannot apply to the schools that your employer requires you to attend without giving away that you do not have a true degree.
You Spend Forever Waiting to Be Found Out
Guilt is a toxic emotion, and you can expect to feel some level of anxiety about what could happen if your employer finds out that you lied about your education. Most companies maintain the right to fire an employee for lying on their job application.
Although it may take months or years before you get found out, you could lose your job in an instant. You can also expect to find it hard to concentrate on doing your best when you have the possibility of being found out hanging over your head.
You Make Serious Mistakes at Work
There is a reason why certain professions require you to have a degree. Trying to fake it until you make it just doesn’t work in the majority of careers. At some point, you will be asked to do something that you didn’t learn by getting a fake college degree.
At best, you’ll just look inadequate. At worst, your ineptitude will arouse your employer’s suspicions.
You Can Lose Your Professional Reputation
In recent days, there have been people in prominent positions who have lost their professional licenses for lying about their educational background. While you might not be a doctor or lawyer, you can still lose face when other people find out about your dishonesty. Being forced out of a career that you love and publicly shamed can cause you to lose years of effort that you put toward building a professional reputation. Sadly, some people never fully recover their reputation, and you could end up having to change career fields and explain your past as you try to get back on the right track.
There are some things that are just worth doing right, and your education is one of them. Your college degree will follow you through the rest of your life. Make sure to attend a reputable school, put in the work, and you’ll find that building a successful career without worrying about being caught in a lie is well worth the effort.
