Parminder Singh, Chief Operating Officer of Tatler Asia and a former Google managing director, recently shed light on a troubling hiring trend known as ‘degree dramatizing.’ This practice involves candidates exaggerating their academic credentials to appear more impressive.
Singh shared an experience with a job applicant who claimed to be a “Harvard Alum” on his resume. However, Singh discovered that the candidate had only attended a four-week entrepreneurship course at Harvard. This went on to raise questions regarding the candidate’s honesty. Singh noted that such exaggerated claims are becoming alarmingly common.
“‘Harvard Alum,’ read the candidate’s CV I was interviewing. There were no other details about his educational background. When I asked what he studied at Harvard, he replied, ‘A Course on Entrepreneurship.’ When I inquired about the duration of the course, he said it was four weeks. I couldn’t help but form the impression that he’s prone to exaggeration, which immediately raised a red flag for me. This wasn’t the first time I had encountered such a situation though. ‘Degree dramatizing’ is becoming worryingly common,” he wrote on LinkedIn.
The problem, according to Singh, lies in distinguishing between short-term courses and full-fledged academic programs. While short-term courses from prestigious institutions can enhance a resume, they don’t provide the same comprehensive, selective experience as a full-time program.
“A paid short term course is a good addition to the CV but it doesn’t quite qualify you as a ‘Harvard Alum’. In fact, Harvard University’s website explicitly defines who qualifies as a Harvard Alum,” he explained.
Singh drew from his own experience, having completed an executive education course at Kellogg. Despite the program’s prestige, he always clarified that it didn’t make him a Kellogg alum.
“Employers value honesty above all else. By attempting to take a shortcut like this, you risk coming across as duplicitous. It’s simply not worth it. Integrity is far more valuable than any Ivy League degree,” he concluded.
Have a look at his entire post here:
How do you think employers should verify academic credentials?