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Background check?!!!

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darren1010

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27 Jan 2007, 17:00

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In the letter of acceptance, my school mentioned that they will have a background check by Kroll America (satisfactory completion of application verification by Kroll Background America including
the payment of any fees associated with applicant verification.)
It means they will make me pay for the verification? Don't know how it's gonna cost! And I don't feel comfortable at all even though I have nothing to hide, because in my country's culture, you are checked only if you "have problems".
Anybody have any ideas?

sm176811

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27 Jan 2007, 17:03

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Yeah they make you pay. Nothing serious, just pay teh fees and they will do their job... Nothing to feel consious about if you do not have anything to hide!

rhyme

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27 Jan 2007, 17:22

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GSB hasn't asked me to pay anything yet... maybe they will ?

GMATT73

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27 Jan 2007, 21:24

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Kroll is known for conducting substance abuse and credit report checks. Although I doubt they make students take a urinalysis these days, especially international applicants. :wink:

jinkazama

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28 Jan 2007, 05:44

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I also saw the same thing on in my acceptance packet. My letter said they would only check education, employment, and references. It was $100 which was to be taken out of my deposit.....

justin520

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27 Jul 2007, 02:31

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How exactly do they check your employment? Do they just call your former employers? I worked as an intern for a while and I wasn't paid. There won't be any tax records for that time, but I am putting it on my resume. Also, I worked as a waiter through college, but I left that off of my resume. Does this matter?

GMATT73

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27 Jul 2007, 03:46

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justin520

Same here, waited tables for cash all through college and never once filed taxes during those five years. Was sweating bullets that something was going to be red flagged, but nothing ever came up. I think these krolls are trolling criminal archives for violent felons and white collar convicts rather than people who have unpaid parking tickets or JC Penny charge offs.

riverripper

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27 Jul 2007, 03:50

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I think what they check varies. If they find something out of the ordinary they will do a more detailed check than if their initial search turns up clean. One sure thing is they will run a credit report, a school isn't going to want a student there that wont be able to pay for second year that would hurt their graduation % and also though its common these days you would think that it would not be a common problem for MBA students. They will run a check for a criminal record to see if you have anything there that concerns them. If you have 6 DUI convictions or an assualt and battery they may take issue with that unless you talked about it in your optional essay or addressed it at some point.

As for an employment check I think they will care whats your post college grad, they wont care if you worked at a grocery store in high school. So for not putting you worked as a waiter that shouldn't be an issue. As for putting an internship on your resume, schools usually state they only want to know your post graduation employment history...so unless it happened after college they probably wont even consider it. Internships typically aren't seen as valid unless its very unusual.

For references at most they will spot check them to see if they even exist. They may call one up and ask if they wrote a recommendation for you. I think with consultants and all the other knowledge people have these days on the app process, schools are trying to prevent people from scamming their way. Though it still does happen and you read stories about people doing stupid things trying to cover it up, like the guy who broke into his undergrad to change his transcript.

lepium

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30 Jul 2007, 09:50

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rhyme

GSB hasn't asked me to pay anything yet... maybe they will ?

HBS didn't make me pay anything, either. I just had to send the fax authorizing Kroll to contact my employer and that was it. It's not included in my 1st term bill (which I received recently) either.

L.

baer

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12 Nov 2007, 19:16

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I'm about to freak out... I had an internship/part time job in college that I put on the "employment" section of my app, thinking it was supposed to go there. Now on the verification sheet I have to send to Kroll, they want to know my start and end dates. Trouble is that this company was bought out and I have no idea about the end date. Have any of you heard of students getting flagged in this process?

kidderek

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13 Nov 2007, 11:07

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What exactly is on a credit report check? I always supposed it was like a credit rating, but I guess it has more info?

jjanders

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13 Nov 2007, 11:16

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kidderek

What exactly is on a credit report check? I always supposed it was like a credit rating, but I guess it has more info?

They know what you did last summer.

ncp

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13 Nov 2007, 11:26

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Quote:

They know what you did last summer.

I dont think they would be able to check every single thing you write in your app, even if Kroll wants to. I have done a bunch of things like running my own small business, working for the family, volunteering here and there etc for which no records exist now. Traditionally, record-keeping was absent/incomplete in most Indian establishments(especially in the private small business sector) until beginning the early 1990s. I cant imagine that Kroll would be able to verify records when not present.

jjanders

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13 Nov 2007, 11:36

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Sorry, that was a lame attempt at a joke.

dabots

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13 Nov 2007, 11:46

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i cant imagine this being much more detailed than a credit/criminal record check. my background check for my government security clearance took over a year... im not worried about some bschool background check.

ncp

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13 Nov 2007, 11:49

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I can understand the school's interest in checking criminal and employment records. But why the swear word should they check financial/credit records. Applying to a school shouldn't give it the right to reckless abuse ones' privacy.

kidderek

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13 Nov 2007, 11:52

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ncprasad

I can understand the school's interest in checking criminal and employment records. But why the <insert> should they check financial/credit records. Applying to a school shouldn't give it the right to reckless abuse ones' privacy.

That's why I'm wondering if there's something in the credit record that explicitly states or even implies something. Because otherwise, I don't see its relevance.

riverripper

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13 Nov 2007, 13:28

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Your credit score is considered a sign of your responsibility. In a lot of states car insurance actually use it as a factor to calculate rates. If you have huge debt you are a liability and some companies wont hire you, so that may be why they care.

kidderek

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13 Nov 2007, 13:36

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riverripper

Yea, pretty much what I figured.

I know they do it for employment purposes. I always thought it was ironic that an employer might not hire someone because the person is in debt. So how does he ever pay off his debt?

riverripper

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13 Nov 2007, 13:41

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kidderek

riverripper

I tend to think companies are more interested in how you got the debt. If you have debt from a medical problem or family issue thats not going to be a red flag. However, maxing out 10 store credit cards and having a car repoed because you just had to have a 335i but couldnt afford it, are going to tell them you are an idiot who can't control themselves.

Especially if you are going to work in anything related to finance...Once again its a case of schools not only looking out for who they bring in but also who they graduate.