# How do employers check A-level grades / UCAS points?



## LostNotFound (Sep 7, 2005)

I don't have any official transcripts of my A-level marks - can employers with certain requirements get them from UCAS?

Yet another thing I'm now regretting about being a lazy arrogant teenager is mucking up my A-levels thinking that if I did a degree, only my degree marks would count.


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## tastebud (Sep 7, 2005)

surely you just lie on your cv about your a-levels. unless they are all a* of course...


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## miss direct (Sep 7, 2005)

LostNotFound said:
			
		

> I don't have any official transcripts of my A-level marks - can employers with certain requirements get them from UCAS?
> 
> Yet another thing I'm now regretting about being a lazy arrogant teenager is mucking up my A-levels thinking that if I did a degree, only my degree marks would count.



You can get copies from the exam boards. In some jobs (as in mine), I have to take evidence of A Levels and degree on my first day.


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## Nemo (Sep 8, 2005)

Vixen said:
			
		

> surely you just lie on your cv about your a-levels. unless they are all a* of course...



If you said your A-levels were all A* they'd _know_ you were lying.


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## DrRingDing (Sep 8, 2005)

Just bullshit mate, the cunts don't deserve honesty.

I refuse on principle to tell the truth on my CV.

Didn't you get a 1st anyhoo?

Take proof of yer 1st and then you would be able to blag the A* bit I reckon


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## polo (Sep 8, 2005)

Indeed, employers are seldom honest about just how crap a job is likely to be.     It should be a two way street.


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## DRINK? (Sep 8, 2005)

Dunno how they check though do know that companies do though it really depends on where your working and position...never lie for a job in bank for instance, have had a couple of mates lose jobs due to the fact they's boosted grades....guess just be wary and if you do lie don't expect to get away with it.......Saying that I would exagerrate a leeeeetle


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## pogofish (Sep 8, 2005)

Universities, annually get copies of the exam results which are kept on file in the registry.  They can also double-check info directly with the exam boards.  Employers are directed to the registry as well & they confirm the degree & its level.  This is considered public domain info & there are no data protection or privacy issues.  For school exams, an employer can contact the school or exam board directly.


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## kins (Sep 8, 2005)

Lying on a CV is dishonest and illegal.  Anyone who lies is silly.  Bend the truth maybe, but don't bullshit.  It'll come bite you in the ass when you least expect it and then what'll you do?  

If you don't have the qualifications, that's your bad.


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## LostNotFound (Sep 8, 2005)

kins said:
			
		

> Lying on a CV is dishonest and illegal.  Anyone who lies is silly.  Bend the truth maybe, but don't bullshit.  It'll come bite you in the ass when you least expect it and then what'll you do?
> 
> If you don't have the qualifications, that's your bad.



Yeah Yeah I know. I was only briefly entertaining the idea of shifting a B up to an A. 

Maybe I'll just say "I could have got an A .. if I'd tried. Honest guv!" instead. I'm sure they'll love to hear that


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## Loki (Sep 8, 2005)

Yeah, whatever kins.

I've never known an employer to check the qualifications on my CV. Often they don't even bother to check my references - they rely on the interview. It seems to be the normal practice in the IT industry - I've never bothered checking anything when interviewing/recruiting. I can't speak for other industries though.


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## kins (Sep 8, 2005)

Loki said:
			
		

> Yeah, whatever kins.
> 
> I've never known an employer to check the qualifications on my CV. Often they don't even bother to check my references - they rely on the interview. It seems to be the normal practice in the IT industry - I've never bothered checking anything when interviewing/recruiting. I can't speak for other industries though.



Yes I appreciate that.  But why would you want to get something on a lie?  Do you have no conscience??  I agree an interview is much more important than a CV, but lying is just naughty.


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## kins (Sep 8, 2005)

LostNotFound said:
			
		

> Yeah Yeah I know. I was only briefly entertaining the idea of shifting a B up to an A.
> 
> Maybe I'll just say "I could have got an A .. if I'd tried. Honest guv!" instead. I'm sure they'll love to hear that



Just don't put the grades on at all.  Just put what A-Levels you got and what GCSEs and put that you have English and Maths (they love that) grades really isn't important.  The fact that you can show that you have got a-levels shows that you have a brain so I wouldn't worry


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## butterfly child (Sep 8, 2005)

kins said:
			
		

> Lying on a CV is dishonest and illegal.  *Anyone who lies is silly*.  Bend the truth maybe, but don't bullshit.  It'll come bite you in the ass when you least expect it and then what'll you do?
> 
> If you don't have the qualifications, that's your bad.



Millions of people lie on their CV's, everyone knows it.

I don't, I just don't go into details about my exam results, I just say I have x amount of GCSE's.

Fingers crossed, the next time I need a proper job, I will have the only qualification I need.


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## LostNotFound (Sep 8, 2005)

kins said:
			
		

> Just don't put the grades on at all.  Just put what A-Levels you got and what GCSEs and put that you have English and Maths (they love that) grades really isn't important.  The fact that you can show that you have got a-levels shows that you have a brain so I wouldn't worry



That's not going to work if they want you to have 3 A's now, is it.


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## the B (Sep 8, 2005)

Loki said:
			
		

> Yeah, whatever kins.
> 
> I've never known an employer to check the qualifications on my CV. Often they don't even bother to check my references - they rely on the interview. It seems to be the normal practice in the IT industry - I've never bothered checking anything when interviewing/recruiting. I can't speak for other industries though.



Funny that. My current job is in checking CVs and the like.

Consultancy and IT are the sectors where people lie the most 

LNF - don't bother. One A level grade is unlikely to make or break your job application. Lying and getting caught will. It's damn easy to check these things. We'll check with your education institute, get your certificates and possibly torture you with cattleprods.


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## the B (Sep 8, 2005)

butterfly child said:
			
		

> Millions of people lie on their CV's, everyone knows it.
> 
> I don't, I just don't go into details about my exam results, I just say I have x amount of GCSE's.
> 
> Fingers crossed, the next time I need a proper job, I will have the only qualification I need.



About 25% have lies on them.


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## tastebud (Sep 8, 2005)

kins said:
			
		

> Do you have no conscience


  oh dear.
what does conscience have to do with it!


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## kins (Sep 8, 2005)

LostNotFound said:
			
		

> That's not going to work if they want you to have 3 A's now, is it.



But i'd like to think that one wouldn't apply for a job that required 3 As if they didn't actually get that - muppet


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## the B (Sep 8, 2005)

Vixen said:
			
		

> oh dear.
> what does conscience have to do with it!



Sounds like a bad joke from a psychology student... oh, wait


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## kins (Sep 8, 2005)

Vixen said:
			
		

> oh dear.
> what does conscience have to do with it!



getting a job on a lie? that's all, i know that I couldn't lie.  But I don't need to lie coz I am so amazingly qualified and successful that everyone wants me. Im in demand


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## tastebud (Sep 8, 2005)

the B said:
			
		

> Sounds like a bad joke from a psychology student... oh, wait


that was quite funny, the b.


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## butterfly child (Sep 8, 2005)

the B said:
			
		

> About 25% have lies on them.



So, millions then, as I said!


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## tastebud (Sep 8, 2005)

butterfly child said:
			
		

> So, millions then, as I said!


i don't know anyone that tells the truth on a cv.


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## Loki (Sep 8, 2005)

the B said:
			
		

> Funny that. My current job is in checking CVs and the like.
> 
> Consultancy and IT are the sectors where people lie the most



 My CV is mostly honest but with a few embellishments, mostly cos it's easy to tack on another programming language when you already know 20 or so, they all follow the same principle. With IT they tend to be more interested in experience than school/uni qualifications.


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## the B (Sep 8, 2005)

Vixen said:
			
		

> i don't know anyone that tells the truth on a cv.



Well, would a pot plant called Pauline have a CV? 

Anyway, Loki - that kind of thing isn't something we could easily check (or rather, we could if you had claimed some kind of certificate/qualification for it).

However, we can get performance and competency evaluations out of previous employers

(granted, most can't be fucked to do them and tell us, yeah, he or she was alright -I'm just the HR person who doesn't give a crap and can't even be bothered to check through any appraisal system or contact their former boss... fuckers... ahem).


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## kins (Sep 8, 2005)

Vixen said:
			
		

> i don't know anyone that tells the truth on a cv.



well you do now


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## tastebud (Sep 8, 2005)

the B said:
			
		

> Well, would a pot plant called Pauline have a CV?


you leave my pauline out of this, damn it!!


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## tastebud (Sep 8, 2005)

Loki said:
			
		

> My CV is mostly honest


_and it's a swift turnaround from the loke-ster when he realises that the cv police are out.. in full force!!_


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## LostNotFound (Sep 8, 2005)

kins said:
			
		

> But i'd like to think that one wouldn't apply for a job that required 3 As if they didn't actually get that - *muppet*



For the record, I got the degree grade they want. I think that counts more. 
Anyway, tons of people don't quite get the A levels they could have.. 




			
				kins said:
			
		

> But I don't need to lie coz I am so amazingly qualified and successful that everyone wants me



Not sure why I'm even replying to you, you really are a prize cunt. Fuck off.


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## beeboo (Sep 8, 2005)

My partner boosted a grade on his CV (got a D which he boosted to a B), and then went into a panic when he got offered a job with an American bank who employ a company specfically to do background and CV checks.  They even wanted a urine sample FFS!

He didn't take a job and half the reason was worrying about getting caught out.  

(Luckily found a better job with a more chilled out company!)


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## tastebud (Sep 8, 2005)

LostNotFound said:
			
		

> Not sure why I'm even replying to you, you really are a prize cunt. Fuck off.


  you got there in the end lnf!


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## the B (Sep 9, 2005)

beeboo said:
			
		

> My partner boosted a grade on his CV (got a D which he boosted to a B), and then went into a panic when he got offered a job with an American bank who employ a company specfically to do background and CV checks.  They even wanted a urine sample FFS!
> 
> He didn't take a job and half the reason was worrying about getting caught out.
> 
> (Luckily found a better job with a more chilled out company!)



A urine sample? Not sure that's even legal in the UK... might be in the USA though.

And pretty much all banks/financial institutions will hire companies specifically to do the checks.


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## J77 (Sep 9, 2005)

*cv tip #36879*

Keep getting qualifications unitl your A-levels are redundent - then start working on your bibliography - that's the way forward...


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## the B (Sep 9, 2005)

J77 said:
			
		

> Keep getting qualifications unitl your A-levels are redundent - then start working on your bibliography - that's the way forward...



Some employers will want all education checked, irrespective of how old it is or many other qualifications you have.


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## J77 (Sep 9, 2005)

the B said:
			
		

> Some employers will want all education checked, irrespective of how old it is or many other qualifications you have.




*Goes to find 25m swimming badge*


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## spanglechick (Sep 10, 2005)

the B said:
			
		

> A urine sample? Not sure that's even legal in the UK... might be in the USA though.
> 
> And pretty much all banks/financial institutions will hire companies specifically to do the checks.


Lots of uk companies require a piss test from regular employees - I don't know that the law would be different for potential candidates.


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## the B (Sep 10, 2005)

spanglechick said:
			
		

> Lots of uk companies require a piss test from regular employees - I don't know that the law would be different for potential candidates.



Don't think they can fire you if you don't give one (unless you have signed away your rights in the contract or something, valid cases being say medical experimentation).

There aren't many genuine reasons employers can ask for urine tests.


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## polo (Sep 10, 2005)

Found this at  

http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/foundations/694.asp

I expect the companies that are most likley to do drugs testing will be US owned.  But is unclear whether they do this to all their employees.  

I did have a friend who got a job but subsequently failed the drugs test and was told to get on his bike.  That wacky baccy stays in the system for weeks, apparently.

---------
The law
The legal position on drug testing at work is confused. There is no direct legislation and important legal questions hinge on interpretation of a range of provisions in health and safety, employment, human rights and data protection law. The main principles behind the current legal and self-regulatory provisions appear to be as follows:

    * that people are entitled to a private life;
    * that employers are required to look to the safety of the public;
    * that people are entitled to dignity;
    * that people are entitled to proper quality standards for evidence used against them in court or disciplinary proceedings.

These are emerging issues for jurisprudence and there has, to date, been little case law on drug testing arising from the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Data Protection Act 1998. Some of the issues have been clarified to some degree with the publication by the Information Commissioner of the consultation draft of Part 4 of the Employment Practices Data Protection Code in November 2003 (Information Commissioner, 2003). The Information Commissioner is responsible for the implementation of the Data Protection Act. According to the Commissioner's draft Code, the legitimacy of drug testing will depend on showing that there are health and safety concerns and on providing evidence of real (not assumed) impairment of performance.

Trends and trajectories
A MORI poll was conducted on behalf of the IIDTW in 2003. Over 200 companies were surveyed, of which 4 per cent conducted drug tests and a further 9 per cent said that they were likely to introduce tests in the next year. In addition, 78 per cent said that they would be more likely to test if they believed that drug or alcohol use was affecting performance or productivity. Overall numbers might seem comparatively low on the MORI findings, but this is highly misleading. If 4 per cent of businesses are drug testing this will affect hundreds of thousands of employees. If the 9 per cent of businesses who told MORI that they were likely to introduce testing in the next year do so, then this trebles the proportion of UK businesses testing over a 12-month period.

The IIDTW was not able to establish the extent of drug testing at work or the overall trends to its own satisfaction, with other surveys producing different figures to the MORI poll, largely reflecting the differences in their respective samples.

A major expansion of drug testing at work, while far from inevitable, is now a genuine possibility. The North American experience shows how rapidly drug testing at work can expand, with testing in the US developing into a multi-billion dollar industry since the 1980s. There is evidence that increasing numbers of British employers are identifying drug and alcohol use as a problem for them. There is a lack of evidence to suggest that drug and alcohol use is in fact having a serious and widespread effect on the workplace in modern Britain. There is a need for continued monitoring of trends and trajectories.


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## Fledgling (Sep 14, 2005)

These UCAS points have to be the biggest lad of centralised, Stalinist crap , the latest offering from our good old government's screwed up levelling dystopian attitude towards education. 

Rant yes but here's a good one. 

My friend applied for several jobs but was turned down for being short on UCAS points. He got something like BBC at A level. But here's the thing, his A Levels were in Maths, Physics and Economics, not the easiest subjects. However this means FA now becuase an A in a doss A level is worth mre than a B in a harder subject. Incientally he was rejected from several applications because of this numbers game and then graduated with a first before deciding to study for a masters at UCL. 

So moral of the story: govt's educational policy is shite, study easy subjects, get loads of points and you'll be the perfect prodcut of the syste,: well qualified but know sod-all. 

Education Education, Education (UCAS points, tuition fees, interpersonal skills)


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## the B (Sep 14, 2005)

Hmm, no, a lot of the top notch degrees force you to take the tough subjects. Like maths or say chemistry.


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## lobster (Sep 15, 2005)

From what ive heard, once you have experience in any field , the following employer does not look at the qualification alone, the experience he is more concerned with,

Getting a job without any experience after a degree is not easy aless you goto Oxford or Cambridge and want to work in the financial sector,.

Working in the public sector there more down to earth from experience ive heard.


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## the B (Sep 15, 2005)

lobster said:
			
		

> From what ive heard, once you have experience in any field , the following employer does not look at the qualification alone, the experience he is more concerned with,



Depends on the job. For example, if you're applying for a science/engineering job...



> Getting a job without any experience after a degree is not easy aless you goto Oxford or Cambridge and want to work in the financial sector,.



No, you still need experience. Oxbridge may have everyone on AAA. But it's funny how so many don't get a first or an upper second... and even then, how many just don't have the personality for a real job and holding it down.


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## Ae589 (Sep 16, 2005)

polo said:
			
		

> Indeed, employers are seldom honest about just how crap a job is likely to be.     It should be a two way street.



It's not the employers you cheat, it's the more capable but honest people who don't get an interview because your cv looked better.  Lying is lying is lying.


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