Why is it important to be honest about who you are in your CV?

Your CV is more than just a document. It’s your professional story, guiding the reader through your education, experience, skills, and career development. It’s the first step to catching an employer’s interest and convincing them to invite you to an interview. So why would you be dishonest in your CV?

It might be that your dream job has been advertised but you don’t have the qualifications or number of years’ experience needed for the role. You may want to break into a new career or industry but lack relevant technical skills. Or it could be as simple as a lack of confidence in what you have to offer to a new employer. The temptation is to exaggerate or lie to make up for what’s missing.

But honesty is important if you want to land a job that’s a good fit for your skills and experience. It also builds trust with potential employers and starts your professional relationship on a sturdy footing.

Still not convinced? Let’s look at what might happen if you lie or exaggerate in your CV.

The Consequences of Dishonesty

While it might not seem so terrible to tweak your job history and skills to fit the vacancy you’re interested in, dishonesty can have genuine and serious consequences.

  You’re found out

There are several ways that your dishonesty can be discovered. The first is when you are interviewed. If you lack technical knowledge, for instance, or provide vague answers about your job history, warning bells may ring for the employer. Job references could reveal discrepancies in your CV, and lies about your qualifications will unravel when you can’t provide proof. Finally, if you land the job, it may quickly become clear that you don’t have the skills and experience to work in the role.

  Legal Risks

In certain circumstances, you may face legal action if you falsely claim to have qualifications, experience, or skills on your CV. While you might think legal action is unreasonable, the employer may be within their rights to sue you. Here are the four main scenarios where you could face legal action for submitting a dishonest CV:

• Under the Fraud Act 2006, lying about qualifications or experience in your CV could be seen as fraud. If an employer feels they’ve suffered financial loss or reputational harm because of your dishonesty, you might find yourself facing criminal charges.
• If you land the job but your dishonesty is found out, you could be accused of a breach of contract under employment law. This may lead to instant dismissal and being sued for damages.
• In regulated professions such as healthcare, finance, or law, lying about your qualifications can lead to dismissal. It can also mean losing your professional certification or licence, which will generally prevent you from working in that profession. Again, the employer may take legal action if they feel they have suffered as a result of your deception.
• If the employer feels that your dishonesty had caused them financial or reputational harm, they may sue you under civil law and claim damages.

  Your professional reputation is damaged

Lying on your CV may not only mean you don’t land the job. It could also damage your reputation with that employer and harm any future chances you have of working for them. It destroys any trust and connection you’ve built with that company and marks you out as a dishonest individual. Worse still, this employer may tell other employers to avoid you.

If you’ve applied for the job through a recruitment agency, your dishonesty could also persuade them not to put you forward for future vacancies.

  You end up in the wrong job for you

Even if you land the job, you could find yourself in a role that is incompatible with your skills and experience. You may be found out because you’re unable to do the job properly. Or you may simply become unhappy in your new job because it isn’t a good fit.

The Benefits of Honesty

Being honest in your CV isn’t simply a case of avoiding the above consequences. There are genuine benefits to being honest about who you are as a worker and what you have to offer:

• It saves you time. By creating a CV that accurately reflects who you are, you’ll save the time of applying and interviewing for jobs that aren’t a good fit. Instead you can concentrate on the jobs that genuinely match your qualifications, skills, and experience.
• It builds trust and connection. If you present yourself as the person you really are, you can be confident that any trust and relationship you build with the employer is genuine.
• It boosts your confidence. Knowing that the employer is interested in your skills and experience, without any exaggeration or dishonesty, will improve your confidence in the value you have to offer.

Being honest in your CV doesn’t mean stripping away any professional polish. Instead, it’s about confidently presenting the real you as a valuable asset to the company and a strong match for the role.

Common Forms of Dishonesty to Avoid in your CV

Here are the most common forms of dishonesty that might appear in a CV:

• including qualifications, experience, or skills that you don’t have
• exaggerating qualifications, experience, or skills
• listing companies you haven’t worked for
• leaving out jobs from your employment history
• lying about gaps in your employment history
• including made up jobs

Wrapping it up

Honesty in your CV isn’t just about doing the right thing. It’s a smart way to highlight your real skills and experience, build trust with employers, and apply for jobs that match your strengths. By being truthful, you avoid risks like being caught in a lie or ending up in an unsuitable role. Instead, you can focus on showing why you’re a great fit and improve your chances of landing the right job for you.