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I am a recent graduate and I was given an entry level IT job offer by a large corporation not too long ago. They required a recent computer science graduate for the position, I met the requirement and passed their interviews. However on the work-experience section of my resume I mistakenly kept a start date of January 2010 instead of August 2010 for a previous job I had because I got the job while I was on college break and it didn't quickly occur to me that I got the job in the summer holiday, not the winter holiday of that year. This company that just gave me the job offer told me that they usually do background checks and now MY WORRY is that if they contact my previous employment place and they find out that my start date for a previous job on my resume was actually August 2010 not January 2010, the company may not give me the job position anymore?

Please anyone here with suggestions or advice regarding this? Should I tell them about the issue on my resume with the employment start-date before the background check begins? thanks for your responses, I appreciate!

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    Yes, contact the company and let them know of the discrepancy. It will be better to tell them that you remembered incorrectly now than to have to explain it later. That said, something like this may not be a big deal either way.
    – GreenMatt
    Jun 7, 2013 at 19:04
  • ... and cross your fingers and be prepared for the repercussions. As they say down here, all those who are caught always say it was a) either their first time b) I didnt know I did 'this'. (Uhmm offica, I dint know I was doon that speed )
    – happybuddha
    Jun 8, 2013 at 1:26
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    If you are proactive and tell them, they are much more likely to give you the benefit of the doubt. It looks like an innocent error,so get that admission off your chest and be done with this issue.
    – Vietnhi Phuvan
    Jan 16, 2015 at 23:32
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    Please please, whatever you choose to do update the question to tell us about the outcome.
    – Paulo Scardine
    May 22, 2015 at 0:08

1 Answer 1

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Yes. Tell them.

This is a pretty simple clerical error - you didn't do this maliciously. It was an honest mistake. Write to your contact (probably an HR representative or recruiter) and mention that you made an error. Send them an updated resume and ask if they need you to fill out any other paperwork.

Chances are good that this won't be a problem. In a long work history, a difference of 8 months is not a big deal. In a new grad, it may be a slightly bigger deal -IF- the change in date makes for a dramatic difference in months/years worked total.

Even so - honesty is better here.

It's a pretty typical process to check previous jobs for start date and end date. It's generally the easiest factual check. If you don't correct it, you risk looking like a liar, if you do correct it, your worst case is looking like an honest guy who should have proofed his resume better.

Addition - I'll second the two comments so far - take the extra effort to make sure that the resume is error free before you resend, and that in the future you have the accurate resume on hand. Get a double check from a friend or peer whenever you're updating it - both for clarity and basic editing, as well as a double check on accuracy. It gets harder as time goes by to keep track of what year and month you change jobs or roles, so it's never a bad idea to keep an up to date resume on hand at all times, even when you're not in the market.

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    Fix your resume and include it with your explanation. You don't want the same mistake to happen again.
    – user8365
    Jun 7, 2013 at 20:16
  • Thanks for all your responses everyone, I decided to inform them of the error on my resume. I appreciate your replies and advices.
    – mentorincs
    Jun 10, 2013 at 15:16

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