Do employers ask for college transcripts?
I had been out of school for a little less than ten years when a friend, the CEO of a startup, gave me a call. There was an open position he thought was perfect for me: was I interested? Would I mind talking to HR, as was their protocol? I was interested, and didnt mind talking to HR. The next day, I received a call from the company. While speaking with the HR person, it became obvious that she was quite young, ink barely dry on her own diploma. She asked me about my university GPA, and then asked about my high school grades. That was more than ten years ago, and I was in an innovative program without numerical grades, so I dont think that information even exists, but I can arrange for you to talk to some of my teachers. I wanted that job, and thought I was being helpful and jumping through every possible hoop. That was until the HR woman asked the next question. Do you remember taking something called the SATs? And that was the end of the phone call. I told my friend, who knew my credentials, that I wasnt interested in working for the company, and he hired someone I knew, who went on to gossip in company e-mail in a way that opened the startup to liability. A company, any company, should have better decision making tools about a persons skill set, suitability, and company fit than a persons academic performance years before. That is the only time after Id been out of school for a year or two that I was ever asked about college, and the only, ever, I was asked about my high school classes, grades, credentials, or test scores. In this country (the United States) outside of some very high-paying and prestigious positions, such as white shoe law firms or top investment banking firms, its very unusual to be asked for transcripts or grades, and even in those cases, its usually for grad school, and it allows a company to make a decision between two highly qualified candidates.