Most professionals on the search for a new job might start thinking of ways to make their resume more marketable if they aren’t having much success in the application process. However, instead of crafting their resume to fit closer to the positions they’re applying to, some job seekers choose to lie about certain areas of their resume. Not only is this an unethical approach to landing any opportunity, but it can also hurt your professional credibility in the long run. Remember, all the information you provide to an employer is easily verifiable and lying can do more than cost you the job – it can ruin your reputation.

There are 5 areas in particular that employers tend to focus on when considering a candidate. Therefore, never lie about:

1. Educational background & certifications

The college or university listed on your resume is usually the first set of information an employer can fact check for consistency. If an employer can’t confirm you graduated from the school listed, this will reflect poorly on your professionalism. Along the same lines, claiming to hold a certification(s) for something you came close to completing is the same as lying to the employer on your resume. If you are unable to physically prove your educational background and/or certifications, you should avoid including them on your resume.

2. Titles and responsibilities

Leading an employer to believe you’ve done certain things when you actually haven’t is a sure way to find yourself in way over your head if hired. While it might seem like a good idea to fabricate certain titles or responsibilities you’ve held in the past to stand out against competition, it will only catch up with you. For example, managing one person isn’t the same as managing a team of people, so if your resume says you’ve managed a team, it might seem obvious that you lied if you are having a very difficult time doing so when hired. If you ever feel the need to lie about certain sections of your resume in order to get yourself noticed, the job you’re interested in might not be the best fit for your career at this point.

3. Technical skills

Your technical skills can have a major impact on your ability to do a certain job. Therefore, lying about possessing certain technical skills may prevent you from performing certain tasks effectively. For instance, if a job requires ‘advanced’ Photoshop skills, but you’ve only used Photoshop a few times, listing your skill level as ‘advanced’ is misleading to the employer. This will eventually affect your level of productivity and ultimately get you fired if you’re unable to meet the demands of the role. If you believe you can learn the necessary skills with a little bit of training and hard work, be honest. If you’re the right fit for the team, the hiring manager might be willing to take a chance on you.

4. Professional references

One of the most overlooked areas of a job search might be choosing the right references. As a job seeker looking to secure professional references, you should always alert your references before submitting their names to positions you’re applying to. If they are caught off guard by a hiring manager’s call and are unprepared to talk about your professional attributes, it will hurt your chances of being hired.

5. Dates of employment

Most companies will do their due diligence on a candidate if they are strongly considering hiring them, and checking your dates of employment with your previous employer(s) is one of the steps they can take. Therefore, if you were unemployed for an extended period of time, forging the dates with your last employer to make it seem like you worked longer, can raise some major red flags. Once an employer notices any discrepancies with your dates of employment, they will continue to second guess the information you provide them with moving forward.