I've never so much as heard of someone verifying employment and graduation before interviewing a candidate. If it's done at all, it's the last step, after the

I've never so much as heard of someone verifying employment and graduation before interviewing a candidate. If it's done at all, it's the last step, after the interview but before the offer. While it's common for references to be contacted, it's quite uncommon for employment to be verified. Note that that's quite a different thing: "Did Bart Simpson do a good job for you?" is checking a reference. "Did Bart Simpson work for your company in 1999?" is verifying employment. One's references must be people who one actually knew, usually direct managers but sometimes coworkers. The person who supplies the employment verification need not have ever met the candidate. And yes I know this is not rocket science - but consider what I just said, that AMCC interviewed candidates for six months before they found someone who actually had done what the claimed, in my case writing OS X drivers. AMCC did a background check on me, but only AFTER I got the job offer, and with my written permission. While it might still have required six months to find a qualified candidate, AMCC could have saved a lot of effort and expense by sending some emails or making some phone calls before inviting candidates in to onsite interviews. Consider that it's quite common to pay for plane fare, car rental and hotel accommodation if the candidate has to travel. The employer still pays even if they don't make an offer.