Timeline for Is it ethical to omit the PhD credential from my resume?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
11 events
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| Mar 18, 2018 at 10:58 | comment | added | David Kemp | IME, "over qualified" can also mean that the recruiter is worried that the candidate won't find the job enough of a challenge - meaning they'll not be happy in the job and either under-perform or move on quickly. It's not always a question of qualifications, and not all employers are ethical (or insightful) enough to reject someone for this reason. When I've been in the situation of finding someone over-qualified in this sense, I've always discussed it with them at interview stage, and tried to be open about the fact the job might not stretch them that much. | |
| Mar 17, 2018 at 3:47 | comment | added | nengel | If this is a US context, opinions are split on if it's ok or not to omit a PhD. See the comments in this Ask A Manager post for an idea of how people will react. | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 19:24 | comment | added | mathreadler | @cbeleites phds are often ridiculously narrow. the point is to specialize so much you can actually break some new ground. so say I get a phd degree in something I don't want to / are able to find work as/with, but it increases my skills as an engineer in general and specifically the field i mastered in, then how do I get a job with something I want to work as/with? | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 19:17 | comment | added | cbeleites | ... thinking privacy] - also whether I could refuse to get an upgrade in tariff group [which was also theoretical as the PhD didn't make a difference in the group] but did have the point that the group upgrade resets the specific working experience and can (temporarily) lead to lower wages. To come back to the first point: an employee agreeing to the lower wage would come at the risk for the employer that the employee could at any point (successfully) demand the full wage they're entitled to. Not the situation for a good and mutually trustful working relationship. | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 19:11 | comment | added | cbeleites | @mathreadler: Here (Germany) my guess is that the employee cannot enter such a contract (i.e. that clause would be void). If the employer is bound by a wage agreement (Tarifvertrag), that agreement typically says that deviations are allowed only to the advantage of the employee (not getting the position is not considered as a disadvantage). Think of it: the wage agreements would be pointless if they weren't binding. I once had a very interesting discussion with HR at a research institute what right they have to know of my PhD [very theoretical: I got my PhD basically there, and I was mainly... | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 19:04 | comment | added | mathreadler | @cbeleites even if they agree to not be hired based on the highest degree but the second highest one? | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 19:02 | comment | added | cbeleites | Overqualified: The employer may even be bound by a wage agreement to pay higher wages. If that is the case, I'd consider it actually unethical to hide the PhD, and the employer would (rightly) be quite annoyed. | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 18:57 | comment | added | mathreadler | No it is not always positive. As Detlev says, many employers may may be afraid that you will jump ships as fast as you can find one with a job description that is more related to the studies you did at university not to mention higher pay which could also be the case, of course, if it is more advanced stuff which not so many can do. Then they would maybe rather hire someone they can rely on not to abandon the job for a better one. | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 12:51 | comment | added | David Richerby | @DetlevCM Whereas, in other places, rejecting candidates as "overqualified" can be construed as illegal age-based discrimination. | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 9:29 | comment | added | DetlevCM | "Exceeding the minimum requirements for a job is a positive." - Is it? In some European countries it was (and in places still is) common to be rejected because you are "overqualified".... (In some cases this may have been more of an excuse, in other cases that is the actual reason, because the employer suspects you will leave once you find a better job and do not want to stay.) | |
| Mar 16, 2018 at 0:20 | history | answered | Thomas Steinke | CC BY-SA 3.0 |