The Communique

Issue date: 3/23/06 Section: Feature

When students leave college for the "real world," equipped with degrees and resumés in their hands, many don't realize that their past mistakes could travel with them to job interviews.

After the interview is over, employers often look at information that also has an effect on the hiring process: The applicant's criminal record.

Not all job applicants realize that their criminal records constitute part of their job credentials. Even just one account of drunk driving can make an outstanding resumé suddenly meaningless.

Nearly any criminal act that a person has committed can be legally viewed by employers. Refusing an employer's request for a background check gives the employer the right to refuse to consider the candidate for the job.

A forgotten account of Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) or substance abuse charge may resurface during the hiring process and not only result in a lost job opportunity but possibly the loss of an entire career. According to Counselor/Professor of Student Development Morris Pounds, any form of controlled substance abuse charge can bring a career in the medical field to a sudden halt. The same is true for a student pursuing a career in animal science.

Pounds said these precautions are in place for safety reasons. Working in the medical field or around animals, a person has access to a variety of powerful drugs. Without laws prohibiting drug abusers from holding these careers, a drug abuser may pursue such an occupation to acquire powerful medicines to sell and use in inappropriate ways.

Few students know about these laws, leaving some of them vulnerable to the consequences. It's possible for a student to spend thousands of dollars on an education, graduate with all the credentials necessary for his career, yet remain ineligible for a job in his career field, due to one substance abuse charge or OWI.

"I had a student who graduated with a degree in criminal justice and couldn't get a job because of an OWI he had gotten five years before," Pounds said.

Pounds said few students realize the long-term consequences of a criminal act. According to Jody Weigel, an instructor of human services, "One OWI can stick with you for up to 10 years."

Pounds said that while college is a time for learning and socializing, some students forget to be responsible. In college, access to alcohol and other substances is widespread, and students need to think about their future before engaging in something they know is not legal, he said. Pounds explained that even if students don't act responsibly while in school, they will be held accountable for their actions later.

"If you use and abuse, you will lose in the long run," Pounds said.

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