College students often seek internships or entry–level jobs after graduating. Scammers often target new graduates seeking a job, so learning their techniques is important. Many scam job offers are convincing and realistic, which can trick unsuspecting students into a terrible situation.
Keep reading to learn the signs of a job scam and how college students can avoid them.
Appearing out of the Blue
One obvious sign of a job scam is receiving a job offer from a position the student never applied for. For instance, some of those emails may start with greetings such as “Dear applicant” or “We have received your application.”
These emails will likely contain vague details about the job. These are obvious signs of a job scam, but others scams may be a lot more convincing.
The Real Deal?
College students may receive convincing offers with better–formatted emails and closing signatures that appear trustworthy. For example, the more convincing scams may impersonate smaller companies and their employees because of their smaller social presence.
Always research the supposed person that sent the email through the company website or LinkedIn. If the search comes up short, try researching the company to see if they are actively hiring.
Often impersonated emails and personnel of a company are reported through LinkedIn posts or a company’s website. Besides well–formatted emails and realistic signatures, scammers can still be identified by the contents of the email.
You've Got Mail!
Even if the email is well-formatted, scammers often make mistakes within the body of an email. For instance, in Gmail, a false Zoom invitation will only contain a link, whereas a real invitation will embed a calendar reminder.
Take note of the punctuation in the email as legitimate, professional emails typically have proper grammar and punctuation. If the email contains a vague job description this can also help indicate a job scam.
Conclusion
Most college students will receive job scam offers. Learning what some of the indicators are will better prepare students, so they are not caught up in a scam. Researching websites, profiles, and other platforms may lead to reports made by others, or show any discrepancies.
Ultimately, being educated on how to recognize job scams will keep college students safe from potential harm. For more job hunting advice, visit FerryGodmother.biz.