Background Check

[Anonymous]

I am going through the process with Medline for the Physician Rep position. My only is concern is I got a misdemeanor charge for possession of marijuana a couple years ago when I was in college. I would like to know how strict their policies are when it comes to background checks? That's the only thing I have on it. I currently work for a med device company and I got the job. Am I wasting my time with continuing the process or are they looking for bigger things like fraud, felonies, etc?

 

[Anonymous]

As long as you indicate it on your application then it should be fine. If you do not list it on your application and lie, then you will not get hired since it will come up on the background check. They look at whether it was a felony and how long ago. A misdemeanor a few years ago is not that bad. They look for bigger things.

 

[Anonymous]

I am going through the process with Medline for the Physician Rep position. My only is concern is I got a misdemeanor charge for possession of marijuana a couple years ago when I was in college. I would like to know how strict their policies are when it comes to background checks? That's the only thing I have on it. I currently work for a med device company and I got the job. Am I wasting my time with continuing the process or are they looking for bigger things like fraud, felonies, etc?

Honestly it all depends how it comes out. If you're not upfront about it and they find out by themselves then it's a "surprise". Employers don't like surprises. At the same time, it's YOUR job to make sure that it's brought up at the appropriate time. Being upfront about it doesn't mean that you should run into the interview and spew it out like word vomit. If you do it that way then that topic will dominate your interview and it will be the first thing that the interviewer heuristically thinks of when he/she looks back at your resume.

I would wait till they say something about the hiring process. Like "Well, Mr. Smith, all new hires will go through training during the first few weeks after all of the necessary paper work is completed" (or something to that effect). That's when you bring it up. Also be sure that when you do say it you twist it into a positive event. Say something like "blah blah blah I made a mistake when I was younger blah blah blah ALTHOUGH IT WASN'T MY FINEST HOUR, I try to accept the positive from all my life experiences. I believe that it helped me to mature and gave me a different outlook on adulthood".

The real mystery here, however, is why haven't you had this sh** expunged yet? If it happened a couple years ago then you should have that off your record by now. If you're unfamiliar with expongement, it's essentially (for lack of a better term) the get-out-of-jail-free-card for minor offenses and misdemeanors. Basically, you'll go to court a couple times over several months and deal with a crap-ton of paper work and a judge will review your charges. If he deems them to be "minor" or "trivial" enough and he believes that you're a reformed individual then he'll grant you expongement. You'll then be able to LEGALLY tell employers that you've never been arrested and can also say that on official/legal documents. You're record will be wiped clean (arrest record AND record of charges filed) And, get this, if an employer ever finds out that you're record was expunged it's ILLEGAL for him/her to ask you why. Honestly, expongement was made for cases like these - dumb college kid who gets snagged with a gram or two of pot. Big deal. Happens to a lot of people. Don't let it ruin your life. Go get your ducks in a row and get that crap expunged. It'll probably be less than $1,000 if you hire a lawyer to do it for you. No reason not to.

 

[Anonymous]

I am going through the process with Medline for the Physician Rep position. My only is concern is I got a misdemeanor charge for possession of marijuana a couple years ago when I was in college. I would like to know how strict their policies are when it comes to background checks? That's the only thing I have on it. I currently work for a med device company and I got the job. Am I wasting my time with continuing the process or are they looking for bigger things like fraud, felonies, etc?

No worries man....everyone over there smokes week anyway..besides, it's gonna be legal soon. But....I wouldn't say shit...just sayin.