Job Application: How long should a background check take ?

[polm]

I have been interviewing for a new job. I have gone through the Technical and Behavioral interviews. The next step is to process my background information.

I returned the necessary forms for the background check on Friday. They included : Previous Job/Education history, and waivers to check my criminal history.

How long do you think it will take to process that information ?

I emailed the guy who will be my boss yesterday, and I asked him how the processing was going. He responded "We are still in standby mode" .

So lets say they started the background check on Monday. When do you think it will be completed by ?

 

[EyeMWing]

Depends on if you're a terrorist or not.

 

[dullard]

It depends on how through they are and how responsive your references are. For example, my wife just applied to be a substitute teacher. There of course is a background check. The school system sent letters to each of her references and each of her former employeers. In an ideal world, they'd all send mails back immediately - resulting in a 1 week background check (assuming 2-3 days each way in the mail). BUT one of her former employeers sat on the letter for 3 weeks - delaying her background check. It took about a month for that to finish.

 

[bunker]

It really depends on who's doing the background check. If they have their own investigators, it could be less than a week. If they send it out to say, the FBI, it could take a month or more.

 

[polm]

Originally posted by: dullard
It depends on how through they are and how responsive your references are. For example, my wife just applied to be a substitute teacher. There of course is a background check. The school system sent letters to each of her references and each of her former employeers. In an ideal world, they'd all send mails back immediately - resulting in a 1 week background check (assuming 2-3 days each way in the mail). BUT one of her former employeers sat on the letter for 3 weeks - delaying her background check. It took about a month for that to finish.

Was your wife kept posted of the progress ? Or, did she simply sit around wondering for a month what was going on ?

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: polm
Was your wife kept posted of the progress ? Or, did she simply sit around wondering for a month what was going on ?

She kept calling the school and they told her of the progress. If she didn't call, she'd have been left in the dark.

 

[polm]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: polm
Was your wife kept posted of the progress ? Or, did she simply sit around wondering for a month what was going on ?

She kept calling the school and they told her of the progress. If she didn't call, she'd have been left in the dark.

so there is nothing wrong with me calling for progress checkups ?

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: polm
so there is nothing wrong with me calling for progress checkups ?

I'd say since its only been 2 working days since you turned in your forms, and since you already contacted them once, I'd sit back for a few days before contacting them again. You don't want to sound too pushy. Maybe on Monday it will be ok to ask again - but no sooner in my opinion

 

[Thegonagle]

About 7 minutes.

I've worked in an HR office before and read some of those BG check reports from those outside companies that do the "background checks." The company I worked for did not use those checks for hiring, but one of the other companies that they had acquired did.

They're silly if you ask me. They check your credit, your driving record, your criminal record, verify dates of employment, and then write up a little report full of double-speak and mumbo-jumbo--"The applicant has some derogatory marks on his personal credit report but is current with all creditors," and "The applicant has a past pattern of some irresponsibility, but shows a good work history." It's a bit fascist and kind of BS, because I know some total drunk losers who have no trouble holding down a job and performing very well, and some people who've never had so much as a parking ticket who were terrible workers.

 

[polm]

Last monday the HR department informed me that the process can take anywhere from 5 - 10 days.

They told me who the third pary screening company was and I went ahead and called them myself. They told me the process takes anywhere from 3 - 5 days.

So this is 5 business days later.

Should I call / email my would-be manager at this company, and ask "How is the process coming along ?"