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I wouldn't bring up the error until hired (if at all). If it's brought up, say it was an unintentional error. You learned from it and won't do it again, so in a way, yes it was unintentional. You did it, but didn't expect to worry or feel such guilt, and won't do it again ^.^
I asked my friend about this, he hires investment bankers for bulge-bracket banks. He says for competitive jobs (I don't know what kind of job you are applying to), they are looking for any reason to throw your application out, since there are so many applicants to weed through. From small (like a typo) to large gaffes, don't give them a reason, if you want to be hired, that is.
Basically, his guidance is somewhat in line with Mystique's opinion:
-- if you want to get hired, that is!
Suppose I'm hired, shall I still fill the fudged dates on the PES? If I do, then it is not an unintentional error any more. What I can do only is to pray that the hiring manager or recruitment department don't compare the form I fill with the one I did 2 years ago. The difficult is that they still keep my files and won't remove it until one year later.
If I were an interviewer or a background checker and caught your employment-date lies, I'd wonder what else you'd lied about. I definitely wouldnt hire a liar because I'd never be able to trust him in any situation.
Lying to HR is like lying on your taxes or to a cop when they pull you over for speeding. Everyone does it because they really have no choice or they are exasperated with the BS. Everyone has some dirt that if known by HR they would be summarily rejected. A gap, a past supervisor who didn't like you, not enough experience, a weakness, a degree that makes you overqualified... Few people could get a job being fully honest and playing by HR's rules.
If I were an interviewer or a background checker and caught your employment-date lies, I'd wonder what else you'd lied about. I definitely wouldnt hire a liar because I'd never be able to trust him in any situation.
I can imagine.
Then shall I just admit the mistake during the interview or simply withdraw the applicaiton?
1) you can get away with lying through your teeth outside of inventing jobs when done skillfully. many people do this according to the statistics. jobs landed in such fashion are secure, and the liar does not need to stress as long as nothing can be conflicted. here, exceptions do not dictate norms.
2) lying only works well (skill or unskilled) in certain industries/jobs. Mind you, if you're skilled enough you can perhaps circumvent even those barriers. on the flip, there are few obvious industries where lying is pointless, stupid, and can have legal ramifications if checked.
3) anyone who looks at lying as some kind of carnal sin is likely a hypocrite. sure it is possible they are one of the rare few who don't lie (such people do exist!). however, the far more likely probability is that they lie, have lied, or will lie in the conceivable future about any number of issues. the real issue is people don't like lies being flaunted in their faces. hush hush.
4) Omission and spinning things are lies. Try dealing with a few juvenile offenders and you'll see how well simple omission can work.
5) Consider what impact lying will have on your future chances of employment/etc and do a pro/con list.
I am a retired HR specialist. Let me assure you that if an employee became an issue one of the first things employers do is to examine their resume/application. If there are meaningful errors the employee with be discharged for misrepresentation.
You can get all the opinions and advice in the world but each of these will only apply to that individual, not necessarily you. You need to make your decision as to what your gut feeling tells you is right, and can you feel good about the decision you made. Is your decision one that you can live with and not feel guilty about and/or will you always feel the need to be looking over your shoulder and wonder who’s watching you? Are you OK with the possible consequences that could arise farther down the road from these decisions? Think over these questions and be honest with yourself and I’m sure you will figure out what to do.
Just send out the correct CV next time, even if you send it to your previous employer. If your previous employer interviews you and specifically asks you about the inconsistency, tell them the incorrect date in the earlier CV was an error.
Again, just maintain the correct CV everywhere, including on LinkedIn. Please don't follow any advice that tells you otherwise.
this. there's nothing you can do about the inconsistency now, except not lying on your resume again. i do think that unfortunately, owning up to lying will not help anything. saying it was an error is technically true; it was an error in judgment. you may or may not end up being blacklisted with this company. there's nothing you can really do if you are.
as other people have said, people do get fired well after the fact for lying on their resumes. it's a huge thing, of course it is - it speaks to your character. of course good people can lie, but the fact is it's a massive red flag to employers.
beyond the inconsistency between your two resumes (which honestly, may never get noticed), what happens if they do a background check and call past employers to verify employment dates?
I would not feel comfortable working for a place knowing that I lied through the application process. Lies always have a way of coming up, and maybe you will never get caught, but it'll always be in the back of your mind. If you interview well and get hired, every time your boss says, "Hey, can I speak to you for a second?" You'll wonder... did they find out?
Even worse, you will never be able to use them as a reference and will have to lie again saying that you didn't have any experience. I'd rather not have experience than have a bad reference from a previous employer. Lies like that never end.
I know it's brutal out there trying to find employment, but some employers can be understanding of gaps in job experience. This is just from my own experience, so it might be different in the field you work in.
I would not interview for the position. When you have long gaps of unemployment, take free classes or learn a new skill that'll make up for the lack of work experience. I know it seems a little ridiculous, but this could help boost your resume/cover letter, and it might make them overlook gaps in job experience.
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