Lying on Your Resume

Lying on Your Resume:
A resume is a document that lists a person’s education and training (formal learning beyond the degrees they’ve earned), their qualifications, their work experience, and any special skills. It’s not unusual for jobseekers (people looking for jobs) to pad (make bigger or more substantial than something really is) their resumes just a little bit to sound more impressive (causing others to admire them). In fact, most employers know to deduct (subtract; take away from a number) a little from each resume they read, assuming that most people have exaggerated (made something larger than it really is) their qualifications, experience, or skills in some way.
This exaggeration, while not completely honest, is generally expected and accepted. What is considered unethical (morally wrong) and unacceptable, of course, is out-and-out (complete; clear) lying on one’s resume. Last month, the CEO (Chief Executive Officer; the top manager of a company) of the popular website Yahoo!, Scott Thompson, was fired (had his job taken away) for this very (exact) reason. It was discovered that his official bio (biography; short description of a person’s life) listed a college degree in computer science (the study of computers) from a college in Massachusettes that he didn’t have. The truth was that he received a degree in accounting (the study of the organization and reporting of financial information) from the same college. That may seem like a small distinction (difference) in most people’s minds, but in Silicon Valley, the area in Northern California where many technology companies are located and many computer scientists and engineers (people who design and build machines and other things) work, this was a big deal (significant; important).
Of course this was not the first time that a major public figure (person known to many people) has been caught fibbing (telling small lies). Most people who have been outed (having a secret or lie made public) lose their jobs, like Thompson did.
In other countries, is it acceptable to exaggerate on resumes? Have you ever done it, and if so, how much padding is acceptable? Have there been any cases where false information on a resume has been the downfall (loss of power or status) of a public figure where you live?
~ Lucy

Photo Credit: Resume.pdf from Wikipedia