Criminal Background Checks of Incoming Students
While many public colleges have been banned from requiring applying students to disclose criminal convictions, many private colleges still make those inquiries. If your institution requires disclosure, you must find a way to effectively balance applicants’ rights with the desire to enroll students of good character.
Consider choosing to conduct background checks of admitted students who have disclosed a criminal justice history (especially for considerations around financial aid, housing, or employment) or certain academic programs (such as medical-related programs or those with exposure to vulnerable populations).
Background checks can be a useful tool if your institution develops policies and procedures to ensure legal compliance and fairness to incoming students.
If you conduct these checks, understand the process and its limitations. The background check process typically involves asking questions about convictions and looking for red flags such as inconsistencies or unexplained gaps that warrant further investigation.
Understand Criminal Background Check Limitations
The effectiveness of criminal background checks on incoming students is limited. Most first-year students are teenagers, and crimes minors commit generally are sealed and can’t be discovered through background checks.
Because most institutions don’t have access to the FBI’s criminal database, they rely on background checking companies that use records maintained in county courthouses. These records vary in accuracy and timeliness. In addition, offenses committed outside the county where the student lives are unlikely to be discovered. Therefore, the cost-benefit ratio of conducting criminal background checks can be low unless you target them at incoming students whose applications raise red flags.
Take These Steps When Reviewing Backgrounds
- Review questions you ask on admission applications. Consider whether questions about convictions for anything other than a minor traffic violation are a threshold you would like to set. State on applications that disclosure of convictions doesn’t automatically disqualify an applicant, but lying on the application may be grounds for dismissal if your institution subsequently learns of false answers.
- Detail your policy on background checks for incoming students. State the policy on your admissions application. Indicate whether accepted students are entitled to the due process you provide enrolled students (as detailed in your student handbook) if something is uncovered. Most institutions don’t provide due process to applicants but may provide it to accepted students.
- Conduct a fair review. Establish a committee to consider negative information to ensure consistent treatment of those with flagged background checks. Consider the infraction’s seriousness, the likelihood of recurrence, evidence of rehabilitation, and the truthfulness of the applicant in disclosing all relevant details. Provide incoming students an opportunity to explain negative information.
- Follow the requirements of federal and state fair credit reporting laws. Do this if your institution uses a background checking company.
- Require ongoing disclosure. Tell enrolled students they must disclose in writing to a designated student affairs administrator any arrest for an offense other than a minor traffic violation. Require this even if the offense occurs when school isn’t in session.
Additional Resources
Quinnipiac University: Background Checks
Chronicle of Higher Education: Experts Debate Fairness of Criminal Background Checks on Students
About the Author
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Heather Salko, Esq.
Manager of Risk Research
Heather oversees the development of risk research publications. Her areas of expertise include employment law, Title IX, and student mental health. Before joining the Risk Research team, she practiced employment and insurance coverage law and handled UE liability claims for more than a decade.