The Hidden Cost of Manual Education Verifications 

Every year, thousands of education verifications are completed manually, and both post-secondary institutions and hiring companies feel the strain.

From emails and phone calls to spreadsheets and file digging, this seemingly simple process can take up significant time and resources on both ends. While manual verifications may seem manageable in the moment, the cumulative cost, in time, resources, and errors can add up fast.

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The Hidden Drain for Institutions: Heavy Workloads, Limited Resources

For colleges and universities, responding to verification requests often falls to the registrar’s office, a team already juggling high-volume and high-priority work.

Education verifications are an essential part of supporting your graduates’ career success, but if your institution is still relying on manual processes, the true cost may be higher than you think.

From hours spent digging through records, to the risk of data entry errors and delayed responses, the verification process can quickly become a time-consuming burden on your already stretched team. Many schools, however, continue to absorb this workload without realizing there’s a better and cost-free way forward.

Each manual request typically involves:

• Confirming the verification information and appropriate consent form
• Searching across databases or legacy systems
• Manually managing requests and follow-ups
• Verifying graduate records
• Drafting and sending confirmation responses

During busy times like convocation or enrollment cycles, these tasks often become bottlenecks. Manual education verifications might seem like a minor task, but over time, they add up. Here’s how:

• Staff Time: Each verification request can take 5–20 minutes (or more) to process. Multiply that by hundreds or thousands of requests annually, and you’re looking at a significant time burden for staff.

• Resource Drain: Verification requests often compete with higher-priority responsibilities especially during peak periods like convocation, transcript production, or enrolment reporting. During the busiest periods, registrarial staff get pulled away from core functions to respond to verification requests.

• Delays & Errors: Manually retrieving records increases the likelihood of missed details, typos, or incorrect information, which can impact the graduate’s job prospects or cause delays in onboarding.

• Missed Revenue Opportunities: Most institutions don’t charge for verifications, meaning they’re using valuable resources without any cost recovery.

Your staff's time is valuable. Verification requests shouldn't consume it!

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The Hidden Drain for Hiring Companies: Delays, Uncertainty, and Chasing Confirmations

On the other side, employers and background screening companies face their own hurdles when it comes to education verifications:

Missing Information:  Schools need precise details such as the student’s name at the time of graduation and signed consent forms to locate a record. Even small errors or missing fields can slow down the process or result in a frustrating “file not found” result.

Tracking Down the Right Contact: Every institution has its own process, and finding the right department or individual to handle a verification isn’t always straightforward. This can lead to delays before the request even reaches the right person.

Rush Requests Under Pressure: Hiring timelines are tight, and education verifications are often one of the final steps. When schools are swamped during peak seasons, turnaround times can stretch, requiring repeated follow-ups from employers.

Inconsistent Results: Not all verification results look the same. Some institutions provide detailed academic information, while others can confirm only the credential itself. This inconsistency can complicate decision-making for hiring teams.

These challenges may lead to delays that not only slow down hiring but also create frustration for employers and candidates alike, especially when a graduate’s offer is contingent on verification.

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The Value of a Verification Service: Less Work, More Accuracy, Faster Results

Many employers and institutions choose to use a verification service like AuraData to remove the manual legwork for everyone involved. AuraData helps institutions eliminate the workload, and provides employers with fast results they can trust.

By automating verifications, AuraData helps:

• Registrar teams reclaim their time and avoid repetitive, manual work
• Employers make faster and more confident hiring decisions
• Graduates get hired faster with fewer delays in background checks
• Institutions generate revenue, all without lifting the administrative burden

Ready to take the manual work off your plate?
Let’s talk about how AuraData can streamline your education verification process: Talk to an Expert