COLUMBUS, Ohio — Graduation can be one of the happiest days of a student's life, but it can also make them easy targets for scammers.

What You Need To Know

  • Scammers will target recent graduates through email, phone or a hoax link

  • Graduates should be weary of people calling about loan forgiveness programs 

  • Employment scams were the number one riskiest scam for ages 18-44

As graduates gear up for their next opportunity, scammers might target them claiming a former student has an unpaid tuition bill, has been enrolled in a student loan forgiveness program or is being offered a “can’t miss” job opportunity.

The Better Business of Central Ohio shares some things recent graduates should know to protect themselves. 

  • If a scammer claims to have a loan forgiveness opportunity — graduates should know not to pay any fees upfront and know the ins and outs of their current student loans (interests, payment dates, payment amounts, etc.)

  • If someone reaches out claiming that a former student has unpaid tuition, they’ll often threaten to resend your degree. The BBB suggests calling your school directly if this happens

  • According to the BBB’s 2023 risk report, employment scams were the number one riskiest scam for ages 18 to 44. Indicators that it’s a scam will be a claimed recruiter asking you to pay for training and often want access to personal information. 

Judy Dollison, who serves as the President of the Central Ohio BBB, said that employment scams can be one of the most dangerous and hard to spot. 

“Get on the website of that company and see if they’re listing that position on their website,” said Dollison. “If those aren’t listed on their website, then it’s likely a scam. You know, it’s best to go directly to the source and scammers are known to use those real company names, so if you have to, just call the company and verify the information.”

Dollison said whether it’s a job offer or a claimed loan forgiveness program, recent graduates can always use the BBB website to cross reference if a business or organization is accredited. Recent graduates want to be wary of giving information out to unknown numbers, websites or email addresses. They should also be cautious of what they post on social media because anyone could be looking and tracking. It’s also important to stay cool, calm and collected. If a graduate feels pressured to act within minutes and thinks it’s a scam, it most likely is.