How a Felony Can Affect Your Career

Being charged with a felony can have a big impact on your life in a variety of ways. Aside from potentially serving jail time, a felony can also affect your relationships with your friends and family, as well as your financial situation. But perhaps the most significant way a felony can impact your life is by affecting your career.

After being convicted of a felony, you may experience some pretty significant difficulties in your work life. For example:

You may immediately lose your job.

It is not uncommon for employers to terminate individuals after being convicted of a crime, especially if it resulted in a felony charge. In some cases, you may only lose your job if your crimes were directly related to your work, but in many cases, that decision is left up to the employer’s discretion. Additionally, you could also lose your job simply because a felony conviction resulted in you having to spend significant time away from your job.

You may have trouble obtaining a degree.

If you are charged with a felony while in college or wish to pursue higher education after a felony conviction, you might find the process to be much more difficult. Many college applications contain a section where applicants must reveal criminal convictions, which could result in your application being rejected.

You also might have trouble obtaining financial aid, either from the government or the college itself, after you’ve been convicted of a felony. Even if you were receiving financial aid when you were charged with a crime, this aid could be suspended or terminated upon your conviction.

Job interviews may be a little awkward.

Most job applications require you to disclose criminal convictions, which typically becomes a discussion should you be asked back for an interview. You should be prepared to explain your situation to your prospective employer. The best way to get through this is to be honest about what happened while expressing a sincere desire to put your mistakes behind you and move forward.

Background checks will show convictions you didn’t disclose.

If an employer does choose to move forward with hiring you, they may conduct a background check. These screenings are used to do a deep dive into your life and determine whether the information you provided on your application is accurate and true.

If you did not disclose your conviction on your application, and it shows up on your background check, your prospective employer may choose not to hire you based on your misrepresentation. This is why it is best to be upfront and honest about your past from the very beginning.

You won’t be able to work in specific fields.

There are several professions that convicted felons simply are not allowed to work in. These restrictions typically depend on the type of felony you were charged with. For example, if you are charged as a sex offender, you won’t be able to work at any job that checks the national sex offender registry before hiring.

If your conviction involved drugs or alcohol, you may not be able to work as a truck driver or in another job that requires driving. Additionally, you may not be able to work as a teacher, medical professional, or under certain unions.

You may lose professional licenses.

Many jobs require employees to carry special licensing or permits. These include, but aren’t limited to, medical professionals, plumbers, electricians, HVAC technicians, lawyers, social workers, architects, contractors, real estate ants, and more. If you are convicted of a felony, you will almost certainly lose your professional license and will be prohibited from holding another one in the future.

Get Help from a Criminal Defense Attorney

A felony charge is not something to ignore. You must get in touch with the criminal defense lawyers at Mulligan Attorneys as soon as possible after you are arrested or charged. An experienced criminal defense attorney may be able to help you plea for a reduced sentence and prevent the charges from affecting your life.



Give us a call to discuss your criminal defense case at 910-763-1100 or click here to schedule your appointment online.