Mayo Clinic: Hiring, Background Check & Employment Verification FAQs

Mayo Clinic's origins trace to August 1883, in the aftermath of one of the worst tornadoes in Midwest history, when an agnostic country doctor, William Worrall Mayo, and Mother Alfred Moes, leader of a local Catholic teaching order (the Sisters of St. Francis), formed a partnership to care for tornado victims in Rochester, Minnesota, a collaboration that would eventually grow into one of the world's greatest medical institutions. Dr. Mayo's two sons, William James "Will" Mayo and Charles Horace "Charlie" Mayo, joined their father's practice and, together with the Sisters of St. Francis, developed and implemented an integrated, multispecialty group practice of medicine, the first of its kind in the world. Some sources cite January 27, 1864, as an even earlier founding date tied to William Worrall Mayo's original medical practice in the area.

In 1901, the Mayo brothers hired Dr. Henry Plummer, who played a transformative role in the clinic's development, creating a standardized patient medical record system and, in 1914, designing a five-story building to house a truly integrated multispecialty practice with dedicated space for examinations, diagnostics, outpatient surgery, and research laboratories. The Mayo brothers made several revolutionary business decisions, including placing themselves and all future Mayo physicians on salary and, in 1919, transferring their property and capital to the Mayo Properties Association (later the Mayo Foundation), a charitable and educational corporation with a perpetual charter dedicated to reinvesting all future profits into education, research, and patient care.

Mayo Clinic continued expanding significantly in subsequent decades: in 1986, the Clinic merged with nearby Saint Marys Hospital and Rochester Methodist Hospital into an integrated system, and that same year began a national expansion, opening Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, followed by Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 1987. In 1992, Mayo launched Mayo Health System (later renamed Mayo Clinic Health System), a network of community-based clinics and hospitals serving rural areas of Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin, which has grown to include 16 hospitals and 53 multispecialty clinics. Mayo Clinic has continued to expand internationally, partnering with the International Medical Center in Saudi Arabia in 2018 and establishing a health facility in London in partnership with Oxford University Clinic starting in 2019-2020.

Today, Mayo Clinic is headquartered in Rochester, Minnesota, generating more than $16 billion in annual revenue and employing approximately 76,000 people across its major campuses and Mayo Clinic Health System locations. Mayo Clinic has been recognized with more top rankings for high-quality patient care than any other academic medical center in the nation. Mayo Clinic's workforce includes physicians and surgeons across virtually every medical specialty, registered nurses and allied health professionals, medical researchers, and administrative and support staff.

Company culture and employee programs: Mayo Clinic's guiding value, established by its founders more than a century ago, is that "the needs of the patient come first," a principle the organization states continues to shape its plans and decisions today. Mayo Clinic emphasizes a culture of teamwork, professionalism, and mutual respect among its staff. The organization operates the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, a nonprofit institution dedicated to training medical and allied health professionals. Benefits, training, and advancement opportunities can vary by role and campus location, so candidates should confirm specifics with a recruiter during the hiring process.

Yes. Employers in the healthcare industry, including Mayo Clinic, are legally required to conduct thorough background checks on employee candidates, particularly for clinical roles, given state healthcare licensing requirements and the vulnerable patient populations served. In the United States, employment screening is governed by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which requires employers to obtain written consent, provide disclosures, and follow adverse action procedures.

Mayo Clinic is generally reported to conduct background checks as part of its hiring process, which is standard and often mandated for large academic medical centers and hospital systems, particularly for clinical roles involving direct patient care and access to sensitive medical records.

The hiring process for clinical and support roles at Mayo Clinic typically includes an application, one or more interviews, verification of any required professional licenses or certifications, and a background check prior to a final offer.

Background check timelines can vary based on the type of screening requested and how quickly records can be verified. Learn more about typical background check turnaround times to understand what factors can affect the process.

A typical pre-employment background check for a hospital or academic medical center role may include:

Under the FCRA, criminal history reporting is generally limited to seven years for most background checks, though Minnesota (and other applicable) state law and healthcare industry requirements for clinical staff may involve more extensive background review, including state and federal abuse registry checks.

Hiring decisions involving candidates with criminal records are generally made on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the nature of the offense, how much time has passed, and its relevance to a role involving direct patient care, with state healthcare licensing regulations imposing additional restrictions for certain clinical positions. Some states have adopted "ban-the-box" laws that may apply differently in regulated healthcare contexts.

Candidates can generally expect to provide personal information such as full legal name, date of birth, and Social Security number, along with signed consent authorizing the background check, in compliance with FCRA and applicable state healthcare licensing requirements.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a federal law that regulates how employers can use background check information in hiring decisions. It requires employers to notify candidates before running a check, obtain written consent, and follow specific adverse action procedures if a decision is made based on background check results.

Running a personal background check with Checkr lets you preview what Mayo Clinic may see during the hiring process, helping you address any concerns before you apply. A personal background check can include:

Learn more about Checkr Personal Background Checks and explore your Checkr Profile to see what information may appear in your own background check.

If you're a candidate with a background check in progress through Checkr as part of your application to Mayo Clinic or another employer, you can check your status through the Candidate Portal. For additional support, visit the Checkr Help Center.

The information provided in this article does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. All information is for general informational purposes only. Checkr does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of this information and is not responsible for any errors or omissions, or for the results obtained from the use of this information. This article may contain links to other third-party websites. Such links are only for the convenience of the reader. Checkr does not endorse the contents of the third-party sites and disclaims any affiliation with the companies mentioned in this article unless otherwise stated.