'Are You for Real? Lessons for the Academy About Professors with Fake or Fraudulent Degrees' by Sarah Elaine Eaton and Jamie J Carmichael in Sarah Elaine Eaton, Jamie J Carmichael and Helen Pethrick (eds), Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education (Springer, 2023) 251–267 comments
In this chapter we demonstrate what can happen when professor and educational leaders have fake or fraudulent degrees or other qualifications. We present four key issues: (a) the threat to institutional reputation; (b) the threat to the credentials awarded by the institutions; (c) the impact on students; and (d) material costs to the organization. Then, we propose seven recommendations to prevent or address academic qualification fraud: (a) verify applicant credentials; (b) develop or update internal risk assessment plans; (c) conduct an internal qualifications audit; (d) develop or update institutional codes of conduct; (e) develop an internal process to investigate allegations of credential fraud; (f) develop and follow internal quality assurance processes for courses, programs, and curricula; and (g) Develop or update crisis communications plans to include credential fakery or fraud. We conclude by emphasizing that moral outrage will not solve the problem of academic credential fraud. Clear policies and procedures must be in place to prevent, investigate, and address qualifications fraud in educational contexts.
