Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education

Sarah Elaine Eaton, PhD, is an associate professor at the Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Canada. She has received research awards of excellence for her scholarship on academic integrity from the Canadian Society for the Study of Higher Education (CSSHE) (2020) and the European Network for Academic Integrity (ENAI) (2022). Dr. Eaton has written and presented extensively on academic integrity and ethics in higher education and is regularly invited as a media guest to talk about academic misconduct. Dr. Eaton is the editor-in-chief of the International Journal for Educational Integrity. Her books include Plagiarism in Higher Education: Tackling Tough Topics in Academic Integrity, Academic Integrity in Canada: An Enduring and Essential Challenge (Eaton & Christensen Hughes, eds.), and Contract Cheating in Higher Education: Global Perspectives on Theory, Practice, and Policy (Eaton, Curtis, Stoesz, Clare, Rundle, & Seeland, eds.) and Ethics and Integrity in Teacher Education (Eaton & Khan, eds.).Jamie Carmichael is the Associate Registrar of Scheduling and Systems at Carleton University. She is responsible for the construction of the university timetable, scheduling and administration of examinations, the operation of two examination centres for students with disabilities, a university-wide space management system, and other core student administrative systems. Since 2009, she has received ten service excellence nominations for her work that ranges from information technology projects, team acknowledgment to innovation.Carmichael’s research lies at the intersection of academic integrity and machine learning, with graduate education in Applied Science in Technology Information Management (Engineering). She has presented or co-presented at national and international conferences and is often called up on by specialized groups in higher education to present on her work.Helen Pethrick, MA, is a researcher and educator in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Research areas include academic integrity in higher education, post-secondary student mental health and well-being, and peer mentorship in educational settings.

• Acknowledgements.- Preface.- Chapter 1. Fake Degrees and Credential Fraud, Contract Cheating, and Paper Mills: Overview and Historical Perspectives (Sarah Elaine Eaton & Jamie Carmichael).- Chapter 2. Admissions Fraud in Canadian Higher Education (Jamie Carmichael & Sarah Elaine Eaton).- Chapter 3. Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow: A Tour of Axact, the “World’s Largest Diploma Mill” (Allen Ezell).- Chapter 4. Bridging Today to Tomorrow: A Historical and Technological Review of Credential Exchange in Higher Education within Canada (Joanne Duklas).- Chapter 5. Fair play, Fraud, or Fixed? Athletic Credentials in US Higher Education (Kirsten Hextrum).- Chapter 6. Corruption in Admissions, Recruitment, Qualifications and Credentials: from Research into Quality Assurance (Stella-Maris Orim & Irene Glendinning).- Chapter 7. Avoiding Favouritism in the Recruitment Practice of Turkish Higher Education Institutions (Özgür Çelik & Salim Razı).- Chapter 8. None of the Above: Integrity Concerns ofStandardized English Proficiency Tests (Soroush Sabbaghan & Ismaeil Fazel).- Chapter 9. Examining the Problem of Fraudulent English Test Scores: What Can Canadian Higher Education Institutions Learn? (Angela Clark).- Chapter 10. There is no culture? A Framework for Addressing Admissions Fraud (Brendan DeCoster).- Chapter 11. Security Risks, Fake Degrees, and Other Fraud: A Topic Modelling Approach (Jamie Carmichael & Sarah Elaine Eaton).- Chapter 12. Are You for Real? Lessons for the Academy About Professors with Fake or Fraudulent Degrees (Sarah Elaine Eaton & Jamie Carmichael).- Chapter 13. Fake Degrees and Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education: Conclusions and Future Directions (Jamie Carmichael & Sarah Elaine Eaton).

“It is particularly recommended for those in leadership roles within higher education, as well as for researchers and educators who are deeply invested in the study of academic integrity. The detailed case studies and innovative methodologies presented in this volume offer valuable tools for understanding and combating academic fraud. Ultimately, Fake Degrees and Fraudulent Credentials in Higher Education is not just a wake-up call but a call to action for anyone committed to preserving the credibility of educational institutions … .” (Frida Akmalia, Minerva, Vol. 62 (4), 2024)