On April 9th, a 24-year-old woman from mainland China was sentenced to four months in prison by a Hong Kong court for enrolling in the University of Hong Kong with a fake academic qualification.
According to reports from media outlets such as Hong Kong 01, in March 2023, the woman, Wang Yihan (24 years old, unemployed), obtained a fake bachelor’s degree certificate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) through an intermediary. She then applied for the Master’s program in engineering at the University of Hong Kong online and was admitted in July of the same year. Wang Yihan started attending classes at the University of Hong Kong in August.
In March 2024, the University of Hong Kong received a complaint alleging that Wang Yihan had applied for admission using fake academic credentials. Upon investigation with the University of California, Los Angeles, it was revealed that she had never studied at the university or received any certificates. Consequently, the university reported her to the authorities, leading to the cancellation of Wang Yihan’s academic degree.
In December 2025, Wang Yihan, who was on the run, was arrested in Luohu and admitted that she had only graduated from Henan University and obtained the fake academic qualifications through an intermediary.
On April 9, 2026, the case was heard in the Eastern District Court of Hong Kong, where the judge criticized her actions for depriving other legitimate students of opportunities. As a deterrent punishment, she was sentenced to four months in prison to prevent similar incidents from occurring again.
In recent years, there have been multiple cases of Chinese students being caught studying abroad with fake qualifications.
In 2024, several universities in Hong Kong, including the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the City University of Hong Kong, discovered similar cases. The University of Hong Kong alone uncovered 30 Chinese students using fake qualifications to enroll in the School of Economics and Business Administration. Additionally, since early 2025, several Chinese students have been convicted and sentenced for using fake academic credentials.
In April this year, South Korean media reported that 112 Chinese exchange students entered South Korea as language study students and later inserted themselves into the Gwangju Hallam University by submitting forged “American university degree” documents. Following an investigation by the South Korean Ministry of Justice, the university has currently suspended these students, and they will be forcibly deported if they re-enter South Korea in the future.
Previous reports:
University of Hong Kong School of Business Detected Approximately 30 Chinese Students with Fake Qualifications
Over 100 Chinese Students Investigated for Enrolling in Korean Universities with Fake Qualifications