Recently, the School of Economics and Business Administration at the University of Hong Kong uncovered approximately 30 students who had used fake overseas qualifications to apply for admissions, all of whom are Chinese nationals. The investigation is ongoing, with the number of individuals involved expected to rise to 80 to 100.
The HKU Business School is one of the top business schools in Asia and has always been one of the most competitive fields of study at the University of Hong Kong.
According to a report by Caixin Net on July 4th, following the discovery of individual cases, the HKU Business School initiated a comprehensive investigation in May this year, requiring all master’s students to resubmit their undergraduate degree certifications, transcripts, and other documents, revealing the dark truths behind the illegal industry chain of counterfeit qualifications orchestrated by unauthorized agents.
After over a month of investigating fake qualifications, the Dean of the Business School, Tsai Hongbin, stated that the fake qualifications mainly originated from overseas universities. So far, about 30 students have been found to have applied for admissions using fake qualifications, all of whom are Chinese nationals. As the investigation is still ongoing, it is believed that the number of individuals involved may increase. Tsai Hongbin anticipates that the final number of students implicated may reach 80 to 100.
Tsai Hongbin noted that some students mistakenly believed that agents were only enhancing their academic experiences, crafting application essays, etc., to improve their chances of admission, unaware that these agents were fabricating qualifications. However, there were also students and parents who were aware and even participated in the deception, so the school is considering how to address these students.
Currently, the involved agencies are from mainland China and overseas, with no Hong Kong agencies identified yet. The police have also intervened in the investigation.
Tsai Hongbin hopes that the focus of this investigation is to combat these “black agents,” hold them legally accountable, raise awareness, and make potential clients aware that what they receive for their money is not a degree from the University of Hong Kong, “but a criminal record or even a prison sentence.”
He mentioned that the experiences from this investigation into fake qualifications will be compiled into a report, publicly exposing the deceptive practices of these “black agents” for reference by other educational institutions in Hong Kong. “I believe the impact of fake qualifications extends to a wide range of institutions because someone using fake qualifications to apply to HKU could potentially apply to renowned universities overseas as well.”
The report stated that cases of using fake qualifications for admissions have not only occurred at the HKU Business School but also at other institutions including the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the City University of Hong Kong.