Higher education but at what cost?

By Tariq A. Al Maeena

The degrees supplied by ‘diploma mills’ in Saudi Arabia are not genuine and often not worth the paper they are printed onBy Tariq A. Al Maeena

University education is a near and dear issue with most parents of high-school children. In Saudi Arabia, it practically borders on obsession as parents feel that only a college degree would validate their children’s education, and allow them to seek preferential employment.

diploma fraud

The children often have no say in the matter as they are pushed, rather than guided, towards such a course. And with the lure of the Kingdom’s scholarship programme that grants free college education, many students have jumped on the bandwagon.

In the quest to obtain a college degree, some have hit roadblocks and have opted for an easier route. This was affirmed by a finding of the Ministry of Higher Education that has identified 110 offices selling forged degrees from non-Saudi universities. They had discovered that several agencies had been supplying bogus degrees to Saudi students for the past several years.

It was also reported that the recent finding was just the tip of the iceberg, and that a special unit within the ministry had been formed to identify and list the bogus degree agencies. There has also been talk of getting tough and cracking down hard on all recipients of such fake diplomas.

Source : gulfnews