Manama: Under mounting pressure to comment on allegations that eight Bahrainis had obtained fake degrees from US universities, the education authorities on Thursday said that they followed a strict diploma equivalence policy.
"The National Degree Equivalence Committee is in charge of the equivalence of all diplomas obtained abroad and endorses them only after a strict and well-documented scrutiny in order to ensure their authenticity," Dr Abdullah Al Mutawa, the education ministry assistant undersecretary for education and curricula, said.
Requirements
"The committee checks that the diploma is per the standards set by Bahrain and even communicates with universities to ensure that the holder has fulfilled all the requirements," said Al Mutawa who heads the committee. Diplomas from universities that are not properly licensed in their countries are not accepted by the committee, he said.
A report naming eight Bahrainis on a list of around 9,600 people who allegedly bought fake diplomas from US universities under a global scheme was initially sidelined by the education ministry.
But amid growing pressure from Bahrainis to investigate the issue, the ministry clarified its position, although it did not mention whether any of the Bahrainis named in the report had submitted their degree for equivalence.
A US embassy official in Manama said that Bahrain-based students keen on studying in American universities should carefully research the institution before they commit themselves or pay the fees.
A thorough investigation to verify whether the prospective university or college is fully accredited is also necessary even when the programme is through distance or online learning, the official said. The university degree fraud which has created shock waves in the US and in several countries was discovered following the indictment of eight people involved in running the scam after being apprehended by the US Attorney's Office in "Operation Gold Seal."
The operators of the degree mill, seeking to be outside US jurisdiction, have allegedly bribed Liberian officials in order to gain accreditation from that country.
Prices for the fake degrees ranged from several hundred dollars to more than $2,000 for a PhD.
According to the list, 68 Saudis and 68 UAE-based people are allegedly involved in the scam.
On Monday, a Saudi higher education ministry official said that they would investigate the names of the Saudis suspected of holding fake degrees.
By Habib Toumi, Bureau Chief