The University of Wales Degree Validation Scam

This is essential viewing. Available for a few days more on BBC iPlayer, this Week In Week Out investigation shows how the University of Wales validates a huge range of colleges, both in the UK and abroad, to provides its degrees. These colleges range from offering evangelical christian courses to bonkers alternative medicine. You can see contributions from AC Grayling and David Colquhoun. The University has created a huge business, gaining lots of fees, from underwiting the ‘quality’ of courses offered by people with bogus doctrorates and dodgy academic practices.

I would say that the BBC Team did not need to spend so much time in Malaysia or Barcelona to find dodgy examples. I have written about how the University of Wales underwrites the dodgy claims of McTimoney chiropractors here in Oxfordshire. But I guess the BBC team found the street food of Kuala Lumpur and the Tapas of Barcelona a little bit better than the kebab van in Abingdon.

I hope there will be more coming out regarding the chiropractor college. This situation is not just about poor quality academic courses. Because the University is essentially outsourcing the teaching of its degrees to all and sundry, the protection that students might get at a regular university is not necessarily offered to those at the private college. If something goes wrong such as you are unsatisfied with the quality of the course, have been bullied or even ripped off you may not have recourse to the same protections offered to other students. You may have paid tens of thousands of pounds to such a college. Unhappy, and there is not much you can do.

So, here are my concerns about the University of Wales and the McTimoney college:

The University of Wales is Responsible for Enabling Bogus* Chiropractic Claims to be Made

12 comments

Zeno 13th November, 2010 3:14 pm

To add insult to injury, the University of Wales’ promotional video (a part of which was shown in the Week In Week Out program), features the McTimoney College of Chiropractic (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVLYBhKdpxI&feature=related) as a shining example of their ‘stringent’ validation procedures, as they called them. See from 1:59, featuring their Principal Professor Christina Cunliffe.

Mary Smith 15th November, 2010 11:00 am

That’s not Christina Cunliffe in the video.

Zeno 15th November, 2010 12:23 pm

Ah! My mistake. I thought that was her. Do you know who it is?

Jeff Johnson 15th May, 2011 4:33 pm

Yes, Wales is in the midst of many scams. A most recent scam includes its relationship with Raffles University (Singapore). The school (secretly) plans to offer three year "Wales" degrees, but only offer a Wales top-up in its final year. Staff and faculty were instructed NOT to tell Wales officials during a recent validation exercise, but the RPL guidelines within the documentation disguised Professor K`s questionable intentions. In the words of one Singapore worker, Wales has been shafted and does not know it. Perhaps Wales should question why a replica degree is being pushed through for validation in such a short period of time. I suppose discussion with Singapore CPE would shed some light on the true story. Advise to Wales : Walk away, lest your problems with BBC become more profound.

singaporeteacher 16th May, 2011 3:13 pm

The CPE in Singapore should clean house and stop bogus and poor quality validation. Wales does not have a very good reputation when it comes to churning out its degrees. Hopefully parents will have enough common sense.

suepederson 19th May, 2011 4:33 am

As a parent I would stay away from both Raffle College and Wales. Why doesn’t the Singapore government stop these validation scams?

raffles 20th May, 2011 4:08 pm

I am shocked to learn that Raffles is teaming up with Wales. I previously thought Raffles was respected as a leading school in Singapore. I now have my doubts. I hpe that faculty would speak up. What a scam! A Wales degree from Raffles has no value whatsoever. Thanks for bringing this to my attention. ( p.s. I teach at Raffles Singapore)

raffles 21st May, 2011 7:02 am

I am a current instructor at Raffles in Singapore. Just cant understand why management would want to offer a scam Wales degree. What is wrong with the current Raffles degree? Maybe problems with the Singapore government?

Jeff Johnson 22nd May, 2011 5:36 am

It’s time the Singapore government clean up the education mess – starting with Wales degrees offered by schools such as Raffles !

ujungpandang 8th June, 2011 2:46 pm

Recent insider reports suggest that Raffles is seeking to offer numerous Wales degrees, including Education degrees. Why would Wales validate an education degree that has never been offered by Raffles? Reports indicate that qualified faculty have not yet been hired. Validation of a program that does not have qualified instructors in place? Surely this speaks to Professor B K’s professional integrity.

elizabethpederson 20th July, 2011 6:37 pm

Funny thing. Now it appears that Raffles will not offer Wales degrees afterall. The reason? CPE has reluctantly approved Raffles homegrown degrees. What a mistake! Not only is the Wales option a scam, the Raffles own degrees are also a sham. Faculty teach hours upon hours upon hours, leaving very little time for quality preparation. Parents should tell their children to stay far away from Raffles. Current management is a mess. The quality of the education program is a mess.

Parent of Student 26th November, 2011 1:09 pm

Raffles sucks. What an education scam. Anybody in education knows it is a messed up and poor quality institution. Parents and students should stay away.

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