Universities Use Old-Fashioned and Sophisticated Tricks to Keep Track of Degree Fakery Jonathan Woodward, CUP British Columbia Bureau Chief VANCOUVER(CUP)—Fake Degrees.com will sell a high-quality replica of a University of Toronto BA for a mem- bership fee of $399. DiplomaMakers.com offers an “authentic” PhD and transcripts from the University of British Columbia for $295. They're just novelty degrees ground out from so-called diploma mills—often with the very same security features that come with official documents—and they’re a lot cheaper than tuition. So how do universities separate real degree-hold- ers from fakers? “We're quite secretive about it,’ said UBC assistant registrar Rosalie Vlaar, whose office examines thousands of degrees a year. “Most of the forgeries are bad. I want them to remain that way.” Since 2001, at least 24 people applying to graduate studies at UBC were turned away when their fakery was discovered, and of those, 16 were from students from outside the country. The faculty has six staff members who evaluate nearly 4,000 documents every year, finding between five and ten frauds. There are three pretty simple steps that catch them, said Jenny Phelps, director of student academic services. The first is that transcripts have to be sent directly from the issuing university in an envelope bearing its official seal. The second is that university snoops can compare a document to any of the hundreds that they go through every year for anything fishy. And the third is that if there’s any 4 | www.theotherpress.ca question, the issuing institution can be contacted to check. “We definitely get some references say- ing, ‘I know the student but I certainly didn’t write that letter,”’said Phelps. “If we don’t get a response, it then depends how suspicious we are. But for the most part, we're pretty dogged about it.” When a shady applicant is unmasked, the prospective grad student is marked for life on a cheating warning system, sent to every university and college in Canada. “If we do find documents to be forged, that person is pretty much banned from applying anywhere again,” said Phelps. “If you get caught, you can pretty much kiss going to graduate school good- bye. “We definitely feel good when we nail one. We definitely do some high-fives when we find out.” Most of the fake degrees that make it to Canada come from China, mostly because more people apply from China than any other country, including the US, said Phelps. “It’s something we’ve historically had a problem with, and we’re not unique,” she said. “There are probably applicants that desperate to get into UBC, into Canada, and make a better life for themselves.” Less than one percent of all applica- tions are true fakes, said Vlaar. “Far more people are turned away from universities because their grades just aren’t competi- tive.” Date-Rape Drugs are Weapons: MP Conservative politician wants tougher penalties for Rohypnol, GHB possession Bryna Hallam, The Martlet (University of Victoria) VICTORIA (CUP)—Date-rape drugs are weapons and they should be treated as such, says a Conservative MP. “Date-rape drugs are a real threat to young women across the country,” said James Moore, the Member of Parliament for British Columbia’s Port Moody- Westwood-Port Coquitlam riding. “I want to do my part to ensure that this important issue is raised both inside the House of Commons and on campuses across the country.” | Moore is working to raise awareness of the dangers of date-rape drugs, and members of Conservative clubs on cam- puses across Canada are doing much of the legwork. On March 8 the groups began distrib- uting pamphlets, which provide information to women on how to protect themselves from date-rape drugs, in recognition of International Women’s Day. Moore also has put forth a private members’ motion that recommends Rohypnol and GHB, the drugs most commonly used to commit date rape, be distinguished from other drugs and be classified as weapons under the Criminal Code. The new weapons classification for date-rape drugs would include tougher penalties for possession. GHB and Rohypnol are currently dealt with and penalized the same way as drugs such as cocaine and heroin, which Moore considers “inadequate because date-rape drugs are always a precursor to a greater crime: sexual assault, rape, or even kidnapping.” The bill also calls on the government to have a national awareness campaign and to develop national standards and guidelines for collecting evidence in sex- ual assault investigations. “In recent years, date-rape drugs have become a real menace to women,” said Moore. “The thugs and cowards who use these drugs to brutalize women need to be fought in our laws, and women need to know how to protect themselves from being victimized.” Date-rape drugs are typically used with alcohol and slipped into drinks. They often go unnoticed since they are colourless, odourless, and tasteless. Once ingested, they work quickly and leave the victim unconscious and unresponsive. People commonly have little memory of the time during which the drug was in their system. As a result, it is difficult for the victim to accurately report the crime. In addition, the drug is only in the system for 72 hours, making the assault difficult to trace. A “date-rape pill” was first reported in the United States in the early 1990s. While there are no available statistics on the use of the drugs in Canada, some incidents have been reported, and Canada’s first seizure of Rohypnol occurred in January 1999. Lola Freeman, coordinator of the Anti-Violence Project, confirms that there have been reports of date-rape drugs in Victoria. “I definitely do think it’s a risk for men and women who are university- aged,” she said. According to Freeman, common sense and education is key. She suggests not drinking too much when out with people you don’t know, and to make plans with friends in order to reduce the chances of being drugged. “Always watch your drink,” she said. “Tt’s the safest thing you can do.” She also recommends going out with friends who can watch for signs of drugs. “The big thing you can do is stick with your friends,” she said. Since date-rape drugs are depressants, Freeman says that anyone who appears very drunk in relation to how much they’ve had to drink could potentially have been drugged. While the Anti-Violence Project is politically non-partisan, Freeman says the group “definitely supports raising aware- ness about date-rape drugs.” And that, says Moore, is what the campaign is all about. “There’s nothing wrong with telling somebody for the thousandth time that they should wear a seat belt,’ he said. “There’s nothing wrong [saying] that they should protect themselves from date- rape drugs.” Match 23/2005