I submitted a *Fake* PhD and it killed my career

[@patrickmarkduffy8286]

I've heard of people faking PhDs before, but never someone who actually had one👏

[@jf5336]

I have a PhD in Labrador Retrievers. Never used it for a job though....but, hmmm,perhaps I should try.

[@mrmartywaring]

@@jf5336😂😂😂😂😂

[@HeeroAvaren]

So you're telling me I have a chance at a PhD job at a university with a fake degree if I don't make fun of HR on a blog about it?

[@andersbodin1551]

You can, but you will ether quit or get fired when you can't handle the expectations.

[@Felipe_Ribeir0]

@@andersbodin1551so if i can handle the expectations the answer is yes?? Thanks friend

[@samf.s.7731]

Absolutely not! Your background check will reveal exactly who you are and you will face legal consequences for lying.

[@christopherflorez6592]

@@samf.s.7731 I think you're making that up. What legal consequences will you face?

[@cobracommander8133]

@@samf.s.7731 What legal consequences? Reply to this comment or you will face legal consequences yourself pal!

[@cmmndrblu]

I think you can tell this guy's a scientist because he didn't anticipate the HR problem this would create or how it would be dealt with. Universities are businesses with brands, and protection of these brands is more important than knowledge. The language they used is specifically designed to line up with cause for dismissal. If you've ever been hurt by an HR department you'd have seen this coming.

[@samf.s.7731]

Yeah, honestly if I had worked at that HR department I would have cried. "What did I ever do for someone to try to hurt me this way?! Why would this be funny? It's detrimental to my job, and we've literally background checked him before hiring to make sure he's a doctor" is what I'd be thinking. This is serious, I am baffled by Andy's behavior here. Very immature... And unnecessarily harmful. At least he now sees the error of his ways back in the day and seems to regret it.

[@vaiapatta8313]

@@samf.s.7731 nobody in HR lost their job over this, so no harm done.

[@OhNotThat]

@@samf.s.7731 lmao "poor HR", it's literally just a harmless prank and you guys blow it way out of proportion for failure to do your own jobs.

[@DuckPerc]

@@OhNotThat Almost as though institutional incompetence is more reprehensible than a sense of humor.

[@Pundit2k]

This is the weirdest academic story I've ever seen. In the US you would have probably been fired on the spot, and possibly blacklisted from all jobs related to your career.

[@johnsanders7170]

They fired you without firing you so that there were no lawyers involved. You gave them a gift and they opened it and went, "YAY!" get rid of him, but make him look like it was his choice.

[@sharkmug1583]

It's genuinely hilarious to see Doctors, whom I assume to be all "grown-up and serious," acting like rebellious teenagers.

[@Robert-um3dz]

You should see lawyers

[@samsonsoturian6013]

I stopped taking the grown ups seriously years ago.....

[@JohnDoe-py3rc]

It’s actually kind of scary how’d you expect people with a PhD before they’re name to be god like to us mere mortals with our pitiful diplomas. But universities insulate you from the real world. It’s a giant bureaucracy that smothers you to death and just delays maturation. Like math geniuses, and chess champions, and genius brain surgeons will act like complete in mature brats over tiny things. It’s not just universities it’s all massive institutions. It’s the military it’s the media it’s the welfare system, the Silicon Valley monopolies, prisons. It’s kinda funny when you think about how the big decisions are being made by people that live in another reality it gives me hope for me in particular. But that’s why trump is a dumb ass. He’s the coastal elite the American WASP. But he’s not the exception that’s standard fare. Trump’s actually more honest than most other politicians as much of a liar he is 😂

[@TsviAchler]

Occurs too often

[@rockets4kids]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/fpWvY4xjoZVjmaM

[@madeincosmos22]

They were not mad about you submitting a fake degree but offended that people are reading about it through the blog. That sums up everything about university management .

[@tomwoggle9411]

He in fact didn't 'submit a fake degree'. He merely submitted a 'worthless document' proving nothing. What he did was not (intentionally) defrauding his employer because, as he rightfully explained, he could and did reasonably expect that the submitted document should and would not have been accepted (He did NOT intentionally falsify a document and he did NOT pretend to have a degree from an existing institution such as falsifying a document stating he had a PhD in Mechatronics from the MIT, for example). As a matter of fact, he merely engaged in embarrassing childish conduct which he then continued by using his employer's reaction to further embarrass his employer. What his employer then did was indeed a very professional, reasonable, and generously forgiving way of handling the situation, allowing both, him and his employer, to resolve the embarrassing matter with minimal damage and allowing for the employment to continue.

[@IARRCSim]

Yes. They don't want the university to look bad and his blog was having that effect. A university or any company that ignores the credentials that much looks incompetent or at least the staff responsible for reviewing those documents looks incompetent. Hopefully, they pay more attention to their documents from now on. Maybe they can even start calling the institutions to verify the documents aren't fake and digging deeper if they can't even find a valid phone number. Calling references is what most people would expect for such big educational credentials. I sure hope my medical doctors have passed more scrutiny than that.

[@moosecannibal8224]

​@@tomwoggle9411 I would argue that it's implied that the documents are real when you send them in response to receiving a request from your workplace for them. But I would also argue that the people verifying the information weren't doing their job properly if they didn't make an attempt of verifying the info before applying it to his profile. I was entirely unsurprised that the false info was put up on his profile, since you can't expect someone who's job relies on them being able to trust others for the sake of efficiency to have to double check all the info sent to them by pre-vetted and newly hired employees. Also, is it really their job to double check that info?, it's HR, I would assume they probably needed the information for something since they didn't just ask for the information when he was hired, and it was a few months into employment that the info was requested. The job to them was likely not just "get his info, put it up" but "make sure all of them have their information up on here, oh these people don't yet, lets get that off them". idk, I dislike the fact they couldn't tolerate a small blog that happened to complain about them slightly. An employer policing your blog is kind of fucked up. I'd rather know a place like that is human than prestigious. I would also say the childish conduct is getting pissed off and demanding your mistake be hidden because you didn't pick up on a joke and ended up submitting false information that someone sent you, assuming you would get it. That's their mistake, and acting like a piss baby to get proof of it removed from the internet is a grown adult throwing a tantrum because someone made a joke they didn't like.

[@DailyCorvid]

@@moosecannibal8224 He was absolutely wrong there. If you give somebody a PhD which is actually not a PhD you are falsifying qualifying documentation = gross misconduct. Trying to lie and cover it as a joke was a poor strategy, they are not stupid!! This guys strategy for life is literally, punch self in chest, kick own balls, headbutt lampost. Stop destroying your own life, and blaming others for it's smouldering wreckage singing your beard! You can't say they were not doing there job properly because you sneaked a fake PhD past them!! You made fools of them when they TRUSTED you. I would have fired him on the spot.

[@DailyCorvid]

@Klemheist Exactly!! This guy is really dodgey I wouldn't let him within 10 miles of a student.

[@stevem437]

Thank you for posting this video. You have accurately demonstrated that education does not equate to maturity, professionalism or self-awareness. You got this job due to someone recommending you for it and the fact that you had no regard for their reputation is startling. This is what happens when someone spends their entire life in school. They may gain knowledge in particular areas, but they gain 0 life experience and are stunted in many critical areas because they are in an educational setting for 25 years. How could you not see that your actions could lead to serious consequences for the school? Higher-Ed has MANY international students and staff and the universities in which they attain their degrees very often sound odd. Perhaps “World Global” sounded funny to you, but it’s not COMPLETELY impossible that this is a school in another country. The fact that you continuously responded the way you did demonstrated your absolute lack of maturity. And THEN you ask for time off for an internship? “It wasn’t that long” was it more than the vacation time you had? Then it was too long. Yikes. And these people are walking around thinking they are intellectually superior due to their credentials. Still in the video saying “it was like an ‘f you’ to the system”… You had literally spent your whole life “in the system” and had benefitted from it. What a ridiculous concept that you would feel rebellious.

[@whittenaw]

Thank you! I can't believe anyone would do this especially as a joke and risk everything... But maybe that's just me. I would never take for granted having the kind of opportunities that he must have had in order to obtain a phd in the first place

[@lajourdanne]

Chef's kiss! I spent most of my career in academia but has about 2 years out and worked while in school. That non academic perspective was crucial for me. This video made me uncomfortable the first time I saw it I decided to come back to it now that I have my own issues with academia, but nope, it's even worse now. It's a strange hill to die on, in my opinion. Especially because it barely scratched the reputation of the university, but it no doubt got an admin person, with little protection, in serious trouble.

[@Sipu97]

"It's always nice to be contacted by a reader." That was hilarious

[@beneaththefloorboards]

Graduate school made me lose so much respect for the academy. This video on the other hand gave me so much joy, I cannot even describe. 🔥

[@DJ_BROBOT]

Ah yes, we doctoral students and graduates sometimes are on the edge of rational and crazy when we’re bored. Habitual line steppers we are.

[@aggrodkreg4321]

In my experience, only having an undergraduate degree? It's way more often than "sometimes"

[@soccergalsara]

don't need to be bored for it mind

[@fletchdavidson6079]

One long exercise in self-sabotage. The least intelligent thing I've ever heard a scientist with a Ph.D. ever pursue.

[@gonzoz1]

Grow up.

[@SoBapRevJon]

There are a lot more things that scientists with PhDs have done that one would simply shake his/her head at and for which they had no prior thought to prior to doing. Consider John Darsee (who faked data in over 100 academic papers). Robert Slutsky (turned out new research every 10 days using fake data), William McBride (found guilty of scientific fraud in 1993), Muhammad “Moe” Qureshi (poured liquid nitrogen on his head while doing the "bucket challenge" wanting to upstage Sephen Hawking while being videoed and talking about how dangerous his stunt was, and then continuing on film with the antics that the liquid oxygen caused him to do). There are many other examples.

[@DanteHaroun]

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes

[@aravr_project]

I find it interesting that the universities systemic failure in accepting your fake PhD as a joke without due investigation was targeted at yourself, and not at the university itself. who initially accepted the information requested. Your blog would have done a better service at highlighting the issues around these fake credentials. and educated many on what NOT to do. Instead they sweep it under the carpet and as a result allow these types of thing to prolificate with more serious consequences when considered a serious attempt rather than a joke.

[@pisceanbeauty2503]

They were all wrong.

[@greywolf271]

Yes, a bit like finding bugs in the HR corporate system. Your comment highlights a way forward for all the corruption in public service departments to be cleaned out, hiring friends of friends who simply cannot do the job but keep office chairs warm until they are ready to retire.

[@samf.s.7731]

@@greywolf271 There is no bug, Andy was hired after an extensive background check. HR did their work, they made sure he is exactly the perosn he's saying he is. The image of the PhD certificate can mislead your average Joe into thinking they didn't do their job, but the thing is that the image doesn't matter, what matters is the background check which verified his credentials 😊 They put the PhD image up because that's what he gave them, and they can't question that because it would be disrespectful, he'd already been verified as a PhD.

[@gordonericwinston4420]

Why, why, why, this explains soooo much about this channel.

[@richardgale4827]

'It's always nice to be contacted by a reader.' - yuh, that's the inadvertent, slow-burn resignation right there. However, a face-to-face 'Could you explain yourself?' might have been a cannier approach by HR, rather than written/digital transactions with someone romping against bureaucracy. I certainly wouldn't have done anything like this in my 20s (*ahem*). Thanks for sharing!

[@gus7814]

"It's always nice to be contacted by a reader". Instantly liked the video!

[@nehemiah9190]

I’m more impressed the university didn’t take this as am opportunity to brush up on their fraud detection in HR. Surely anyone with any experience could have pointed out that it was indeed a fake PhD, and it should be the university’s responsibility to confirm the validity of a license or credential. Just a mind-boggling story, and I’m happy you took that as an opportunity to leave.

[@tigrepalenque]

yeah incredible that it was actually through the blog that someone detected it, and not the people at HR. I'd guess they have brushed up on fraud detection... hopefully

[@vaiapatta8313]

Nah, he had already been verified as a PhD. They were only missing a picture of the actual degree. That's why they didn't properly look at it. It's really not as big of a deal as it sounds.

[@orangesnowflake3769]

Gosh all this and you could have just said I don't want to work here anymore thanks.

[@GarryBurgess]

I know of many instances of people using fake University degrees to promote their career, and after having put in a huge effort to get a degree, I personally wouldn't ever joke about it. But everyone's different. I look at a broader point of view, where most people in the world would never get a chance to get a real University degree, so it should never been taken lightly in my opinion. That said, you explained yourself well, and I could understand that no real harm was intended.

[@mistybeethoven3630]

Well done to you for relating this tale! I have had a very similar experience. Academia is somewhat humourless it must be said… onwards and upwards! I appreciate all of your wisdom and advice. Regards from Northern Ireland. ☘️👍

[@yeah3601]

Bro used his twitter/blogger personality in the real world. Imagine lacking that much self-awareness. All you did is get some poor HR guy in trouble for nothing. I don't see how can you find anything about this stunt "funny". Have you ever worked outside of academia? People get fired with criminal charges on top of that for much less in government/industry jobs.

[@Number6_]

This guy is either playing to an audience or needs emotional and psychological help.

[@paulfrancis8836]

Next time you want to quit, just quit.

[@dangrise6182]

Does having a real PhD excuse someone for submitting fraudulent papers for a fake PhD? I wouldn't have thought so. I've enjoyed many of your videos, and maybe I am alone here, but I think you got off easy here.

[@e1u9s8o7j]

Definetely lack of academic integrity with no remorse for the action based on this video. Hence, questionable judgment and ethical practices. Being unable to see a problem is the most worrisome part, red flags all over. Sure after that he "quits".

[@vaiapatta8313]

@@e1u9s8o7j there's no problem with his academic integrity; he never misled anyone on a scientific matter or plagiarised anyone's work. This was a prank unrelated to the actual content of his research, and also it was specifically targeted at University management not the public. He wasn't even expecting it to be accepted in the first place, seeing as the information on the fake degree was obviously different from what they had on their reccords.

[@vaiapatta8313]

He got the job based on his real PhD, so it's not like he gained any unethical advantage from submitting the fake picture. It would be fraud if he had gained something from it.

[@dangrise6182]

@@vaiapatta8313 Even falsifying records is a crime in some regions.

[@vaiapatta8313]

@@dangrise6182 and rightly so, since it can be used to deceive and gain an undeserved advantage on false pretenses. But this joke PhD was not (and could not be) used as an asset. They already had the correct information on their records. Sending them the picture was just a formality.

[@Event_Horizon14]

Wow, that was some hijinks for sure! Andy I really like your content, and share many of your frustrations with academia but I think this is the type of behaviour and "acting out" that people reach after they've grown to hate their job, and ultimately hate themselves, too. Many years ago, I had reached a similar point working at a company where I found the job mind-numbingly dumb, I loathed everything about it, I was secretly seething with resentment, and I hated that at the time my circumstances didn't allow me to just up and leave. I was stuck there wallowing in self-pity and loathing that were bubbling just below the surface. In every interaction I had with colleagues and clients, I was getting dangerously close to making an absolute a** out of myself. Toward the end, it got so bad, I realized I needed to leave immediately before I lost my dignity and self-respect. Those were tough times but looking back on it, I can't excuse my behaviour even one iota. What I've learned from this is it's my own responsibility to decide what makes me happy at work, and if I find it's not the right place for me anymore, I just need to put my big-girl pants on and own up to it. AND remove myself from there without dragging it out. That's my advice for everyone who's in a similar boat. Don't drag it out - it doesn't get any better!

[@tigrepalenque]

100% agreed. Been there done that

[@smolpeepz1460]

Ok this is epic lol! Immature yes, but I'm surprised no one in HR got scolded for that obvious mistake. Felt like an undercover mission!

[@vladimir5615]

He actually did not say anything about consequences for HR's and he may even not know about it

[@Cat-qg6oc]

The fact HR did not notice this prior to your online posts is really concerning. Nonetheless, this was a hilarious story! Well done, Andy! 😂

[@anival9576]

He had been bonified in more authentic ways... through a personal referral. This is a small world. People don't get hired purely on the weight of a piece of paper... it was a formality.

[@vaiapatta8313]

Not really. They had his real (and verified) PhD credentials, they just needed a picture. They didn't properly look at the picture, they just noticed that the name of the University was different and assumed that the one on the picture is correct. No real consequences from that mistake.

[@fdggfgdfgd251]

RESPECT. I didn't expect your story. I think it's great and reminds me of myself.

[@micky405]

hey man, Mike here, I am at a very early stage of an academic career. I will be honest your vids do have a huge impact on the way I see pursuing an academic career. I aspire your mentality, pray for me to become like you in some aspects. Keep up brother.

[@nikosuoa]

Well, the HR assistant is loaded with all kinds of mundane tasks (like collecting pdfs and updating a website), she doesn't have time, interest or is qualified to determine whether a Ph.D. document is real or not. That is not her job, they trusted you to be honest.

[@jdraven0890]

I must respectfully disagree. Now he admits that he was in the wrong, and he certainly was. But it is absolutely the HR department's responsibility to review any documents submitted to them. That this obvious fake slipped by them suggests they are not doing their job at all, and that perhaps other people have been able to submit better quality falsified documents.

[@swish6143]

So what other kind of fake information is she uploading to the website, that she takes for face value?! It would be a 5 second glance.

[@robertgerard7055]

This is what Alain de Botton calls 'self sabotage'.

[@rachael6432]

This makes me sad. Imagine how much trouble the HR administrator got into, who probably really needed that job more than you needed yours. I hope you realise how privileged you are. I think it was a pretty careless/selfish/stupid thing to do. Once you realised it had made it to your university profile you should have owned up.

[@stevem437]

Yep. Completely ridiculous. Up until this point, this guy was a professional student, spending his entire life in school. Then he’s like “it’s like an f you to the system”… What the hell are you talking about? You couldn’t be more apart of the system if you tried. Literally spent your entire life benefitting from the system. The lack of self awareness, from a PhD, is scary. This really shows how these “scientists” have no actual grounding in reality and are essentially ‘adult children’ who happened to obtain knowledge in a specific area.

[@rachael6432]

@@stevem437 I'm an academic with a science PhD, I don't know, nor have ever known, any colleagues or candidates that would've behaved so carelessly. This does not represent the scientific community and I find your generalised comment pretty unhelpful, to be honest.

[@stevem437]

@@rachael6432 I work at a top-4 engineering university. There are plenty of people who think their credentials in a singular area means that they are smarter in all areas. There are people who have spent their entire lives in school, and then continue to research at a school once they obtain their appropriate credential. All they know is academia. There is an extremely limited view of the world. Obviously I’m not accusing all scientists of submitting fake creds just because they find it funny. I’m stating that there is a gap because they are spending their entire lives in a singular environment. This is the difference between education and having actual life experience.

[@rachael6432]

Thanks for the explanation @@stevem437

[@博瑞-i7o]

Extremely privileged, and the fact he got off so easy lmfao. No nonwhite or nonman would’ve had such a good experience. Privileged and narcissistic, disappointing cuz i’ve really enjoyed his other academia help videos.

[@jenniferb557]

I think this is funny because they are incompetent, but it's also fraud where I'm from so...

[@careneh33]

Childish is the right word for this.

[@HaydenHatTrick]

... This is exactly the sort of stuff I would do, and my peers did not like it one bit. Sadly, they have gone further in research than I have and working in industry has been disheartening. I used to hear industry scientists complain about university research so much. I thought they would value applying their knowledge in an industry setting, but all I got were people with sensitive egos and lacking in values. I miss the free thinking I could share with people in research. I don't miss how out of touch institutions can get. That said, the stories you get out of a little cheekiness is great :P

[@GenevieveMasioni]

"working in industry has been disheartening": do you mind explaining that statement? Could you expand on the benefits of working in industry rather than academia (full-time researcher position)? Why is it disheartening? And if it is why don't you go back to academia? I'm also planning on doing R&D in industry after my PhD so I'm rather curious.

[@HaydenHatTrick]

@@GenevieveMasioni Going into industry after a phd is much different to ditching the research path.

[@scepticalchymist]

Academia and industry are often both rotten, just in different ways. Just that industry usually pays better for the madness endured.

[@CarlosRamirez09]

I resent the fact that at no point they thought to think that while your actions maybe where over the line, they totally failed to accurately vet your credentials and had you not made the post they wouldn’t have noticed. That begs the question of how many of their staff maliciously submitted fake credentials and where never found out.

[@russellk.4896]

I think that's why they were so pissed off - they knew that this was a bad look for them

[@floodplainfruits7504]

Rather than HR, it's the people in the department who do the real vetting of his credentials. The department is in the best position to tell what is real and what is fake. If the department says the candidate is legit, HR isn't going to question it. In my experience, HR tends to be a group of mediocre paper pushers. Submitting a fake diploma to them was kind of like playing a practical joke on a kid with Down's Syndrome; perhaps it's good for a quick laugh but nothing you should be proud of.

[@unusualpond]

Are you George Santos’s campaign manager?

[@janswanton3631]

I used to work in HR. I do wonder how much hot water some lucklesss clerk got into for just filing your certificate. You had another job to go to. They may not have done. Firstly, people who aren't academics (like clerks in HR) may know very little about how and by whom qualifications are awarded. Secondly, not expecting a 'Doctor' to be a fake they took you on trust, probably because they were too busy to check you out. Where I worked we had to be rigorous about checking certificates because actually, offering fakes isn't uncommon. In the days before 'e', we would only accept original certificates, not photocopies and had 3 large tomes listing the universities and qualifications we accepted as of 'the required standard'

[@StorytellingHeadshots]

Exactly what I was thinking.

[@rachael6432]

Same, I think it was a really sh*tty thing to do.

[@博瑞-i7o]

Just privileged and narcissistic actions packaged as a “funny story”.

[@patrickr2686]

I worked with a guy from India who paid a teacher for his PhD in India

[@user-qi5jw2hg1c]

I've been enjoying your videos for a while now, but I wonder if this video perhaps discredits you?

[@jennam8401]

My thoughts exactly - this video has encouraged me not to watch any others. Should we be taking PhD advice from someone who values it so little?

[@bjrnhjortshjandersen1286]

The issue is the embarrassment of the Institution because they have been exposed as not performing a check. I can see why they got angry because of some potential fall outs.

[@scotthullinger4684]

Are we somehow supposed to be shocked and surprised that supplying fake credentials for a PhD would kill your career? Seriously? Sheesh -

[@narendey4075]

Takes courage to disclose this story to your audience. A really interesting experience.

[@DarthNoshitam]

Only a matter of time until the university copyright strikes this video 🤣

[@n.ganadily8973]

I’m currently doing my masters in electrical engineering and I’ve stumbled across something called “Doctor of Science” which is like a PhD in the hard sciences, but only some universities offer this degree. I would love to see you make a video about this PhD vs Sc.D

[@francishunt562]

Can't speak for other countries, but in the UK, a Doctor of Science is awarded to candidates(who usually already hold a PhD) who submit a portfolio of published papers deemed to be of exceptional quality, and have contributed hugely to the advancement of a particular field.

[@johns-gn3ly]

A Dean I knew had three graduate degrees. He complained about uneducated people who bought professional degrees from correspondence course and landed high-paying administrative jobs. So, he bought a $350 degree online (5" x 7") and proudly displayed it, framed, in his office.

[@milliadzo5140]

I came to this channel to get a review on Endnote and left with a crush on Andy !! :) I am about to watch video 3 now and continue procrastinating. This is way better than compiling a reference list. Thank you 😄

[@chrisconnors7418]

Maybe not the wisest thing you’ve done but I understand it. I’ve always liked to tweak the nose of bureaucrats and bosses by highlighting inconsistencies in their rules for employees. I was expelled from school on a Friday for one hijinks but that was rescinded by Monday when I pointed out all I had done was follow the rules literally; furthermore, the university had violated its own disciplinary rules by not issuing a written warning before expulsion. They told me to write an apology letter (even though they were in the wrong), so I wrote an explanatory letter instead. They rejected it because it wasn’t an apology so I added I was sorry that they had to convene a meeting on the weekend to deal with this rather than during their regular office hours. That didn’t go over well either but I think they knew I wasn’t going to apologize because technically I didn’t do anything wrong according to the letter of the law. They accepted the letter with grumbling (literally, the president grumbled). Looking back, I know it was a childish act of rebellion but I still feel kinda proud I took a stand. There are a number of times now I’ve done similar things in jobs (with more maturity, I hope). I feel a bit of evil glee when my actions cause consternation followed by hasty fixing of loopholes and inconsistencies in policies/rules. But I’m a scientist and trained to look for weaknesses in papers, experiments, so that training apparently translates to HR policies/rules. I’m now early 60s and still feel the urge to push back (Eg told an employer I won’t come and have my performance evaluated because I don’t need external validation to tell me how I’m performing). Age may bring wisdom but that just means I recognize I’m being a needless nuisance. The evil glee lure is sometimes too strong to resist.

[@hrperformance]

I really enjoyed this! Fair play for the honest conclusion 👍

[@eritain]

Got to say I'm disappointed in all the commenters who are just blaming the university for not verifying all the credentials all the time. "Trust everyone, verify nothing" is a terrible way to work, yeah, but so is "verify everything, trust no one." It's like how we have right-of-way rules at intersections. Technically, yeah, that's the state-imposed, arbitrary elevation of one person's privileges over another person's, when by right and by nature their claims on the non-private resource of the roadway are equally meritorious. O noes, teh state is in ur libertys killin ur Galts. From a certain point of view, it genuinely would be more just, every time your car and another pull up at the same time, to get out and frickin' parley about who has the greater need to go first. But that's not a world I want to live in.

[@marouaneidmansour8276]

Dr. Stapleton! ... listen ... we love you!

[@tylerhauth440]

Honestly, the way you minimalize it and act like you never even considered it could go wrong for you is the funniest part to me. Your hypothesis was off on this one, Doctor. I'm genuinely surprised it seems like you didn't think there was a significant chance this would make the University mad.

[@vainbow4632]

I'm pretty sure there is some degree of autism at play here

[@scmabcd]

Somebody has obviously drank gallons of academic kool-aid.

[@74Gee]

Before any interacting with any formal institution, I always, always think to myself how can I plow an abstract route through this. I don't do it to annoy anyone or ridicule the institutions, I do it because I love exploring what I call the edges of the net (the same net one might slip through). When surrendering my driving license min the UK to have 3 points added. I sent an empty recorded delivery package inside another recorded delivery package. Why two? Why not, I'm sure they report empty letters but this wasn't empty and the inner one had a different address - a fictitious government office. A few months later they sent a letter asking for my license to which I responded with the proof of delivery. They sent me back a new license (with no points on it) so now I had two complete licenses. Honestly, you can have so much fun exploring the abstract results from tweaking the interaction protocols, it also suits my programmer mind and is quite useful in pentesting. But the greatest benefit of all is it makes filling out forms fun.

[@tomwoggle9411]

What can we learn from this? If you want to be respected and taken serious, don't act and behave like a child.

[@HyperFocusMarshmallow]

I can really see the appeal of why you would find this funny at the time. The thing is, it’s probably not HR’s main task to check for fakes. They’re probably not academically qualified to do so. And there are people who legitimately try to cheat. And it’s difficult enough to guard for that without also having a bunch of trolls who just do it for fun. In the end one might naively say that publicizing such stories probably shouldn’t do much harm, but it can, and there are plenty of cases of academic hoaxes where there is some legitimate kernel to it but then the criticism goes over board without reason. There are tricky lessons to learn about it.

[@HyperFocusMarshmallow]

Public trust isn’t always deserved. Some people trust science and scientific institutions when they shouldn’t and some don’t trust them when they should. There sure are problems within science and academia but I don’t think there think the crux of the matter should be wether sometimes people game the system or sometimes results gets through that shouldn’t or that sometimes the methodology and incentives don’t live up to expectations. I don’t think we should lie about it or hide the shortcomings but when focusing on science education, it’s probably a better idea to focus on why the whole messy project in the right circumstances can perform more consistently than popular contenders. We don’t want to replace science with authority or tradition or divine inspiration or pseudoscience or even protoscience or earlier versions of science neglecting relevant lessons learned along the way. There still needs to be systems to guard against fraud and maybe those can be improved, but for public understanding it’s well worth to point out that non-science or pseudo science can contain fraud just as much if not more while also having a worse overall methodology. Some of these considerations are on a spectrum of course. At some point fraud might be the main bottleneck preventing progress. So we do need to reflect about it and be clever in developing the process so that we can do better.

[@jennam8401]

I am conflicted as to whether I think this is a demonstration of a total lack of foresight, respect and self-awareness needed from someone who is presenting themselves as someone to take academic advice from, or actually this is a useful demonstration of the problems in universities that desperately needs addressing? Perhaps, both.

[@JPBessa-pf3cl]

Oh, man, this was SO cringe. LOL. Thank you for sharing this storie, I love your videos.

[@dhlong1697]

Boy that was an idiotic move.

[@BatDevice67]

I grew up around academics (and failed academics). Having heard some of their stories, I'd bet dollars to donuts some of them considered doing something similar at some point. A few of my own college professors really needed a little of their air let out.

[@morgengabe1]

seems like the researchers who intentionally pushed bugs into the linux kernel. silly games, silly prizes.

[@NicoleCushingWriter]

So, let me get this straight. You publicly ridiculed your employer. For all we know some overworked clerical staff in HR may have gotten reprimanded for not detecting your prank. In any case it’s safe to say the overworked HR clerical staff probably suffered more than anyone for your prank. You were disciplined. Then you asked for a special privilege of extended time off and were surprised when your employer said no. Emotional immaturity is one hell of a drug! (And I say this as someone who struggled with emotional immaturity in my twenties and early thirties.)

[@lajourdanne]

Yes! When I originally saw this video I thought it was childish and he was lucky it wasn't considered fraud. But now that I've gotten to know a lot of clerical and administrative staff over the past year, the prank seems cruel and elitist. This was not just some prank to make the wealthy university look bad. Large institutions with reputations to maintain will always find a scapegoat with the least amount of power who is the most expendable. This staff member already gets less support, resources, and protection than faculty members. So assuming they weren't fired their life just got a lot harder. Assuming they were fire, now the reactionary institution likely put in some new unsustainable policy/procedure to slap a bandaid on the problem. And the now short staffed HR department has to implement it. He did expose a problem with HR, he created a bigger one.

[@andreaweber8059]

The problem here is: The fake PhD was sent to HR (who supposedly are not PhDs), only glanced at the documents and took them at face value. By his reply to the university including his "look, I never thought anyone would take that serious" he basically said that the non-scientists in HR were stupid. Calling someone with a "lesser" degree than your own stupid is a nono.

[@vaiapatta8313]

Well frankly you don't need a PhD to notice that I.P. Freely is a joke name. They just didn't look at the document. Which is ok. Nothing bad happened because of the fake document going through.

[@TheRagnartheBold]

In my country this would be a felony. Fake PhDs are frowned upon, even if you have a similar degree. I would think that this prank would not fly with the higher ups at the administration at all.

[@blondequijote]

What other hijinks aren’t allowed? Do they let women drive ?

[@yeah3601]

Also in my country. A stunt like this would get you in legal trouble without question.

[@philerasmus]

It is important to understand why typical HR departments are so large and powerful. With the advent of employee protective legislation it became essential for universities to employ people whose only task was to navigate the complex legal maze and provide the means of firing people. Prod them with caution.

[@nedmerrill5705]

Bottom line: you damage the credibility of your university if they publish your phony info in the University's catalogs or advertisements. So I sympathize with them. Find another way to get your kicks, like writing witticisms on the men's room walls.

[@citrosoda5370]

“World Global University” lol @ HR’s gullibility

[@stevem437]

There was literally a college called The University of Maryland - University College. Until they changed their name to The University of Maryland - Global Campus. There are quite a few colleges in the world that aren’t TOO far off from having names like this.

[@citrosoda5370]

​@@stevem437 If you work at a university and you don't give a Ph.D. in Chemistry from a """global""" (online) university a second look, you are gullible.

[@247TravelYT]

Currently there are only 2% of the world population that has PhD qualifications. So, does it mean it'll have a Good prospect?

[@digitaldion]

Oh goodness, that is hilarious! Yes, I suppose Universities only have their reputations on which to trade. So, I can imagine that this causes a few hearts to flutter in academic ‘management‘. Some years ago I was responsible for approving professional qualifications sent in for recognition. Some sent in a certificate on which the word Doctorate was misspelled as Doctrate (like nitrate)! It was rather concerning to have to contact a senior person in the organization to tell them that their certificate was bogus… needless to say, the degree was not recognized and the individual did face disciplinary action.

[@peterayolov]

I am trying to find the right moment to quit my university for two years. We are all in the World Global Uni. 🌎

[@wokeclub1844]

Plot twist: The HR person verifying your degree himself got in through fake credentials

[@clemsonbloke]

OR that HR person doesn't even have a degree. A lot of those people do not have degrees, usually HR doesn't do shit.

[@yaralove2704]

i loved this story, thank you for sharing

[@RJStockton]

I used a fake PhD to post this comment. How's it working so far? Edit: I got a little further in the video now. I did a version of this when I worked for AT&T. We were all required to update the company's directory with our home address, so naturally I input the White House. My supervisor found out a few months later and called it falsification of official records. She also invoked 9/11 to make it sound like a national security issue. I got written up for it, so naturally I had the reprimand framed and kept it at my desk. Karens are everywhere in middle management. The unforgivable sin is not taking their ridiculous institutions seriously.

[@ready2makechange]

I didn't like it. So many people have lost their jobs for the sake of a silly joke. I'm sorry Andy, I've got to disagree here 😤

[@DokoloCity]

I always thought this dude had issues, and I was patiently waiting for evidence, and oh boy, here we have it!

[@yeah3601]

Dude just canceled himself

[@ftmrivas3043]

I feel this is not funny. It is boarder line offensive.

[@MichaelMarquez-m3b]

About 10 years ago I worked for a major defense contractor. When you start work at a company like that they make you take ethics training. One day during a break I was standing outside the building I worked in speaking with one of my colleagues. He points out a third guy he knew and tells me a story how this guy started a job at another company where they assumed he had a PhD. Supposedly he never claimed he did but also didn’t correct them and so had a high level position at the company that required a PhD. Apparently they eventually found out and fired him and he started working for our company. I could only surmise that this story was known to many people at our company and they were OK with it and I thought it was kind of ironic considering all the ethics training they required me and others to go through.

[@janematanaicake-lumon1747]

I for one would not have tried something like this but I like how you shared your experience. I enjoy all your videos

[@whittenaw]

Me neither. Never in a million years lol

[@kennethbaptiste]

. . . oh no . . . I would not do that . . . 😑

[@cherubin7th]

Reputation is everything for Universities.

[@andresp.4583]

Usually I’m the first one to criticize inefficient and unnecessary bureaucratic systems, but dude you went seriously over the top on this one. At some point even I’m feeling like, yeah, I’d probably fire this guy

[@thestopper5165]

During my PhD candidature (during the second half of the last millennium), my supervisor (Dicko) went "above and beyond" to keep at bay the HR-Karen idiots that had begin to infest our university (Monash). We were a "think tank" and we ran a sizeable operating surplus - i.e., our consulting revenue exceeded our combined salaries by a handy half-mil. Reputationally, our Centre (Centre of Policy Studies, or CoPS) was the "jewel in the crown" for the Department of Economics. (We were separate from, and on a different floor to, Economics - we had the top floor of Menzies). Any time the HR-Karens stuck their oar in, Dicko would threaten to take the whole team to another university. The team had started at Melbourne's IAESR, and came to Monash before I enrolled there as an undergrad. The Grey Matter always backed down. ("Grey Matter" has nothing to do with brains; it was the colour of their suits). As for "How To Quit": some time after I left Monash I chucked in one job by sending a Friday afternoon e-mail to "Staff::All"" (150 people) telling them that I wouldn't be in on Monday - because if I came in I was going to throw our recently installed Head of Research out of a window. This plonker had never held a research position in his life; he got the gig because he was at a "brand name" competitor. Anyhow - since I am not the type of person who says "He goes or I do", I went. Some time in the 2010s, Monash called Dicko's bluff: as a result the CoPS team is now at VUT. It always struck me as odd that as a matter of protocol people with PhDs in disciplines other than Medicine never used to call themselves "Dr" except in professional correspondence. Obviously that protocol has gone out the window, so some stupid mutt calls herself "Dr Jill" when her PhD is in Education and her primary role is full-time carer for an old guy with dementia... who happens to be POTUS.

[@clemsonbloke]

Actually Doctor or "Docere" means teacher. That said, the Ph.D. is higher than an M.D. in academia. Ph.D. is the gold standard and is a full academic degree whereas an M.D. is a professional degree. If anything, everyone that teaches should call themselves "doctor" well before an M.D. does. Academia is the one whom made up all the "medical" procedures, that is you have to be "Taught" before you can "practice". A medical doctor has to be taught by Academia before he or she can ever practice. See why all the disciplines call anyone with a doctorate a "Doctor"? Also the Masters degree imparts the license to teacher (profess), it is also called "teacher" or the latin rank is formally called a "Magister". This is why someone with a Master can be a Professor. Both Masters and Ph.D.'s are Professors if they teach but only the Ph.D. of course can be called "doctor". That said, most professors are Ph.D.'s or some other doctorate.

[@bucc5207]

Onya Dr Stapleton! Nothing quite as satisfying as messing with the establishment after running out of effs.

[@brucequinn]

It seems like only a silly prank to me.

[@BronEager]

😆 😆 😆 This is soooooo good! Thanks for making and sharing the video :)

[@kr6302]

You have Ricky Gervais type of humor and mannerisms which is absolutely hilarious 😂

[@ren1132]

I had NO idea you are in Adelaide! I'm an Alumi of UniSA. I've been watching your channel as I'm currently studying at a non-secular university. Looking at stuying at a secular university when I have completed, UniSA was one idea to return to. Your channel has been great but no idea you were in the same city I currently am!

[@dadt8009]

Here is another possibility... It's not that they didn't notice the fake credential you sent them. They pretended they didn't see it, entered the info into the system officially, and this was just to see who gets the last laugh and you getting 'punished'. If they had asked you to send the real certificate, they would be helping you, why would anyone whom you just made fun of want to do that?

[@hartmutholzgraefe]

Yes, sounded like a "we don't want to get rid of him *yet*, but when the need arises this is how we can get rid of him immediately without compensation" move. Like Batman having each Justice League Members personal Kryptonite on file, just in case.

[@Valyssi]

That seems a bit backward, if they had recognised it as a fake document and called it out in the first place, there would have been no one who "had been made fun off" in the first place. He could only make fun of them _because_ (after) their (apparent) failure. If anything, if they had called it out straightaway, this guy would have had egg on his own face. You'd frankly have to be quite psychotic to pretend to be unaware of the inauthenticity of a document (jeopardising your own job by accepting a person you presume to be unqualified) and open yourself up to criticism related to that, just so you possibly have an edge on firing the guy later (when you already have that edge: the existence of a fake document), someone who doesn't even affect your life, all over a prank

[@aatiya19]

That was stupidity

[@todddunn945]

When I was in my second post doc we had a guy show up for a post doc with a freshly minted Ph.D. About 6 months later though there was some question about the validity of the data the fellow based his Ph.D. on. There was an investigation that led to his Ph.D. being retracted when it was demonstrated that the data was all faked. In addition several refereed publications in major journals were also retracted. The entire thing caused significant embarrassment at the university that had granted the Ph.D. and for the reviewers of the retracted papers. What was puzzling about the entire thing was that the fellow was actually quite competent and clearly understood what he was doing well enough to generate an internally consistent fake data set with appropriate uncertainty and data scatter. He had clearly put a huge amount of effort into the fake thesis to the point that no one around him was suspicious at the time. That sort of thing tends to make universities rather touchy about fake credentials. I know the university where he was a post doc became MUCH more careful about checking credentials, although at the time the guy was hired he had a valid Ph.D. and good real references.

[@user-ji9pt9ox2b]

That’s wild, thanks for sharing

[@JHatLpool]

This guy has got way too much time on his hands.

[@doctorlolchicken7478]

They were very lenient with you. At least you ended up doing the right thing: if you hate your job, put your energy into getting another job and then quit. So many people I know quit first and then try and find a new job. It’s much harder to get a new job that way.

[@thatsfunny2051]

Putting the letter on the blog was *chef's kiss*

[@saintsword23]

It is designed to ridicule...a department that clearly deserves the ridicule. HR is a nonsense department that ubiquitously seems staffed by people that would accept such a clearly fake document. They deserve the ridicule.

[@TheodoreChin-ih7xz]

Sometimes I'll lie about having a masters for those entry level jobs that somehow require it. But I'd never be bold enough to lie about a PhD

[@jdraven0890]

As you noted, it seems obvious now, but at the time I can imagine that the compulsion to get views and clicks overrode your judgement. Also, it sounds like you trying to develop a social media voice that would get attention...and we all know what gets attention on social media.

[@pavlovkuki6616]

Honestly, I think you did not understand how serious universities can be. BDW you always reminded us Academia was not the love of your life. So, it depends on how you view this past incident of yours. One thing is.. If you were in academia, we (subscribers) would not have seen your videos, which is of immense help for budding and aspiring researchers. Love your videos.

[@vishnueashwar]

At the beginning I thought the video was meant to be uploaded on April 1st.

[@biner01]

you didn't quit your job. you gave up on the lies you'd been strung along with for the entirety of your career.

[@cobracommander8133]

The jokes on you, World Global University is a genuine Uni located in Van Nyus, California. I did my PhD there and now have my own lab where I research the social determinants of lying and manipulation.