The Academic Sham: Profiteering from Diplomas at NKUST

The Academic Sham: Profiteering from Diplomas at NKUST

This scandal at the National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology (NKUST) is not merely a breach of academic ethics; it is one of the most severe institutional failures in Taiwan’s recent history, marking the first time university professors have been convicted under the Anti-Corruption Act for selling academic degrees.

According to the first-instance verdict delivered by the Qiaotou District Court on June 15, 2026, the details of the misconduct and the subsequent legal consequences are as follows:

The Core of the Scandal: The Total Collapse of Academic Integrity

• The Perpetrators: Professors Wang Chia-nan and Tang Hui-chin, both of the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management at NKUST.

• The Modus Operandi: The duo turned the conferral of Master’s and Doctoral degrees into a commercial product, offering a "one-stop shop" service:

  • Ghostwriting: They hired Vietnamese students as "ghostwriters" to pen the theses, and in some instances, the professors wrote the dissertations themselves.

  • Rigged Defense Panels: Utilizing their authority as advisors and committee chairs, they hand-picked friendly colleagues for oral defense panels, ensuring that the outcomes were predetermined before the defense even began.

• Pricing: A Master’s degree was priced at approximately NT$100,000, while a Ph.D. was marketed at NT$320,000.

• The Exposure: The scandal came to light in 2024 during a separate investigation into Xu Shao-dong, the chairman of Sanlian Group, regarding violations of the Anti-Infiltration Act. During a search of mobile devices, investigators stumbled upon incriminating evidence of the illicit degree-trading scheme.

The Verdict: Heavy Sentences for "Academic Brokers"

The court determined that both professors abused their official positions to accept bribes, fundamentally trampling on academic dignity and the credibility of higher education. The sentences are as follows:

• Wang Chia-nan: Convicted of accepting bribes in breach of official duties, he was sentenced to 7 years in prison, stripped of his civil rights for 2 years, and his ill-gotten gains of approximately NT$650,000 were confiscated.

• Tang Hui-chin: In addition to the bribery charges, he was embroiled in sexual misconduct allegations involving female students. He was sentenced to 5 years and 2 months in prison for combined charges of bribery and sexual assault through abuse of power, along with 2 years of stripped civil rights.

• The Students: Six individuals enrolled in professional master’s/doctoral programs who paid the bribes were sentenced to 6 to 7 months in prison. All received suspended sentences, conditioned upon payment of fines to the public treasury and completion of legal education programs.

Societal Impact and Reflection

This case has sent shockwaves through society, exposing how certain segments of higher education—particularly in-service professional programs—have been reduced to instruments of cash transactions and power exchanges. Professors, who should be the guardians of academic integrity, acted as "academic brokers." This has not only severely damaged the reputation of NKUST but has also humiliated thousands of faculty members and students who earned their degrees through honest, rigorous research.

While NKUST has stated it will await the final judicial outcome before taking further action, the damage to the long-standing reputation of Taiwan’s higher education system is, arguably, irreparable.