MIT Dean of Admissions Resigns in Lying Scandal

Billosaur writes "CNN has a report that the Dean of Admissions at MIT has resigned her post after admitting to lying about her academic record. 'Marilee Jones, who joined the staff of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1979 to lead the recruitment of women at the university, stepped down from her post after admitting that she had misrepresented her academic degrees to the institute, according to a statement posted on MIT's Web site.' The school had recently received information about her credentials and the subsequent investigation uncovered the misrepresentations. Question is, why did it take 28 years?"

Comments

Re:Your're right on both counts

[billcopc]

It would have been doubly bad press had MIT not fired her, since it would effectively show that the college degree is worthless and redundant.

Me, I just wish there was a better way to gauge a person's proficiencies than the college diploma. As a document, all it indicates is that the person registered and theoretically attended classes, and the establishment was paid tuition fees (whether the loan is being paid or not). It says nothing about the person's work ethic, mental prowess nor marketability in the real world. You could hold a Ph.D in computer sciences while liberally abusing Goto statements.

I used to see university students walk in to the shop with their Ba.CS and an A+ cert, looking for a part-time job in the thankless world of computer retail. I'd laugh, tell them they wouldn't last a day, then offer them a 5-minute test: fix that rig on the test bench, and format the primary hard drive from a boot floppy. I always kept a pre-broken test rig for these cocky twits, all with simple "problems" like a reversed floppy cable, incorrect jumpers on the hard drives, nonsense BIOS settings and a disconnected 4-pin ATX plug. Dozens tried, none passed the test. I even had a few "experienced" techs that had been downsized, they couldn't get it either. When they gave up, I'd jump in and fix the thing in seconds, and that's when most of them finally demonstrated the skills they learned in college: the art of bullshitting. They'd yap until I kicked them out, sometimes getting hostile or pulling a pity card.

I don't have much faith in the system, and I'm glad I'm not alone. I'm sure MIT's former Dean of Admissions will find success elsewhere, and with the experience she's gained she won't have to lie about her academic accomplishments to get a good job.