Transcript Forgery Concerns (Serious Inquiry)

College Search & Selection
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<p>Hello members of College Confidential,</p>

<p>I come to you with a rather serious query today.</p>

<p>I have discovered that the son of a friend of mine skillfully forged a high school transcript of his and sent it in to a few colleges this previous fall. I discovered this when he mistakenly emailed me a copy of the original, while applying for a summer internship at my machining workshop.</p>

<p>I have notified him that I am aware of his dishonesty and he has revealed to me how he was able to forge it.</p>

<p>This has become a major moral dilemma for me, because on one hand, he did something very dishonest but on the other, his father and I are very good friends dating back decades.</p>

<p>My question is this:</p>

<li>Will the colleges he sent the transcript to find out? Do they screen for fake transcripts? Are admissions officers vigilant when it comes to this type of thing?</li>
</ol>

<p>I am under the impression that the transcript looked 100% legitimate. He also mailed it directly from the post office where the mail is sent from school.</p>

<li><p>If he is caught, will legal action be taken against him by the colleges or his high school. If so, I am inclined to tell the colleges now and work it out with them so no charges are filed. Would this constitute a crime? I am not a lawyer, but it seems to me that the crime of forgery is limited to passing “legal documents” such as checks off as legitimate.</p></li>
<li><p>Have any of you faced similar issues with forgery? Is this common in the all-too-competitive college admissions world? With a daughter of my own entering high school next year, this is very disconcerting.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Thank you for any information you can provide or any advice given.</p>

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<ol>
<li> They may or may not find out.</li>
<li> Legal action could result, if the HS finds out.</li>
<li> I'm sure it happens, but not often.</li>
</ol>

<p>Could you speak with his father about it?</p>

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<p>Accepting a place at a college using the false transcript is like building a house on a cardboard foundation. It is my impression that, if the college finds out at any time during his undergraduate years, he will be dismissed from the school. </p>

<p>If the plethora of folks with false credentials who have been recently exposed in the media doesn't give you reason to take action now, I think you are being cautious for the wrong reason. It is far more forgivable to have this boy confess the fraud while he has other chances at college, including taking a gap year. To perpetuate the fraud will mean that he is danger of expulsion and a possible lawsuit, both of which would impact his life much more severely.</p>

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<p>you just posted this in the college admissions thread. I know that you are looking for more answers, but there are 5 pages of replies on the other board</p>