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The central figure in the scam in which wealthy parents paid huge sums to cheat on standardised tests has been sentenced to three and a half years in Federal prison. The mastermind of the sprawling college admissions scam known as Operation Varsity Blues pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy, money laundering, and conspiracy

The report by Corruption Watch titled “Sound the Alarm” reveals shocking forms of corruption in the education sector: widespread misappropriation of resources, acts of bribery, sextortion, abuse of authority, as well as employment irregularities. Between 2012 and 2021, from the primary to the tertiary level, over 3 600 complaints from pupils, students, parents, and guardians were registered, representing 10% of the total number of reports received.

In 2018 an audit conducted to review the Basic Education Community Schools program authorized by the Public Accounts Committee revealed over 2000 ghost schools on paper but no teacher on record. Several years have passed and new cases have been reported. Yet criminals continue to embezzle money to bribe government officials to allow fake teachers to keep fake jobs and usurp salaries of honest teachers and deserving students.

Roslyn New York school principal and her assistant were involved in a case of embezzlement that misappropriated some $11 million from students. At the New Orleans Public School, 30 convictions were recorded, including a former school board president who took more than $140,000 in bribes. According to reports from the Inspector General of the Department of Education, the office receives more corruption reports than it can investigate.

Politicians, senior education officials, headmasters, and businesspeople are taking advantage of their positions to line their pockets with state funds. According to a study, the acts of corruption in Thailand range from the embezzling of state funds, colluding to mark up prices of educational and school construction materials, as well as demanding bribes from parents who want their children to be enrolled in a particular school. Irresponsible officials and school directors steal about 30% of the total budget.