A group of York students has won the opportunity to have their very own I-phone application developed after winning The App Challenge final, held at the Ron Cooke Hub on Wednesday, January 18.
YUSU Welfare officer Bob Hughes has warned students to be vigilant after a student loans phishing scam has been revealed.
Her Majesty the Queen will be visiting York on Maundy Thursday, 5th April, as part of the 800th anniversary of York’s Charter for the traditional “Royal Maundy” ceremony.
A flood caused by a heating system “failure” forced the university IT services to shut down many essential systems on Sunday night, causing problems for many students on the eve of their exams and assignment due-dates.
Fakecertificate.co.uk offers its customers the chance to order a degree for just £39.95. It is possible to buy matching transcripts for £49.95.
Customers are able to add a hologram security seal to help authenticate claims that they have graduated from York. The number of degrees from the University of York that have been ordered from the site remains unconfirmed.
It does make you think what’s the point in putting in all that work and effort when you can just buy a degree really cheaply.
Third year History student Sam Vaughn said: “As someone who has done a full degree I feel a bit cheated. It does make you think what’s the point in putting in all that work and effort when you can just buy a degree really cheaply.”
As degrees become more and more of a prerequisite for entering the job market Vaughn added: “It does worry me that people who haven’t put the work in might be able to enter a job at the same level as myself.”
Legally the website has a disclaimer which explains that: "We offer fake degrees, fake diplomas, fake HNDs, fake transcripts for entertainment purposes only. Under no circumstance will we pretend to be a University to verify 'authenticity' of Fake diplomas or fake transcripts or supply you with letters purporting to be from a University."
The website adds that it refuses to provide "certificates from medical or dental schools. We will not produce any fake diplomas or fake transcripts that deal with flying an aircraft, driving a train or bus or anything military-related.”
Carla Tucker, a second year student, said that the website was infringing on a moral front: “I think that it’s really unethical, as they’re putting our degrees in doubt and perhaps discrediting them.”
The university is unable to have the website shut down, so is instead advising employers to be vigilant. Qualifications from the university will now bear a telephone number that can be contacted as evidence that a degree is authentic.
I'm pretty sure that if I had a website selling novelty fake British passports I would get shut down rather sharpish.
Has the university called them legally untouchable?
I quite like the idea. If I don't get a 2:1. . .
If a person aplying for a job that requires, say a BSc in ComSci, uses a fake certificate wouldn't it be obvious that they lack the knowledge and skills that comes with the piece of paper?
But let's say that person graduated with a pass at Bolton University, and then showed up with a certificate saying they had a 1st from York? 
comment deleted by the author I like the fact that, as quoted, Sam Vaughn's contribution seems to be that there's no point in 'putting all that work in' if you can buy a certificate. Surely most of us did it precisely because we wanted to 'put the work in'? I know everyone moans about work, but we're basically here because we want to be, right? Rather than just in it for a piece of paper...? Or am I being a hopeless romantic?
The Yorker seems to be overstating the significance of this - the website offers really rather generalised templates rather than exact copies of university documents.
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