Ministry Accuses Private University of Diploma Peddling, Moves to Shut It Down
The Ministry of Education is taking measures to close the private, Russian-language university ECOMEN, which it says has provided paid-for diplomas in both Estonia and the Czech Republic.
In one case the ministry found that ECOMEN, the Institute of Economics and Management, had shortened its four-year curriculum to 98 days. Both the exams and dissertations were completed in an unnaturally short timeframe, the ministry said in a statement Wednesday.
Monitoring by the ministry found that the university offered masters degree study without permission, is suspected falsifying signatures and used Estonia's coat of arms on its seal, something that only state agencies are entitled to do.
The university's rector, Hanon Barabaner, has rejected the claims in the ministry's statement as wild accusations. In an interview with rus.err.ee, he complained that the ministry had delivered its 29-page report less than an hour before the end of the working day on Friday and gave the university only one day to respond.
"We have been operating in Estonia for 20 years and up till now we have not had any complaints. Our programs have been certified and have received accreditation," he said, adding that a full response from ECOMEN would be forthcoming.
Education Minister Jaak Aaviksoo said the university was tarnishing the reputation of Estonian higher education both in Estonia and overseas.
“The young, first of all have been deceived - they set out in good faith to obtain an education that meets Estonian quality norms,” said the minister. Aaviksoo added that the university had engaged in practices in Czech Republic that gave off obvious signs of diplomas for sale.
The ministry has requested that the Cabinet halt the university's right to provide schooling and the case as been filed with the police.
According to the private schools law, if ECOMEN were shut down, the university and the Ministry of Education would have to work together to find a suitable replacement institution for the university's 397 students. At least three universities in Estonia teach similar curricula in Russian.