MBA Scandal Shocks Graduate Students

The recent eMBA scandal at WVU has shocked people far beyond the bounds of the campus of West Virginia University. From Matewan to Martinsburg people are outraged at the University’s scam to award the governor’s daughter with an Executive Masters Degree in Business/Administration, even as the details to the situation remain unclear. The ripples from this event might shake the foundations of the years to come, but not everyone on campus is entirely sure what exactly has happened, even the people who are most directly affected by the scandal.
Recently, a Pittsburgh newspaper uncovered a scandal at WVU where the administration retroactively awarded the governor’s daughter a degree that she did not have the necessary hours completed. At first the administration attempted to deny the reports, but after a third party investigation was carried out, it became clear that the degree was awarded against the rules of the university. This immediately began a media firestorm that resulted in the eventual resignation of WVU President Mike Garrison, and the Provost Gerald Lang. In the midst of all the outcries for the wrath of the Board of Governors to fall upon the WVU administration, however, a lot of the media has forgotten the real victims in this situation: the students, and more specifically, the students in the Business program.
Many of the students at the Business school at first seemed apathetic to the scandal, focused only on how much money Rich Rodriguez was going to be required to pay the university for opting out of his 6 year contract. There were students, however, that were deeply touched by the scandal. Second year graduate student Mike King believes that the scandal could seriously harm his chances to get a good job in the future. “I just think that prospective employees will think about that fact that my degree comes from a school that has a history of giving out invalid degrees. I think they’ll wonder whether I earned my degree or not.” Mike comments on the fact that because the scandal was such a big ordeal in the media, it is likely that any future employees will know about it and will bring it to mind when they look at a resume that says “WVU.”
On the flip side of this controversy, there are many students that have their spirit in the university revitalized by the trouble surrounding it. The students have had many rallies and meetings in support (or in opposition to) the administration and it is possible to see signs about the controversy all over campus. In many ways, this scandal has brought the university together in a way that only adversity can; for once, there are no division between different races, fraternities or religions. For once, we are all Mountaineers; and we are strong.