integrity

Yesterday it was reported that Marilee Jones, Dean of Admissions at MIT, has falsified her educational credentials and when MIT officials approached her with the information she resigned. In light of the revelation there have been good and valid arguments on both sides: she misrepresented her education background and should be fired and her experience should suffice for her work as an admissions dean.

Let me be frank with my perspective: firing her was the right response.

Here's why: In the admissions field we demand integrity from both admissions professionals and students who apply to institutions. If a student lied or omitted records on the application for admission it would be grounds for expulsion from the institution. Who is the gatekeeper of this rule? The dean of admissions. But it isn't even that as much as it is a basic tenet of integrity. Lying about one's own record of achievement ultimately hurts everyone.

Secondly, while I agree that experience in the field of admissions is of utmost importance, I disagree with the notion that we should substitute experience for education. Actually, we should require a combination of both. And entry level positions are no exception. Anyone that argues that a graduate level education is not necessary for a director level position is sadly mistaken. A graduate education offers people the opportunity to explore, research and think about educational issues in a way that is not possible through hands-on experience only. And I say this from personal experience. As a former admissions director I felt more competent, more comfortable making decisions because I knew how to conduct the research, where to look for information, and how to critically examine all sides of an issues. Can those skills come from on-the-job experience? Certainly. But if we are in a field that values and promotes the benefits of higher education and life-long learning we can't simply talk the talk.