By Jimmy Siyasa
In Uganda and elsewhere in the world, titles are cherished and coveted. When a name has a prefix such as Professor, Dr. or Honorable, a person often is considered more esteemed than folks with none. In some cases, people take offense when not addressed by their titles.
The race for these word-based badges of honor rages in political, social, economic, religious and academic arenas. The intense rivalry can breed misappropriation. The practice of acquiring false credentials, including from what is known as diploma mills, is the subject of debate within Uganda’s higher education regulator, National Council for Higher Education (NCHE). The discourse has garnered on-line attention.
The term “diploma/degree mill” refers to institutions that sell counterfeit diplomas and degrees without rigorous curriculum requirements and little or no coursework requirements. The increase of degree mills is viewed by many as a consequence of capitalist systems and the increasing emphasis on academic credentials for professional advancement and social mobility. The pursuit of financial gain in a competitive labour market, coupled with the demand for degrees to enhance one’s career prospects, has created an environment where degree mills thrive.
According to the Uganda NCHE, “honorary degrees are ceremonial in nature and recognize contributions [of a given individual] to society or a field.” The regulator in a memo issued in May 2025 further advises that “recipients should not use them as academic or professional titles.”
However, many notable figures, including religious leaders, continue to flout the guidelines by maintaining unmerited titles in official documents and publications such as fliers, newspaper column bylines and social media platforms. Some of these are listed on the no longer obscure “Wall of Fake PhDs” whistler website.
Nicholas Opiyo, a UCU alumnus and prominent Ugandan lawyer, is among those who have been vocal about the issue, to the extent of running a social media campaign to name-and-shame such individuals. He argues that people who pursue such unmerited qualifications do so to seek “cheap” social validation.
“The problem is endemic, usually involving evangelical groups seeking to impose their ethos and influence on some (public and opinion leaders) and external actors selling these qualifications to Ugandans seeking validation,” he wrote on his X timeline.
Enrolling into a diploma mill or self-styling academic profiles seems to be the easy way out. These weak institutions don’t require serious essays and research.
When asked about this “academic plague,” UCU’s Manager of the Research Ethics Committee (REC), Osborne Ahimbisibwe, said the “doctored degrees” reveal a “deep moral decay in society.” The UCU REC is tasked with upholding research ethics and integrity among graduate students.
“Beyond mere credentials, they reflect a life of pretence and a desire for unearned status built on lies,” he said. “Such individuals are driven by laziness and discontent. They are thieves, posing a danger to society.”
In March this year, a hospital administrator in Monrovia, capital of Liberia, was charged with manslaughter after conducting a botched surgery. Investigations by the Liberia Medical and Dental Council (LMDC) found that he had “misrepresented his credentials and this directly led to the victim’s death.”
Back home in Uganda, Makerere University, in 2017, dismissed 15 students who allegedly forged diploma transcripts to gain admission to the College of Health Sciences. Had these sneaked their way through successfully, the health and care of men, women and children would be in jeopardy.
Former UCU Guild President Amanya Bruce, posted on his X page, calling for such “opportunists” to be “ridiculed and vilified for taking the easy way out because their practices demoralize actual academics and set bad examples for younger scholars.”
As one who endured the steep terrains of postgrad school, graduating with a Master of Civil Engineering, Bruce says “Academia is not an easy feat; it takes sacrifice and sleepless nights to [for instance] finish a PhD.”
While delivering his inaugural lecture at UCU on May 21, 2025, Prof. Peter Nyende, Biblical Scholar at UCU, urged for the need for character within scholarship, reinforcing that UCU’s emphasis on Christian education with values has never been more relevant.
“You must want to read and must have the ability to spend long hours alone studying because scholarship is a lonely business,” he said.
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