在許多國家，一個人上的哪所大學、拿的什么文憑對職業(yè)前景和社會地位都有重要影響，在中國，這種影響尤其重大。長期以來，學歷一直是決定許多中國人命運的最重要因素之一。
In many countries, where people go to college and what degrees they hold is a serious matter affecting job prospects and social standing. But in China, academic credentials have long been one of the most important factors in determining the fate of many people。
在約1000多的時間里，中國的官僚機構基本上是由在科舉中上榜的人組成。近代以來，大學、尤其是頂級高等教育學府，依然是培育政府官員的搖籃。
For more than 1,000 years, the Chinese bureaucracy was mostly made up of people who succeeded in imperial examinations. In recent times, colleges, especially the top ones, remain the breeding ground for the ruling class。
這就是近期中國公眾關于前微軟中國總裁、暢銷書作者唐駿被指篡改學歷的討論背景。這個所謂的 “學歷門”丑聞始于6月初。以批判剽竊和學術欺詐而出名的科普作家方舟子稱唐駿所稱獲得的加州理工大學的博士學位是假的。
This is the context for recent public debate over unproven allegations a former president of Microsoft China and best-selling author distorted his academic credentials. Since early July, Jun Tang has been mired in the so-called "diploma gate" scandal after Fang Shimin, a science writer known for his criticism of academic fraud, accused Mr. Tang of having falsely claimed to have earned a doctorate from the California Institute of Technology。
方舟子說，唐駿在其暢銷書《我的成功可以復制》中聲稱自己畢業(yè)于加州理工大學，他試著查證此事，并給這所大學打了電話，但未發(fā)現唐駿的畢業(yè)記錄。
Mr. Fang said he had tried to check the claim, which, he said, was made in one edition of Mr. Tang's popular book "My Success Can Be Copied," by calling the university, but he couldn't find records of Mr. Tang having graduated。
關于這件事的辯論在中國仍在繼續(xù)，雖然出版社已經解釋了錯誤的原因，但中國媒體似乎還是在不停地重復方舟子有關唐駿的種種指控，這是因為假學歷這個話題在中國顯然是觸及到了敏感神經。
Meanwhile debate continued in China, While the Chinese media seem to be perpetuating Mr. Fang's claim about Mr. Tang despite the fact that the publisher already has explained the error, the issue of fake qualifications clearly touches a nerve here。
直到15、20年前，大多數中國人的工作都是靠政府分配的，而且每份工作幾乎都是鐵飯碗，是要干一輩子的。文憑是政府在分配工作時可以依據的少數幾個衡量標準之一。即便是現在，政府機構和國有企業(yè)給本科生和博士生的工資標準通常是不一樣的，一些職位還只限高學歷的人擔任。
Until 15 to 20 years ago most jobs in China were assigned by the state and lasted for life. A diploma was about the only criterion the state could use to decide what kind of job everybody should get. Even today, government agencies and state-owned enterprises still have different pay scales for people with bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees, and some positions are reserved for those with advance degrees。
耶魯大學管理學院金融學教授陳志武說，這是個供需問題，當社會將文憑看得極重時，就會有人不惜冒險去滿足這樣的要求，很遺憾，有人看到收益超過風險時會決定走捷徑。
"It's a matter of supply and demand," says Zhiwu Chen, professor of finance at Yale University's School of Management.When a society values certain credentials so much, there will be people who will take risks to meet that demand, he says. "It's unfortunate that some people choose to make the shortcut because the perceived benefits surpass the risks," he says。
歐美高校的文憑受承認程度與中國國內的大學相近，甚至更高。當然，假文憑或虛報學歷的情況并非中國獨有。美國政府問責局2004年的報告發(fā)現，28名聯邦政府高級官員的學歷來自“文憑工廠”或者其他不具備資質的學校，并認為實際數字應該會更高。
Diplomas from universities in the West have similar, if not higher, value. To be sure, fake or unearned education credentials aren't unique to China. The 2004 Government Accountability Office report found that 28 senior-level U.S. federal employees have degrees from diploma mills and other unaccredited schools, and it said the actual number could be higher。
