Graduates who completed their University of London (UoL) course with academic direction from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) are not LSE graduates, according to email correspondences sighted by FocusM between LSE and Securities Commission Malaysia (SC).
The reply was part of the SC’s queries on the education credentials of former president and group chief executive (PCGE) Jalil Rasheed.
“Anyone who successfully completed their University of London course with academic direction from LSE is a University of London graduate, not an LSE graduate,” LSE alumni and support engagement head Chris Kendrick said in a June 18 email.
Kendrick said that while LSE could not respond to the status of specific individual students or alumni without their prior consent, he outlined that LSE was a member institution of UOL.
“There are three ways to study towards a degree with the University of London including:
- on campus, at one of the member institutions of the University of London;
- studying independently via online, flexible and blended learning;
- studying at one of UOL’s network of recognised teaching centres worldwide,” he said.
Kendrick added that while many of UoL’s courses are led with academic direction from LSE, the school defined an alumnus/alumna and alumni of LSE as “a former student of the LSE as defined in the LSE General Academic Regulations and who has completed at least one continuous term of a course of study.”
There are exceptions, he added, citing the LSE Alumni Association constitution: “5.2.2. External Degree holders, International Programme Degree holders, Summer School and Language Course attendees, and Occasional students are not counted as Alumni as they do not register as students at the School.”
The SC had also sought clarification after the regulator received feedback from executive assistant to the LSE directorate Leda Cosentino who said that it was factually correct for a UoL degree holder to state he or she graduated from LSE.
Kendrick apologised for “the confusion” and “having spoken to Ms Cosentino”, he confirmed feedback from Cosentino on June 19 was “inaccurate.”
He reiterated that “we do not consider graduates of this UoL programme to be graduates of LSE.”
Kendrick added that “given a number of enquiries have been made to different people across LSE, for ease of coordination, please could you direct any further queries you may have on this matter to the Head of our Legal Team, Kevin Haynes.”
SC then received confirmation from Haynes over the veracity of Kendrick’s earlier correspondences with the regulator.
“Thank you for your message. Mr Kendrick’s email to you of 29 June 2020 was correct; we do not consider graduates of the UoL to be graduates of LSE,” Haynes said.
Jalil vacated his position as PCGE and tendered his resignation on June 13, citing personal reasons. Two days later, his resignation was accepted by the PNB board of directors at a special board meeting.
In the run-up to his resignation, questions were raised about Jalil’s credentials, especially his education background.
But, in his outgoing email, Jalil said he received harassing phone calls and his LinkedIn profile and corporate email had been hacked.
SC and PNB moved in to investigate the matter while the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission urged Jalil to lodge a report with the commission and the police over the harassment and hacking claims.
