eQuals

The University of Auckland now has secure system which employers can trust when looking at graduates’ qualifications. In the past, in some countries, people looking for jobs have used fake qualifications. This new system uses encrypted technology which is constantly updated. Graduates can access their own university transcripts but can also choose to share this information with a specified person. For a boss, this is quick – just need to click – and it is trustworthy.

It is not just current graduates who can use this, it is available for previous graduates from 2010 onwards. Those who graduated prior to that date, can make a request and the information will be provided. It is not only graduates who can access the system, anyone who attended the university can access a record of their academic studies.

The eQuals system is managed by the Australian Higher Education Services. It is used by Australian Universities and by the end of next year, all New Zealand universities will also be using this too. Auckland University of Technology (AUT), Massey University, the University of Canterbury and the University of Otago will launch this system later this year and the remaining universities – Waikato, Victoria, and Lincoln – will be added next year.

Vocabulary

• fake (adj) – not real, not genuine
• encrypted (adj) – written in a code
• transcript (n) – a written record of a person’s academic studies including subjects and grades
• specified (adj) – the name of the person must be given
• trustworthy (adj) – a person or document which you can trust to be accurate and truthful
• current (adj) – relating to now, not past or future
• prior to (idiom) – before
• access (v) – have permission to get the information
• launch (v) – start a new system