Fake Recommendation Letter!

[chinniefei]

Hey all, so I've run into this issue where the school wants me to write a fake recommendation letter because I do not have post (bachelors) 2 year experience. They want me to fake a letter from any school stating that my last semester of college was spent working as a teacher (or assistant at least). I am not sure what to do as I'm okay with writing one, but the format and the idea of a self-recommendation seems wrong (morally). I want this job but I do not have the experience. I have my bachelors (December 2016) and my TEFL certification but no two years experience. Another school wanted me to work on a tourist visa until December of 2018 to be able to apply for a work visa (that I am not OKAY with). I wanted to ask your opinion on what would be best because I dont want to go through the process of applying for the visa to only have it declined because the recommendation letter didn't hold up. That is the requirement for the school. The TEFL certification doesn't count in their books as 2 years. >.< I do have other potential job opportunities (ones that will pay more too, but that isnt the big thing here) that want to interview me. Any help on this would be great! 

 

[寇正豪]

Just write the letter. Nobody will ever read it. It's China. They do stuff like this all the time. If it bothers you that much, I could write one for you. 

[陳德聰]

Don’t conflate the job requirements with the visa requirements. You should not provide false information on a visa application because there are legal ramifications to doing so that are probably not worth it. On the other hand, people provide fake references for jobs all the time and other than being underqualified to do the work and potentially being fired if found out, there is not really any particular lasting consequence.

 

That being said, I am skeptical that the school is asking you to write a fake reference letter. It sounds like the school is saying you need a reference letter and you don’t have one. It also sounds like you’re less put off by the moral factor and more put off by the potential legal ramifications of providing a fake reference letter, as you make justifications like “I don’t want to go through the process of applying for the visa to only have it declined because the recommendation letter didn’t hold up”.

 

So it sounds like the real question in your post is whether or not the requirement of the school of having a reference letter for two years’ experience is something that would impact you getting your Z visa.

 

All this makes me wonder why you wouldn’t prefer the other potential opportunities that want to interview you first, before committing fraud.

[889]

Keep in mind the possibility that your employer might use the fake letter as a cudgel against you if there are problems in the relationship down the road.

 

[ChTTay]

I probably wouldn’t write it. Find a different school.

 

Actually, whenever I’ve heard of this practice happening, it’s usually the school that goes ahead and does it without mentioning it to the teacher. They just slip in what they need before they apply. It’s not too hard to imagine really ... 

[chinniefei]

Thanks everyone! I got what I needed to know for this. I really appreciate the comments and concerns. I decided I won't do it for obvious reasons plus writing my own recommendation letter is just WEIRD. 

[DavyJonesLocker]

I think it's something you need to decide for yourself actually, and glad you did!

I wanted to chip in earlier but decided against it as I know personally of a lot of dodgy dealings that go on in large companies  etc but end of they day, I think falling back on "some bloke on the internet told me too" is not going to get you far and a somewhat irresponsible by a poster .

 

Hope it turns out well for you. Sleep easier at night.