SCHOLARSHIP, INTEGRITY AND AGE: A CRITICAL REVIEW OF THE EFFECT OF AGE RESTRICTION ON SCHOLARSHIP FOR APPLICANT FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Back to Page Authors: Abdul-Rahman Balogun Muhammed-Shittu

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Keywords: scholarship, academic integrity, misconduct, age, Africa, Asia, developing countries, institutions of higher education

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Abstract: Academic integrity is an age-long practice and the ethical policy of the educational institutions. It has been methodically investigated. In prior researches, the investigations focus largely on students’ nature of conduct regarding academic and school activities in general after the admissions, while being so limited in their acumens about paramount causality. This study has theoretical and practical contributions to the literature and the real world by uncovering the negativity associated with the age-limit criterion in scholarship admissions and how it jeopardizes the stability of integrity within and outside institutions. A total of 82 participants from 11 countries across 2 continents of Africa and Asia were interviewed at five selected countries. Age restriction in scholarship admission was reported to deprive and discriminate against aged competent and qualified scholarship applicants. Thus, adjustment of age to meet the required age in the scholarship has been considered as a defense mechanism overtime. Implications of this misconduct are discussed, and recommendations are provided.

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