Thursday, 4:30 PM
MIT dean of admissions resigns for falsifying resume
(File/Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff)
Marilee Jones, shown above in a 2004 file photo, resigned Monday as dean of admissions at MIT.
By Marcella Bombardieri and Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff
Marilee Jones, MIT's dean of admissions who has spoken out nationally against the craze over beefing up teens' resumes, has resigned after 28 years at the school for misrepresenting her academic degrees, university officials said today.
Jones listed on her resume that she had degrees from Albany Medical College, Union College, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, but she had no degrees from any of those schools, said MIT chancellor Phillip Clay.
YOUR VIEW: In a statement posted on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's website, Jones said she did not "have the courage to correct my resume" when she applied in 1997 for her current job, where she has become perhaps the most prominent admissions director in the country. Jones has kept a popular blog and spoken widely about restoring the joys of youth to young people obsessed with their resumes.
"I am deeply sorry for this and for disappointing so many in the MIT community and beyond who supported me, believed in me, and who have given me extraordinary opportunities,'' Jones said in the statement. "I especially apologize to the Institute's leadership and to my extraordinary staff, whom I have every confidence will continue to deliver on the Institute's mission."
Jones started at MIT as an administrative assistant. School officials reviewed her qualifications last week when Daniel E. Hastings, dean for undergraduate education, received a phone call from a person who questioned her credentials. The school did not say who placed the call.
Stuart Schmill has been named interim director of admissions while the school searches for a permanent replacement, according to a statement from the school also posted on the MIT website.
"This is a sad and unfortunate event," Hastings said in the university's statement. "But the integrity of the Institute is our highest priority, and we cannot tolerate this kind of behavior."
The MIT admissions process involves dozens of faculty and staff and will continue without disruption for the incoming class, Hastings said.
