Be Cyber Aware – Admissions Fraud!

Cyber crime related to post-secondary admissions occur when individuals claim to be representatives of UCalgary and fraudulently convince or demand prospective students to pay money to collect application fees, admission deposits, or tuition fees. Many of these threat actors will identify themselves as official UCalgary representatives and often produce fake websites or promotional materials.

UCalgary recommends reviewing the tips below to avoid becoming a target of a cybercriminal:

1. Application fees:

All application fees are collected directly by the University of Calgary and are never sent from an individual staff member. Never pay fees directly to an individual. UCalgary’s application fee is $125 for students with Canadian credentials and $145 CAD for students with international credentials. Application fees can be paid directly in the application for admission by credit card or using one of the following methods: click here.

2. Admission offers:

Many cybercriminals will attempt to re-produce UCalgary’s admission offer letters in an attempt to collect fraudulent fees. Undergraduate admission letters from UCalgary are accessed directly in your my.ucalgary.ca portal. We recommend comparing any physical letters you receive to the online version to verify its legitimacy.

3. Admission deposit:

If you receive an offer of admission, you’ll be required to pay $500 CAD (non-refundable) admission deposit which is applied to your first-year tuition fees. Like our application fee, this deposit is never collected by an individual staff member. Fees can be paid using one of the following methods: click here.

For detailed instructions on how to accept your offer and pay your tuition deposit, click here.

4. UCalgary Brand:

Cybercriminals may attempt to recreate UCalgary’s website or print materials in an attempt to legitimize their fraudulent activity. UCalgary’s websites always begin with www.ucalgary.ca and email addresses will always end in ucalgary.ca.  UCalgary’s official undergraduate admissions print materials can be located here.

5. Connect with the source!

Cybercriminals may present themselves as official representatives for the University of Calgary. UCalgary does not have any undergraduate admissions representatives that live in foreign countries. To connect with an official representatives of the Prospective Student Recruitment Team who will travel to your country or region to conduct admission presentations, click here. All official UCalgary e-mails will be sent from e-mails ending in ucalgary.ca.

Threat actors may also present themselves as ‘experts’ with the focus on helping you through each university’s admission process on social media. Many of these threat actors provide incorrect or outdated information and are not endorsed by the University of Calgary.

Below are links to the official way for a prospective student to connect with UCalgary via social media accounts:

• Facebook - UCalgaryFS
• Instagram – Choose UCalgary
• YouTube – Choose UCalgary
• Pinterest – Choose UCalgary
• Podcast – Choose UCalgary Podcast
• Reddit: UCalgary_Recruitment
• WhatsApp: Each region of the world has a unique student WhatsApp account. These are the only numbers used by official representatives of UCalgary.

Follow these tips to protect yourself against admissions fraud and ensure you are following official UCalgary sources during the admission process. If you receive instructions that are contradictory or are of a threatening or urgent nature you could be the target of a cybercriminal. Reach out to UCalgary staff if you are unsure and double-check before making any payments.

For more information on scams and fraud, or if you feel you are victim,  visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre’s website: https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/.