Inside Indonesia’s growing market for fake Middle Eastern doctorate

For generations, Indonesian Muslims have looked to the Middle East as the highest destination for Islamic learning. A degree from Cairo, Medina or Riyadh has never been simply an academic qualification. It has represented years of mastering Arabic, studying under respected scholars and earning recognition from institutions whose reputations were built over centuries.

That reputation has become a commodity.

A recent interview on the Indonesian podcast TimTeng with a teacher at the Indonesian School in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and a master’s graduate of King Saud University, offers a revealing window into this emerging phenomenon. Across Indonesia, a growing number of religious figures have begun displaying honorary doctorates and professorships supposedly issued by institutions bearing Middle Eastern names. Some claim affiliations with Egypt, Tunisia or Pakistan. Others present certificates written in Arabic or invoke prominent Arab scholars. Yet many of these institutions cannot be independently verified. Some reportedly have no identifiable campus, no official website, no accreditation records and no physical address.

Who is behind this growing market remains unclear.

The business model is remarkably simple.

Applicants submit photographs of their preaching activities, community service, books they have written or links to YouTube lectures. They pay anywhere between US$300 and US$1,000, depending on whether they communicate directly with the purported institution or through facilitators in Indonesia. Within about seven days, many reportedly receive certificates awarding honorary doctorates. Some are later encouraged to obtain honorary professorships as well.

The institutions themselves raise even more questions.

Some reportedly identify themselves as Egyptian universities before later describing themselves as American or Pakistani institutions. Others claim links to Tunisia. Investigators searching for these universities have reportedly found no official websites, no verifiable addresses and no evidence of accredited academic programmes. When questions are raised about where these institutions are actually located, prospective recipients are sometimes shown photographs rather than documentation—often featuring the same small group of elderly men dressed in academic robes appearing repeatedly in different graduation ceremonies.

The marketing is equally unusual.

Rather than treating academic credentials as private documents, certificates are reportedly displayed on Facebook as advertisements for future recipients. Diploma holders become testimonials. The certificates themselves become promotional material demonstrating that honorary titles can indeed be obtained. Indonesian facilitators reportedly charge substantially higher prices than those offered through direct contact with the overseas operators, suggesting that an intermediary market has also emerged.

Whether these networks originate in Indonesia, abroad or somewhere in between is almost beside the point.

Their success depends on something far more valuable than certificates.

They depend on trust.

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