A Chinese beauty queen has been sentenced to 240 days in prison for using forged Ivy League credentials to secure admission to the University of Hong Kong (HKU). Li Sixuan, 28, had submitted fake documents claiming she completed a linguistics degree at Columbia University in New York.

Pleaded guilty to using fake Columbia degree

Li pleaded guilty to two charges: obtaining services by deception and possessing a false instrument, reported local news website hk01. She had submitted fake documents claiming she completed a linguistics degree at Columbia University in New York.

She used the forged documents to apply for HKU’s Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics programme in 2021 and was admitted in 2022. Li had won the Shenzhen Miss Universe beauty pageant in 2024.

Also faked HKU certificate to claim ‘distinction’

Li’s deception did not stop at Columbia – she also had a fake HKU certificate that falsely stated she graduated with distinction. In reality, university records showed she had only received a pass.

HKU launched an internal investigation in March last year after uncovering several suspicious applications allegedly linked to mainland education consultancies. Columbia University later confirmed that Li had never been a student there.

Paid HK$410,000 to agent for admission help

Li told police she had paid 380,000 yuan (HK$410,000) to an agent to help with her application. She admitted she actually graduated from Wuhan College, part of Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, in 2020. She had also briefly attended an online course offered by Columbia.

When HKU requested to meet her after receiving confirmation from Columbia, Li refused and tried to leave for mainland China. She was stopped at a border checkpoint and arrested.

The trial and sentence

During an internal investigation last year, HKU contacted Columbia University, which confirmed via email that Li had never graduated from the New York-based institution. Following this, HKU reported her to the police.

Li’s sentencing was ordered by Shatin Magistrates’ Courts on May 8, according to local reports. Magistrate Cheang Kei-hong said Li continued her deception even after being admitted to HKU and described her behaviour as “consistently dishonest”. She was initially given a 300-day sentence, but it was reduced to 240 days after a plea deal.