The Ruling on Cheating in Studies and Its Effect on Employment

The questioner : What is the ruling on cheating in studies? And if it is not permissible, what is the ruling if a person graduates from the university and then gets a job? And is it true that cheating is permissible in some subjects, such as English, for example?

The Shaykh : It appears that the questioner has answered himself. Because what is he asking about? What? About cheating, and cheating does not need to be asked about. Since he has admitted that he cheated, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . So cheating is forbidden, and the person who entered this school, or this institute, or this college, entered committed to what its conditions require. He entered on the basis that he would graduate from it with a valid graduation that matches reality, not a graduation based on lying and cheating. If that is the case, then it is obligatory for him to fulfill what he committed to, and that his graduation be a valid one in which he adheres to what is obligatory for him to adhere to in this college, school, or institute, or the like.
And the statement of some people that it is permissible to cheat in the English language subject, this is not correct, because the English language is one of the subjects that is read and studied in this school. So it is obligatory that he graduate from it with a valid graduation. And let our youth know, may Allah bless them, that if they succeed through this path, they are failures. Along with their committing sin, they are failures, because they will not be able to advance in the field of academic work. And let them also know that if they graduate in this manner, our country will remain incapable of culture. We will always be in need of others. And this is a social failure that every young man who supports himself and his society must stay away from. As for his question about the job that he deserves from a valid graduation, I say:
If the cheating was in the years before the final degree, then if the person repents to Allah and returns and is sincere in his work, or advises in the work of the final degree, then he owes nothing regarding what he earns from the job based on this degree, because the man repented and the degree is valid and in its place. But if the cheating was in the degree without which the rank is not obtained, this is a matter of consideration for me and a matter of hesitation: is it permissible for him to have the salary based on this degree, except that he retakes his examination anew, or that the field of work in this job is one in which he excelled and did not cheat, and he repented to Allah with a sincere repentance. Then I hope that Allah the Exalted will accept his repentance, and that there is no blame in his earning. Yes.