Woman sues university for $100K after claiming degree hasn't helped her career

Fiona Pok protested at her university graduation ceremony. Photo / Facebook

A graduate who slammed her university for offering a worthless degree is planning to sue the institution for failing to advance her career.

Pok Wong, who also goes by the name Fiona Pok, graduated from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in the UK with a degree in international business strategy in 2013.

But the 29-year-old now plans to sue the university for $106,000 over a breach of contract, because she believes the degree "does not play a role to help secure a rewarding job with prospects".

Wong, who is originally from Hong Kong, said she moved to the UK to study at ARU's Lord Ashcroft International Business School in Cambridge after being impressed by the institution's prospectus.

But she told UK's The Sunday Telegraph her two years of study left her with little more than a "mickey mouse" degree.

She said the university's claims it offered "quality education and prospect of employment after graduation" were fraudulent.

"The prospectus convinced me that the university is really impressive," she told The Telegraph.

"But, as soon as I started in 2011, I realised there were failings. Although I graduated with a first class degree in 2013, it is a mickey mouse degree.

"I hope that bringing this case will set a precedent so that students can get value for money, and if they don't, they get compensated. Anglia Ruskin talked a good talk but then they didn't deliver."

Wong's complaints include a lecturer arriving late to classes and students being ordered to "self study".

She also claims to have been "locked" in a room by staff who unfairly imprisoned her when she tried to protest against the university during her graduation ceremony.

A picture on Ms Wong's public Facebook profile from October 2013 shows the woman in her graduation cap and gown holding a large multi-coloured sign that says "ARU sucks".

In the caption accompanying the photo, Wong described being "forcibly removed from the stage" during the ceremony.

She wrote: "It was not acceptable the degree of violence Anglia Ruskin exerted against a girl who just wanted to speak her voice. If it's my graduation day, shouldn't I be given a minute to speak rather than playing you a drama?"

The graduate's Facebook page is also littered with articles and videos about her complaints.

While many followers have left supportive comments on her profile, others have criticised her campaign against ARU and her decision to protest during the 2013 graduation ceremony.

In papers lodged at London County Court, Wong called for a full refund of her course fees as well as living expenses during her two-year degree.

However, ARU rejected the former student's claims and argued her failure to get a job might be partly the result of her decision to "spend time and energy" campaigning against the university.

It is believed the case might set a precedent for the way universities advertise their courses.

According to the BBC, ARU was the UK's most complained about university in 2012/2013, attracting 992 complaints and appeals from students during that period.

It is not known whether Wong is now employed.