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[dale1]

Article at http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/saudi-universities-offer-cash-for-u-s-researchers-citations/39036

So what say you, wise Chronicle readers?  Fraud, or clever use of academic loophole?

[totoro]

This happens all the time here in Australia too....

[pigou]

If you pick your university based on an international ranking, you deserve whatever you get. Personally, I'd find that rather pathetic and it would detract me from applying there (as a student or faculty).

edit: they  should just recruit students they know have no chance of getting in and waive their application fee. Then they can reject them and improve their selectivity rating. Or does that only work for the US ranking?

[totoro]

I can't see the problem here. The foreign academics come to the country in question and make contributions either by collaborating in research or teaching. But they still retain their home country position. It's a win win. This article deliberately makes it sound bad for some reason.

[oldfullprof]

At Mafia Tech, the business school paid $5,000 for articles (even though these were supposed to have been part of the normal tenure and promotion process.) 

Later, conference proceedings qualified.

[totoro]

I just learned yesterday that one of my colleagues here down under retains a partial appointment at one of the Oxbridge unis. So I guess we are "paying for citations".