How far can lying get you?

Answer: three years at Harvard

It’s a widely accepted fact that many of us do a bit of exaggerating when it comes time to fill out those college applications. Little “white lies”  to make ourselves sound just a bit more (how should I put this?) refined. But 23-year-old former Harvard student, Adam Wheeler, took lying on his college and scholarship apps to a whole new level.

Here’s a list of what people are saying this guy did:

- Falsely claimed to have perfect SAT scores, to have attended MIT and to have prepped at Andover.

- Stole around $45,000 in grants, scholarship and financial aid “under false pretenses.”

- Fabricated recommendations from Harvard professors and a college transcript detailing perfect grades over three years.

- Falsely listed numerous books he had co-authored, lectures he had given, and courses he had taught on his resume. Read More »

By the time I was 14 and had started high school, I was a midwestern teenager living the life of a workaholic New Yorker. Going to school from 7-3 didn’t cut it for me. I had to be in every club and organization. Choir, drama club, key club…you name it. I had to be physically active. I had to have a social life — with 18 year olds who had cars and stayed out late. I had to be active in my church, leading youth group and attending services three times a week. And more importantly, I had to pursue my songwriting and music career, which kept me out way past bedtime at bars for shows and open mics.

I was getting by on around 4 or 5 hours a sleep a night and I was doing it without caffeine. I had straight A’s and…a lot of my friends openly hated this about me. I was a nonstop go-getter, over-achieving on minimal sleep before I even had my driver’s license. When I was 16, I launched my own handbag line and my shows became more steady. By the time I was 17, I had a serious boyfriend to throw into the mix as well as a ‘real’ job, a position running the choir, and college application stress. Yet, I was still going strong, riding on an ‘I’ll sleep when I’m dead‘ slogan. Read More »