A Chinese family who paid $6.5m to a consultant at the centre of the US college-admissions scandal said they believed the payment was an ordinary donation to Stanford University and not related to their daughter’s entry into the institution.
The Zhao family, who own a Chinese medicine producer in Shandong Province, gave the money to a foundation set up by education adviser William Singer. The consultant has since admitted running an elaborate scheme in which wealthy parents channelled money to college coaches and exam administrators to buy places at exclusive US universities for their children.
But, the family says, the money was intended as a donation and they were “misled” by Mr Singer.