THE Irish government’s chief science adviser has refused to release his doctoral thesis, despite allegations that his PhD was awarded by an American-based “fee for degree” institution.

Dr Barry McSweeney, who earns €120,000-a-year in his government role, has claimed that Pacific Western University (PWU), a so-called diploma mill, was “vastly different” in 1992 when he achieved his doctorate through distance learning. However, a number of American academics and degree experts have dismissed this claim.

McSweeney has refused to give permission for his PhD to be made available and PWU said that it will not release it unless he does. Other academics have said this is a highly unusual stance for a university as PhD theses are usually filed in college libraries.

McSweeney’s refusal was issued through a spokeswoman, who said that the PhD involved “substantial research”. Mc-Sweeney has yet to comment since questions were first raised over his qualifications three weeks ago.

He was first invited to meet Micheal Martin, the enterprise minister, after questions were raised by opposition TDs. The minister has continued to support McSweeney’s appointment, arguing that his vast experience made him suitable for the job, but has asked him to clarify “issues”.

This request followed an assessment by the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland, which found that PWU did not have accrediting powers in America.

Experts on diploma mills in America, where many such universities are based, expressed disbelief that no action has been taken by the Irish government.

Margaret Soltan, a professor of English at George Washington University in Washington DC and an opponent of diploma mills, said: “In the United States, the revelation that a high-level appointee in any government agency had received a PhD from a diploma mill would inevitably result in that person’s withdrawal from their appointment. Despite McSweeney’s claims, Pacific Western is, and always has been, a diploma mill.”

She argued that McSweeney’s other qualifications and impressive track record were not enough to justify his appointment. “It doesn’t make any difference that, as some in your government have said, the particular job to which Mc-Sweeney has been appointed does not require a PhD.”

John Bear, the author of a guidebook on non-traditional learning institutions, said: “If PWU was vastly different back then, it was even worse than it is now. Holders of degrees from Pacific Western in the early 1990s would be committing a criminal offence if they used those degrees in the US states that regulate degree use.”

George Gollin, a physics professor in the University of Illinois, said that a lawsuit was taken against PWU in 1997 by the Hawaii commerce and consumer affairs department.

“The university was fined $30,000 (€25,400) and had to re-issue funds to customers,” Gollin said. “It’s hard to believe that a ‘real school’ fell from grace.”

Gollin said it was highly unusual for an academic to resist making his PhD public or for a university to do so.

“Mine is here in my office and if you want it, you can have it,” he said. His university would not hire anyone with a PWU qualification, he insisted.

Steve Bonica, the president of PWU, has pointed out that the university was recently taken over by new owners and that all the degrees it confers are legal.

A spokeswoman for Mc-Sweeney previously said that his doctorate took two years to obtain and was based on research on the development of a biotechnology-based research centre, understood to be BioResearch Ireland. But PWU is believed to offer academic points for life experience and will give credit to a student where this is applicable.

McSweeney has a biochemistry degree from University College Cork and a masters degree from Trinity College Dublin. He has worked as director-general of the European commission’s joint research centre.

Jan O’Sullivan, of the Labour party, has demanded to be given more information on the “substantial” research that McSweeney’s PhD involved. She said that he could clear up the matter by releasing the necessary information and that the onus was on him to do so quickly.

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