Just Pay It? Bribery and Higher Education in the Czech Republic

Abstract

The fall of communism in the Czech Republic brought great opportunity in higher education. New legislation allowed for legally recognized private colleges and universities. However, the legal changes did not erase the entrenched structures of political corruption and bribery. What does it “cost” to pay a bribe? On the other hand, what does it cost not to pay the bribe? That was the question facing Richard Smith. As a Christian administrator of a secular college in post-communist Czech Republic, Smith had to decide whether to pay the relatively small bribe to the judge for the much-needed accreditation.