She was sentenced by United States District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston for assisting over 20 students to get admitted as fake athletic recruits, in exchange for money.

The prosecution sought a two-year sentence, but Talwani did say her guilty plea to a wire fraud count in 2021 would not make that length necessary.

However, the judge said Heinel's request for probation would be denied due to her "dishonesty".

She is among 53 people to have pled guilty or been convicted at trial related to "Operation Varsity Blues".

Celebrities have been caught up in the admissions and testing scandal, including Desperate Housewives actress Felicity Huffman and Full House actress Lori Loughlin.

William Rick Singer coordinated parties within the scandal and was sentenced earlier this week to three-and-a-half years in prison for allowing the cheating to take place and funnelling money.

Heinel said she received $1.28 million (£1.06 million/€1.2 million) from Singer and his clients to USC accounts.

She said she did this to keep her job and meet fundraising expectations.

"There was just so much pressure to raise money at my institution, and the amount just kept getting bigger and bigger," said Heinel in the court, as reported by Reuters.

"They talked about feeding the beast."

Heinel is to forfeit $160,000 (£132,000/€150,000) that she acquired in a sham consulting agreement with Singer too.