If the rules for the education credits are met, then the TP can use whatever he/she paid for tuition that was not reimbursed, or paid by a scholarship. The 1098T is very unreliable as being correct. You should look at the clients receipts to see what he/she actually paid for the tax year in question  

"...very unreliable".  What is your experience with this?  Do you think clients (often - sometimes - usually - rarely) have better records than universities and colleges? 

They can get an account transcript from the University.

I have 3 granddaughters who attended 4 years of college, and two were incorrect every year (3 different colleges)