Beware of Online Degree Mills!

There is more to online education than formal diploma and
degree programs.  There are courses for everyone, including
courses which develop job skills, for general enjoyment,
and broadening horizons.  Why do students take courses
online?  Online education allows students to avoid
commuting, work at their own pace, and work from home or
the job site.  Also, online education courses may be less
expensive than classes taken on a campus.  However, most
students take courses in pursuit of a college or university
degree.  But, if you are considering entering a degree
program, you must beware of online diploma and degree mills!

A degree mill is a fake university that sells college
degrees without requiring the education to earn it.  As you
can imagine, fake degrees have become big business on the
Internet.  Vicky Phillips, CEO of www.GetEducated.com, LLC
states, "Prestigious unaccredited university?  No such
creature.  Not online...Accreditation is the highest mark
of academic quality.  Without accreditation a bogus online
university can begin awarding degrees overnight.  More than
thirty bogus universities currently sell online degrees in
the United States and Canada."  How can you tell if an
online education program is real or bogus?

Online Degree Mills: 10 Warning Signs of a Bogus Program

1.  The U.S. or Canadian online program is not accredited.
An accredited program will state it on the website.  The
website looks flashy, but doesn't mention accreditation.

2.  The online program claims to be accredited, but not by
an agency recognized by the Council on Higher Education
Accreditation (http://www.chea.org).  Bogus degree mills
will claim accreditation, but only CHEA has the names of
valid accreditors.  The U.S. Department of Education Higher
Learning Commission recognizes the following as national
accreditation agencies:

*Middle States' Association of Schools and Colleges

*New England Association of Schools and Colleges

*North Central Association of Schools and Colleges

*Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges

*Southern Association of Schools and Colleges

*Western Association of Schools and Colleges

3.  To be admitted to a bogus program, you are only asked
for your credit card.  Your academic records, GPA (grade
point average), and test scores are not requested.

4.  You are offered a degree based on your resume, giving
you course credit for "life experience."  Accredited
colleges do offer some course credit (up to 30 credits) for
career experience, but no accredited college will give a
degree for life experience only.  "If you encounter an
online graduate school that advertises master's or
doctorate degrees based solely on life experience, check
accreditation carefully. You are almost certainly dealing
with an online degree mill. Degree mills are fake colleges
that "mill" or crank out worthless paper degrees
to...students each year."  (Source: "College Credit for
Career Experience" by Vicky Phillips, CEO, GetEducated.com,
LLC)  There is one exception to this.  Thomas Edison State
College of New Jersey, USA does award an associate or
bachelor's degree based on career experience, military
service, corporate training, and course challenge exams.
To get a degree, all your experience must be carefully
documented and validated.

5.  You are promised a degree (i.e.; a piece of paper)
within thirty days of application regardless of your
background.  Usually, you are not required to take any
classes or tests.

6.  You are promised a degree for a specific cost, such as
$2,000 for a bachelor's or $3,000 for a graduate degree.
Accredited colleges do not do this; they charge per credit.

7.  The program you are considering has many complaints on
the Better Business Bureau website:   http://www.bbb.org.

8.  An employee of the college swears that online colleges
can't be accredited by the CHEA or any agency.

9.  The college has no faculty or lists professors who have
attended colleges that are not officially accredited by the
CHEA.

10.  The college offers degrees to anyone, but is located
in a foreign country that has no accreditation agencies.

If you are considering entering a U.S. online education
program, check it out carefully for accreditation by the
CHEA and avoid the bogus, online degree mills!


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