| Type | Unaccredited distance learning |
|---|---|
| Established | 1992 |
| President | Deric Bircham |
| Vice-president | Laurence Cheng Wen |
| CEO | William Martin |
| Location | , |
| Website | www |
Bircham International University is a private, unaccredited [1] [2] institution of distance-learning higher education. It is registered in Spain and the United States (Delaware), and formerly operated from the Bahamas. [3]
BIU was founded by Deric Bircham, William Martin, and Bircham's adopted son, Laurence Cheng Wen. [4] According to its website, [5] Bircham was established in Europe in 1992 [6] and is also registered in Delaware (United States), Spain, and the Bahamas. John Bear, authority on distance education, wrote in the 2003 edition of Bears' Guide to Earning Degrees by Distance Learning that Bircham's listed "delegation addresses [are] in Spain, England, United States (a Mail Boxes Etc. in Miami, Florida), Bahamas, Taiwan, China, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Columbia, and New Zealand." Bear's Guide states that "the offices in England and the Bahamas were strictly administrative and did not serve students." [7]
Bircham acquired Oxford International College in 2000. [8] [9] [10]
BIU's website presents a list of accreditations and memberships, but none of them are from an educational accreditation body recognized by the countries where it operates. [1]
Sources explicitly listing Bircham as "unaccredited" include the Maine Department of Education and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which state that Bircham has "No degree-granting authority from Spain (American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers [AACRAO] evaluation)." [11] [12] The Oregon Office of Degree Authorization considers BIU an unaccredited foreign degree supplier. [1]
BIU describes itself as a practitioner of non-formal education. While it operates legally under Spanish law, it is not formally recognized by the Ministry of Education of Spain. [8] [13] [14] Because BIU is unaccredited, its degrees and credits might not be acceptable to employers or other institutions. Use of its degree titles may be illegal in some jurisdictions. [12]
In 2003, South Florida's CityLink magazine reported that Oregon education officials said that Bircham was "totally bogus". [15]
In July 2007, the Secretariat of Public Education (SEP) of Mexico issued a notice [16] stating that degrees lacking RVOE (Official Recognition from the Mexican Government) will not be validated by the SEP. Degrees via online or distance learning issued by foreign institutions like Bircham University will not be recognized by the SEP.
In April 2008, the Nairobi Business Daily reported that Bircham International University was operating in Kenya without authorization. [16] In March 2010, the same newspaper published a correction, stating that BIU "is a Spanish institution of distance learning and is in good standing with Spanish authorities that offer alternatives to formal adult higher education specifically aimed at adult working professionals" and that its programs "can be legalized and validated by the Embassy of Kenya in the USA or Spain despite the institution not being registered by the Commission for Higher Education in Kenya". [17] An official of Kenya's Commission for Higher Education was quoted as warning that BIU degree certificates would not be recognized. [18] In 2013, BIU directors state that BIU does not have any presence in Kenya nor any collaboration with other any college or educational institution in Kenya. [14]
In 2013, health fraud activist Stephen Barrett conducted a review concluding: "BIU offers what amounts to supervised textbook reading plus credentials that suggest bearers have considerably more formal education and expertise than they actually have. The requirements for its degrees are much less than those of universities accredited by CHEA-recognized agencies. Most of BIU's teachings are straightforward, but some promote pseudoscientific concepts and practices. None of its health-related programs—by themselves—provide an adequate basis for clinical practice." [19] [4]
Bronte International University is an unaccredited post-secondary educational institution formerly in South Dakota. It is widely considered to be a diploma mill, operated from an unknown location. Its website offers "fast" degrees for "life experience."
A diploma mill is a company or organization that claims to be a higher education institution but provides illegitimate academic degrees and diplomas for a fee. The degrees can be fabricated (made-up), falsified (fake), or misrepresented. These degrees may claim to give credit for relevant life experience, but should not be confused with legitimate prior learning assessment programs. They may also claim to evaluate work history or require submission of a thesis or dissertation for evaluation to give an appearance of authenticity. Diploma mills are frequently supported by accreditation mills, set up for the purpose of providing an appearance of authenticity. The term may also be used pejoratively to describe an accredited institution with low academic admission standards and a low job placement rate. An individual may or may not be aware that the degree they have obtained is not wholly legitimate. In either case, legal issues can arise if the qualification is used in resumes.
Hamilton University was an unaccredited institution based in Evanston, Wyoming. According to the Oregon Office of Degree Authorization, it was first established in Hawaii as American State University. It has since been closed by court order in Wyoming and has relocated to the Bahamas under the name Richardson University.
Suffield University is an unaccredited internet school specializing in what it calls Life Experience Degrees, issued upon payment, with life experience assessment based on the word of the applicant. Suffield is not accredited by any accreditation body recognized by its country. According to the US Department of Education, unaccredited degrees and credits might not be acceptable to employers or other institutions, and use of degree titles may be restricted or illegal in some jurisdictions.
American Central University (ACU) was an unaccredited distance learning private, for-profit university licensed by the state of Wyoming in 2004. The Oregon Office of Degree Authorization stated that the institution may be run from Malaysia.
Rushmore University is an unaccredited institution of higher learning offering online degrees in a variety of business-related fields, exclusively via distance learning. It has been described as a diploma mill, providing illegitimate academic degrees and diplomas for a fee.
Madison University is a non-accredited distance learning college located in Gulfport, Mississippi. The state of Mississippi considers Madison an "unapproved" college. Madison is also listed as an unaccredited and/or substandard institution by four other U.S. states. According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, Madison University has been referred to as a diploma mill by the state of Oregon.
University Degree Program (UDP) is or was an unaccredited consortium of diploma mills run by Americans Jason and Caroline Abraham beginning in the 1990s. In 2004, The Chronicle of Higher Education called UDP the "granddaddy" of diploma mill operations.
Knightsbridge University is a private distance learning institution based in Denmark that caters mostly to English speaking people. It was founded in 1991 by Henrik Fyrst Kristensen. Although the school is based in Denmark, John Bear's guide states that Knightsbridge was formerly incorporated in Liberia and at time of publication was incorporated in Antigua and Barbuda, while using a mailing address in Scotland.
Concordia College and University is an entity with a primary mailing address in Delaware that represents itself as a real life institution that awards associate, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees based solely on the purchaser's work and life experience, with some credits transferred in. Although the name is similar, Concordia College and University is not in any way affiliated with any of the regionally accredited institutions within the six-member Concordia University System.
Almeda University was an unaccredited for-profit online university registered on the Caribbean island of Nevis. It offered illegitimate degrees including online certificate programs, general "Life Experience Degrees", and doctorates in religion and theology. Almeda was accredited by the Council for Distance Education Accreditation, the Interfaith Education Ministries (IEM), and the Association for Online Academic Excellence (AOAEX), none of which were recognized by the United States Department of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Almeda University is widely regarded as a diploma mill. It was owned and operated by Pakistani software company Axact.
University of NorthWest, established in 2001 in New York City, is a provider of distance education that offers academic degrees in several fields. Additionally, its website states that it offers classes at 'learning centers' in Canada, China, Bangladesh, Ireland, India, Kenya, Lebanon, Malaysia, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Russia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Kingdom. In the summer of 2010, the Oregon Office of Degree Authorization reported that the University of NorthWest was actively engaged in Afghanistan.
The American University of London (AUOL) is an online diploma mill. The company disputes the label and instead describes itself as a for-profit unaccredited educational institution offering undergraduate and graduate degrees solely by distance learning. It is a different organization than the American University in London.
Unaccredited institutions of higher education are colleges, trade schools, seminaries, and universities which do not have formal educational accreditation.
Washington International University is an online unaccredited institution of higher education founded in 1994 and currently incorporated in the British Virgin Islands. It describes itself as a "cyberspace university" and a "university without borders", serving clients from around the world online. The university website states that WIU's graduates have come from 112 countries.
Bienville University was an unaccredited institution that was based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It was run by Thomas J. Kirk. Bienville University was referred to as a diploma mill or degree mill in a 2003 article by KVBC News 3. It was never recognised or approved by any accreditation agency and was not approved by the US Department of Education nor the Council for Higher Education Accreditation and has been closed by the State of Louisiana.
Warren National University, previously known as Kennedy-Western University, was an unaccredited private distance learning university that claimed to offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in the United States from 1984 to 2009. It has been described by federal investigators and news sources as a diploma mill, a designation it has disputed. Its administrative offices were located in Agoura Hills, California.
The Yorker International University, formerly New Yorker University (not to be confused with the well-known New York University) or The New Yorker (TNYU) (which had nothing to do with The New Yorker), is a for-profit unaccredited institution, which claims to have a "head office" in Rapid City, South Dakota, and a "world wide representative office" in New York City. The school has published a list of other branches, namely Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Henderson, Nevada, Miami, Florida, Ajman, UAE, Abidjan, Ivory Coast, Accra, Ghana, Shanghai, China, Milan, Italy, Perignano di Casciana Terme Lari, Italy, Florence, Italy, Bologna, Italy. According to Italian authorities, it is unclear if those addresses are real. The organization chiefly uses two websites: www.yorker.com.ar and www.nyuniversity.info — after www.nyuniversity.net was abandoned.
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