Related Research Articles
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. 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 résumés.
Belford University was an organization that offered online unaccredited degrees for "life experience". The organization maintained a post office box in Humble, Texas, but its certificates were mailed from the United Arab Emirates. Along with many similar websites, it was owned by the Karachi-based company Axact, the main business of which, according to a New York Times investigation, is "to take the centuries-old scam of selling fake academic degrees and turn it into an Internet-era scheme on a global scale". In July 2018, Shoaib Ahmed Sheikh, the CEO of Axact was arrested and sentenced to prison for 20 years for his role in perpetuating this scam.
Association of Christian Colleges and Theological Schools, ACCTS, is a Christian theological "approval" board that is not recognized as an educational accreditor by the United States Department of Education (USDE). It is located in the state of Louisiana. Gary Wilson is the current president.
The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) is a United States organization of degree-granting colleges and universities. It identifies its purpose as providing national advocacy for self-regulation of academic quality through accreditation in order to certify the quality of higher education accrediting organizations, including regional, faith-based, private, career, and programmatic accrediting organizations.
An accreditation mill is an organization that purports to award educational accreditation to higher education institutions without having government authority or recognition from mainstream academia to operate as an accreditor. Implicit in the terminology is the assumption that the "mill" has low standards for such accreditation. Accreditation mills are much like diploma mills, and in many cases are closely associated with diploma mills. The "accreditation" they supply has no legal or academic value, but is used in diploma mill marketing to help attract students.
Pacific International University was an unaccredited, conservative, Christian diploma mill college located in Springfield, Missouri. Carl Baugh, a 1989 alumnus, was the university's president.
The Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), formerly known as the National Home Study Council and then as the Distance Education and Training Council, is a non-profit national educational accreditation agency in the United States specializing in the accreditation of distance education programs of study and institutions.
Rochville University was an online diploma mill offering a "Life Experience Degree, and Certificate Program" without coursework or prior transcript evaluation. The State of Texas classified it as an "illegal supplier of educational credentials" whose degrees may not be used in Texas. The Oregon Office of Degree Authorization lists it as "fake". Its operation is believed to be centered in Pakistan, and its diplomas and degree certificates have been mailed from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Along with many similar enterprises, it is owned by the Karachi based company, Axact, whose main business, according to a New York Times investigation, is "to take the centuries-old scam of selling fake academic degrees and turn it into an Internet-era scheme on a global scale".
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.
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.
National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE) identifies itself as an organization specializing in evaluation of people's educational credentials. Some United States educational authorities identify it as an unrecognized accreditation organization or accreditation mill. NAHE charges fees for a service described as an evaluation of the educational credentials of clients who have studied in other countries or attained degrees through alternative methods.
The World Online Education Accrediting Commission (WOEAC) is an entity with no identified geographic location that represents itself as an accrediting organization for online degree providers. It is not recognized as a higher education accreditor by either the United States Department of Education (USDE) or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).
The International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE), formerly the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education, is an educational accreditation agency for college and university business programs. It is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) as a programmatic accrediting organization. It is also a member of the International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education - (INQAAHE).
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. It then moved to Woodville, Mississippi. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has put Bienville University on the list of Institutions Whose Degrees are Illegal to Use in Texas. Without recognized accreditation, Bienville's degrees and credits might not be acceptable to employers or other academic institutions, and use of degree titles may be restricted or illegal in some jurisdictions. Jurisdictions that have restricted or made illegal the use of credentials from unaccredited schools include Oregon, Michigan, Maine, North Dakota, New Jersey, Washington, Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, and Texas. Many other states are also considering restrictions on the use of degrees from unaccredited institutions.
Apollos University, headquartered in Great Falls, Montana, is an American privately owned distance education university. The university offers accredited Doctoral, Master's, Bachelor's and Associate's degree programs in Business Administration, Management and Information Technology. Apollos University is an academic institution of higher learning and is accredited by the Distance Education Accreditation Commission (DEAC) in the United States. Apollos University is also a member of SARA and approved to teach students in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.
A diploma mill is an organization that awards academic degrees and diplomas with substandard or no academic study and without academic approval by officially recognized educational accrediting bodies or qualified government agencies. The purchaser can then claim to hold an academic degree, and the organization is motivated by making a profit. These degrees are often awarded based on vaguely construed life experience. Some organizations claim accreditation by non-recognized/unapproved accrediting bodies set up for the purposes of providing a veneer of authenticity.
Higher education accreditation in the United States is a peer review process coordinated by accreditation commissions and member institutions. It was first undertaken in the late 19th century by cooperating educational institutions, on a regional basis.
References
- ↑ Council for Higher Education Accreditation
- ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-03-31. Retrieved 2006-04-27.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- ↑ Houston - News - First-Degree Fraud Archived 2009-02-08 at the Wayback Machine