While opting for free online degrees, you should do adequate research in finding out whether the course is authentic or fake. You should opt for an accredited degree offered by an accredited online college or university.

Ways to Avoid Being Deceived

The best way to avoid free online degree scams is to know the details of the online colleges and the program you are applying for. There are many fake distance education websites which take advantage of prospective students who want to pursue higher education through online programs.

You should check on the credentials of the websites offering false degrees as some do not hide the fact that they are selling false degrees and at times even promote that you can get a degree without studying for it. Even if you opt for these kinds of false degrees, you will have to face the consequences at a later stage which can affect your career as well as future. Therefore, it is better to avoid such fake degrees.

You should also be careful of the websites that deceive students by claiming that they are offering real diploma courses. You should check whether the courses are accredited or not and then decide to pursue them. Accredited courses offered by accredited colleges are approved by accrediting agencies and they are authentic as a third party has approved its offerings.

Also some claim that they are part of the brick and mortar colleges in America, but when you check their credentials through their domain name, they do not have a proper address. There are no campuses or faculty members.

Therefore, if you are interested in pursuing higher education and want to take advantage of one of the free online degree websites, be sure that they are offered through authentic source and are credible.

A diploma mill is an unaccredited institution that sells diplomas, certificates and degrees to students with very little or no coursework required to earn the degree. The degree or diploma you purchase will have no value in the workplace. It is as worthless as the fancy piece of paper it’s written on. Identifying a diploma mill will require research and knowing what to look out for. So before investing your time and money you need to find out if the institution is a diploma mill or a legitimate institution of higher education. Read this article to learn how to identify diploma mills in 5 simple steps.

Step 1:

Verify accreditation status – You can use the U.S. Department of Education Database of Accredited Post secondary Institutions and Programs to see if the school is accredited. Make sure the institution is accredited by an organization recognized by the U.S. Dept. of Education. If the school lacks valid accreditation by an agency recognized by a Federal agency, a State government or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, you may want to continue your search for a legitimate school.

Step 2:

Degrees for sale – You can simply purchase a degree, diploma or certificate for a fee without completing any coursework or very little coursework. If the institution guarantees a degree in a short time frame, or offers you a bachelor’s or master’s degree within a days or weeks for around $600 or more, it is a tell tale sign that the school is a diploma mill.

Step 3:

Similar names –Institutions that have names that are very similar to well known reputable college or universities are usually diploma mills. Check with the Better Business Bureau to make sure the school is operating legally in a state and to see if there are any complaints on record.

Step 4:

No admissions information required – If the school requires no admissions information such as transcripts, GPA, or standardized test scores, you may want to ask some very important questions such as who teaches the courses? What degrees do they offer? Are they regionally or nationally accredited? Where can you find course descriptions? What are the requirements for graduation? Do they offer financial aid, scholarships or grants?

Step 5:

How are tuition and fees paid? – Another tell tale sign of a diploma mill is if the school requires that tuition and fees be paid on a per-degree basis instead of per credit hours, course, or semester basis.

Don’t risk your future!

Diploma mills are not recognized by official educational accrediting agencies, or by employers. They are schools that are more interested in taking your money than providing you with a quality higher education. If you are serious about your education, you will need to spend some time researching the school that you are interested in attending so that you don’t fall victim to diploma mills. You must thoroughly research the school to ensure the institution is legitimate. Learn these tips on identifying and protecting yourself from diploma mills.

Education online is one of the most preferred forms of study these days. Considering the growing popularity of the online medium of education and students need to find the most flexible courses of study, online educational system is tapped by Fake Online Degree Colleges and Institutions as a money making venue.

Fake Online Degree Colleges

Many fake colleges and educational institutions disguise themselves in a name that closely resembles some of the most popular institutions in the country and advertise to offer the best of courses, which are in fact fake and phony degree courses. Not all users of these online educational facilities are aware of such degree mills and phony degrees that they often fall prey to these institutions. A few facts for your information

• Fake online degree colleges and degree mills are said to generate more than around $200 millions dollars of revenue every year.
• Their job is to sell degree certificates for a price. And the entire course curriculum they talk about is just an eye wash. Where hard earned degrees are offered t at a ridiculous time frame and for a price, make sure to enquire about their legitimacy.
• Unfortunately not all those who approach such institutions are innocent, there are number of others who intentionally offer to take up such phony degree courses just to find a career. Imagine our state when we find that those experts whom we consult may it be healers, quality control specialist and even engineers, hold a fake degree or diplomas. It is pathetic.
• The fact is that not even institutions like FBI are in a position to do away with Fake Online Degree Colleges. While the task force operated under the name of Operation Dipscam, guided by John Bear, more popularly known as Degree Mill Watchdog, were successful in closing down more than 40 colleges in a period 14 years from 1979 to 1992.
• Fake colleges are a good source of a multi million dollar business with support from a number of business houses. Hence curbing is highly difficult.
• When they can make huge money they also do not hesitate to pay high sums of money for advertising their business. As newspapers thrive on income from advertisements they turn a blind eye to these phony college degree advertisements. And the damage is very serious when the advertisement appears next to a genuine college advertisement.
• With support from sources such as internet and search engines in particular degree mills and phony degree college thrive well. Even some of the sensitive search engines have not taken steps to stop the listing of fake colleges in line with accredited institutions confusing the end users about the legitimacy of the schools or colleges they wish to proceed with.
• Degree and Diploma Mills cannot survive without the help from popular media sites and particularly magazines and papers. It is upto the media to help the public from the shady dealing of fake colleges and phony educational institutions whose prime aim is to mint money putting the future of thousands of students at stake.

Even repeated warnings have proved futile in making students and professionals aware of fake online institutions. So much so that after years of career with fake degrees and diplomas, the future of such individuals goes into turmoil after the fake college credentials are discovered.

What is a Diploma Mill?

Diploma Mills are in short, fake online colleges that offer Online Degree Programs which do not meet the required standard of education or those which offer fake degree certificates for money. These players mainly intend to mint money from those students who genuinely look forward to complete an online degree program. It is because of these diploma mills that even genuine colleges loose their recognition and employers do not recognize Online Degree Certifications fearing fraud and misrepresentation.

What is a Diploma Mills Police?

Are you looking forward to enroll in an Online Degree Program? A little confused about how to verify their accreditation and reputation? Do you feel the need for a website which will clarify the status of online schools, their performance and recognition? Diploma Mill Police is a free online college accreditation service that helps you verify an Online Degree Program and its authenticity. This service mainly aims at protecting students with genuine interest from getting cheated by these unscrupulous businessmen who en cash the need of such students. There are students who willingly go for such options, as it gets them a degree with absolutely no effort and just money. It is believed that there are close to 200 colleges in the US which are diploma mills and it is important that students take the help of such services so as not to repent later on.

Online College Accreditation Service – Is it helpful?

Any effort towards fighting against these Diploma Mills is a welcome sign. Further it is one stop shop for students to verify the legitimacy of the online college they choose to attend to. This service mainly helps in identifying whether the educational institution is a valid one or a scam. Even a slightest doubt about the institution can be verified and updation about accredited colleges and the regional agency that has offered accreditation. A step by step effort in this direction will help in wiping away the ill effects of Diploma Mills. Do you wish to differ?

Online Colleges

I met an old friend of mine yesterday at the coffee shop. Her name is Sophia. A very good friend of mine whom I lost contact with some years ago. But yes she is one those most studious girls in the class. Her eye for detail astonishes me greatly. Given her a job she does it extremely well and finds out what it takes to do it better. It was only on a chat with her that I learned about Online Degree Colleges. She had to quit her college studies to support her family and has made it big in her job with online degrees that allowed her to work and study as well. It was an unexpectedly long chat. She was telling me about how online colleges enables a person to study at any time of the day and from anywhere in the world. The study by capacity concept that allowed students complete their courses at their own pace supported with Online Lectures delivered by eminent professors. Interactive forum for the benefit of students to clarify their doubts and seek clarifications. It was wonderful solution for anybody who wishes to study when they are way past their college days.

Fraudulent Colleges

As she was telling me she also spoke about the need to verify the legitimacy of the colleges under review. I believe with the emergence of a number of illegitimate online course providers, whose aim is to offer a degree for money has become a serious threat to those students who are genuinely looking forward to make a career. It is both waste of time and money where your real need is cashed and you are ditched with a lifeless degree certification which has neither meaning nor recognition. She was talking about a term called Diploma Mills. She said those colleges which offer degree for money or those that which offer a affordable course curriculum, which can be completed at a ridiculous time frame are normally classified as Diploma Mills. If I can recollect well she was talking about a check list that will help you save falling prey to such fraudulent colleges.

Check points to avoid falling prey to imposters

Sophia was simply fabulous the way she jotted down the points in a lightening speed, let me try and put them down

• Be clear on the course of education you wish to take up and focus your search on colleges offering them.
• Check for the accreditation from the US department of education and other regional council, in their respective list published every year.
• Get opinions from the past pupil who had been through the course curriculum.
• Always go for reputed colleges.
• Age old colleges always have a name in the industry.
• Study the curriculum to check for a genuine and feasible course structure
• Check for the basis on which such degrees are offered, if it is based on your experience or any other consideration other than studying and passing exams, be sure they are diploma mills.

The discussion ended as she had to leave to catch up for an appointment for a client. Don’t you think my friend was fabulous? Are there any more friends in the forum who have better details and experience, please do share it? May be we can catch with another episode of coffee shop.