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Diploma mills, often referred to as degree mills, are institutions that pose as accredited colleges in order to “sell” degrees online. Often, they’ll cite accreditation on their websites, using fake names of accrediting institutions to sound authentic. Once you know the warning signs, you can avoid being scammed out of your money in exchange for a phony degree.
1. Fees are charged per degree not per credit hour. Diploma mills charge by the degree, often charging extra for Summa Cum Laude academic honors. This is always a red flag that the program is not legitimate.
2. Credit is offered for “life experience.” In a legitimate college, you may be able to “test out” of a class for credit, but legitimate credit cannot be awarded for life experience. Degree mills heavily push the “life experience for credit” angle in their advertising.
3. You are offered a degree in exchange for a lump sum of money. Don’t fall for it. Many diploma mills offer “discounts” when you purchase two degrees at a time, such as Bachelor’s and Master’s. They may even offer to verify your degrees to potential employers.
4. The institution is offered in a foreign country. If the program you’re considering offers a degree in the U.S. but states its accreditation is outside the country, steer clear of it.
5. Your academic history is not relevant to admission. Accredited colleges will ask for your prior academic history, transcripts, grade point averages, etc. If your admission is based merely on an online enrollment or a faxed application, chances are you’re dealing with a faux institution.
6. You are promised speedy delivery of your degree. Don’t buy into a program that offers a degree in record time with little or no work required from you. Many diploma mills offer a degree in as little as 30 days. Some legitimate online colleges offer accelerated programs, but that usually implies that you can cut off a few months for an Associate’s Degree or up to one year off the completion time for a Bachelor’s Degree.
7. There’s no mention of how many credit hours are required to get your degree. Accredited colleges require a specific number of successfully completed credit hours to obtain a degree. If this is absent from the program requirements, it is not legitimate. Accredited colleges have strict standards with which they must comply in order to maintain their accreditation.
8. There is no phone number or physical address. If the only point of contact is a web address, you’re not dealing with a college. Authentic colleges will have physical addresses you can visit and phone numbers you can call.
9. Questionable Ads. Ads that scream big promises are a red flag. Experience based on life experience, promises of guaranteed employment, speedy degrees, etc., are sure signs of fake degree programs.
10. Diploma mills often offer questionable degrees. Sure, you’ll see traditional degrees listed with many programs, but there are also programs that offer seemingly tailor-made degrees. Degrees in pseudo-sciences or New Age religions are questionable programs at best.
If the degree program you’re checking out seems too good to be true, it probably is. It only takes a few moments to verify if a college is accredited by visiting the Council for Higher Education website. Remember, earning a real degree takes time. Diploma mills specialize in taking your money in exchange for fake degrees.
