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Fast Online College Degree: Degree Mill or Legitimate Program?
You’re thinking about going back to school and getting a Bachelor’s Degree, and you don’t want to spend years doing
it. You’ve been online and looked at the possibilities; some look way too good to be true. But you’ve also seen
accelerated programs offered by good, reputable schools. Before you sign up for a fast online college degree, there
are some things you need to know.
What is a degree mill?
A degree mill is a company that offers a fast online college degree with no coursework involved. You literally buy
the degree. You can also purchase added options, such as honor graduation, transcripts and employer
verification.
How can they give you a college degree?
They give you extensive credit for “life experience.” This is tricky because many legitimate institutions also give
credit for life experience. The difference is that a degree mill will grant all your credits based on life
experience. You may be able to get a fast online college degree from a reputable institution, but it will require
some coursework.
I have a lot of life experience, and I know as much as my co-workers who have degrees. What’s the
problem?
For starters, a lot of employers don’t accept degrees from these companies. In some states, such as Oregon, it’s
illegal to use an unearned degree to get a job. Most people consider it unethical. There is a Senate investigation
going on into government employees who listed unearned degrees on their résumés and applications, including Laura
Callahan, former deputy chief information officer for the Homeland Security Department, who is on paid
administrative leave pending the results of that investigation.
Okay, it’s probably not a good idea to buy a degree. How do I know if a fast online college degree program is
legitimate?
1. Evaluate the program. What are their graduation requirements? How much credit will they give you for prior
learning, and what things do they consider as prior learning? Few legitimate programs will give you more than two
years’ credit for prior learning, which may include life experience.
2. Evaluate the school. Google it and see what comes up. Look at their overall reputation. How well do their
graduates do? Do the graduates get admitted to graduate schools? The State of Oregon has a good database of
“substandard” schools, and you can check it out at www.osac.state.or.us/oda/ unaccredited.
3. Evaluate the faculty. What’s the student/faculty ratio? How many of the faculties have PhD’s? How many
have Master’s? What have faculty members published?
4. Check out the school’s accreditation. You want a school that is accredited by a legitimate state approved
accrediting board. The Board of Online Universities Accreditation (BOUA) and the Universal Council for Online
Education Accreditation (UCOEA) are not accepted accreditation organizations. You can go to the Council for Higher
Education website to check the accreditation of a college at www.chea.org/ institutions.
You can get a fast online college degree that is legitimate and acceptable. Avoid the temptation of getting
something for nothing but bucks, and evaluate the programs carefully, and you will find a program that’s perfect
for you.
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