Accreditation Mills – How to Spot Them

You have chosen the institution or program you wish to attend and have investigated it thoroughly. The institution is accredited and you have contacted the accrediting organization to verify this. But have you checked into the accrediting organization itself? Just because a post-secondary educational institution is accredited and you have contacted the accrediting organization, this does not mean that the institution is operating on a legitimate level.

You need to be on the look out for accrediting mills, especially if the institution you are applying to is suspect of being a diploma mill. Diploma or degree mills attract students by offering to supply a diploma or degree in a short amount of time, for money, or based on life and professional experience. Accreditation mills are often created by the diploma mills as a way of looking legitimate to the prospective student, and they often appear to be official.

Diploma and accreditation mills mislead and harm everyone that gets involved with them! Degrees from mills may not be recognized by other institutions when students seek to transfer or go to graduate school. Employers may not acknowledge degrees and certificates from accreditation or diploma mills when asked to provide tuition assistance for continuing education, and in some cases employees who obtained their job after presenting bogus credentials or phony degrees may be subject to criminal prosecution.

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) lists the following signs that you may be dealing with an accreditation mill:

• Can post-secondary educational institutes or programs purchase their accreditation status?

• Does the accreditor create bogus lists of institutions or programs they say they have accredited, but without the knowledge of the listed institutions and programs?

• Does the accrediting organization claim to be recognized by the United States Department of Education (USDE) or CHEA when no such recognition exists?

• Does the accrediting organization have any published standards of quality?

• Is accredited status granted in a short amount of time?

• Are routine site visits part of ongoing assessments or do reviews consist entirely of submitted documents, and is “permanent accreditation granted without review or follow-up?

• Is the name of the accrediting organization similar to that of a well-established accrediting organization?

If you have any doubts as to the legitimacy of an accrediting institution, despite their claims of being “recognized” or “licensed”, contact the USDE or CHEA to find out if the organization is recognized by these institutions. If an accrediting organization is not listed with the USDE or CHEA then DO NOT proceed any further and DO NOT give out any personal banking or credit card information until you know the accrediting organization and, therefore, the educational institution are legitimate.

Another way of checking on the legitimacy of an accrediting organization is to contact the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to find out if any complaints have been lodged against the organization. If so, or if the BBB has no information on the organization, then refrain from enrolling in the educational institution.

It is important to investigate any suspect educational institutions or programs, especially if they are available online. If you think there may be an issue with the legitimacy of the institution or that it may be a diploma mill and they appear to be accredited, verify the legitimacy of the accrediting organization. You want to be sure that your education will provide you with the tools and recognition you will need to gain employment and be productive in your chosen profession, so you need to ensure your degree or diploma is coming from a nationally recognized post-secondary institution. If you don’t, you may end up with a worthless piece of paper that cost you thousands of dollars.

For additional information please see the following:

Postsecondary Educational Institutions and Programs Accredited by Accrediting Agencies and State Approval Agencies Recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education

CHEA Database of Institutions and Programs Accredited by Recognized United States Accrediting Organizations

Wikipedia's List of unrecognized accreditation associations of higher learning, and their List of unaccredited institutions of higher learning.

Bears Guide To Earning Degrees By Distance Learning