How to Recognize and Avoid a Degree Mill

Diploma mills, or degree mills, are online businesses that take on the false guise of a college in order to scam students into acquiring useless degrees. They print unaccredited degrees for students that provide next to no academic progress and work, than act as false references for the graduate's career. These online learning programs are a money pit; in the end, the business gets the profit for the scam, and their graduate is left with a piece of paper that has no redeeming or educational quality.

There are individuals that are purposefully seeking diploma mills in order to avoid the learning process for a bachelor's, master's, or doctor's degree to simply further themselves in the chosen field, but most people that stumble upon diploma mills have a genuine interest to participate in an online academic program. To prevent yourself from being one of these unfortunate victims of fraud, you need to take a few necessary precautions:

• Make sure the distance learning program you are participating in is accredited. Note all the colleges listed on DegreeGo are accredited schools that have been recognized by an agency of the U.S. Department of Education and/or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
• Do not participate in online learning programs that stress the speed of their program as a hasty sale pitch ("Get your degree in a week!").
• Make sure the school has been established in its location for a reasonable amount of time and is not illogically changing addresses.
• Your distance learning program should be interested in you when enrolling: test scores you might have accrued; your previous educational history; and other history related to the program, such as your military or healthcare background.
• You should not be able to purchase your way into academic honors or a similar academic achievement.
• Your tuition should not be based upon the degree, but upon the courses being taken.

Following these precautions will help you recognize a degree mill and avoid spending money on an unnecessary "degree" with no real value or merit.