ESSEX JUNCTION, Vt., Oct. 14 "If you've got email you've received a pitch from a fraudulent online college or a diploma mill in the last 30 days," assures online degree expert Vicky Phillips. Diploma mills are bogus online
universities that sell college diplomas ~ the piece of paper itself rather than the educational experience ~ to any applicant who presents a valid credit card.
Phillips, CEO of America's leading online degree clearinghouse, GetEducated.com,
LLC, personally receives hundreds of solicitations from fake online colleges
each week. In response, her company has launched a new free online service,
The Diploma Mill Police(SM).
She warns consumers to be careful when shopping for an online degree. "More
than 100 fake online colleges offer consumers a chance to 'earn'
bogus credentials ranging from associate degrees in computer science to doctorates
in medicine.
We have chartered the Diploma Mill Police in an effort to help consumers get
educated about how to spot these fake universities." "A college
degree is the second most expensive purchase consumers will make
in their lifetime," warns the distance learning expert, "second only
to their home mortgage.
And in today's economic climate it is entirely possibly to spend more for a
degree than many will for a home. The sale of bogus online degrees, at an average
cost of less than five hundred dollars per diploma, has become a multi-million
dollar business." "The Internet is an especially dangerous place to
shop for a college," reveals Phillips. "Search engines are feeding
prospective students to online degree mills at an alarming rate.
Search engines and online college portals accept listings from colleges without
screening for accreditation. People trust their favorite search engine, and
they trust higher education portals. Few think to question the legitimacy of
a college." Consumers wishing to verify accreditation of any online university
in the USA can consult the Diploma Mill Police at http://www.geteducated.com/diplomamillpolice.htm.
The Diploma Mill Police have responded to more than 75 queries in their first
30 days of service. According to a company spokesperson more than half the queries
have involved fake colleges that are, predictably enough, accredited by fake
agencies.
Website: http://www.geteducated.com
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