If you do an online search for “distance education degrees” on the internet today, you will find that there are millions of offers available. Every one of these are promising to provide you the best, fastest, cheapest, most easy, most convenient and recognized online degree in the topic of your choice. Many people are tempted by these online university programs and signed up to get their degrees only to feel cheated in the end by some so-called online colleges that are nothing more than diploma mills. Given the huge array of distance education programs available nowadays, it can be pretty difficult for a student to separate the real educators who will grill and train a student stringently before awarding a rightful degree from the profiteers who only wanted to collect more course fees. Do not assume the search engines know how to differentiate them either and show you only the legitimate and accredited online degree courses. Learn to protect yourself from such fraudulent online colleges with this check list to keep in mind when you are going selecting an online college or university.
Firstly, check the accreditation status of online education providers whether you think they are legitimate or not. Some institutions that are not traditional colleges can also be fully accredited and enjoy widespread recognition. These normally do not have the words college or university in their full names, but do not simply dismiss them as second rate or you may pass by a good opportunity in a high quality accredited online degree program. While on the other hand, unscrupulous businesses know and prey on this prejudiced perception of students and gave their shady setup names that sound similar to established colleges. For example, they may add the words “online” or “open” to form “The Open University of California” or “Online University of Washington”. If the college only declare itself as having highly, nationwide, or worldwide accredited without stating specifically the regional accreditation body, or that it is still in progress of applying for accreditation, skip their offered degree programs as they very likely do not possess recognized accreditation in the workforce. Checking the accreditation status of your potential educational institutes cannot be over emphasized as you may end up with a useless certificate after paying through your nose that cannot help to improve your career and financial prospects.
There are six regional accreditation boards that have been given the authority to award accreditation to schools and colleges by the U.S. Department of Education. They are as follows: New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), North Central Association of Schools and Colleges (NCA), Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges (MSA), Southern Association of Schools and Colleges (SACS), Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges (NWCCU). Before you enroll to earn a degree online, check that school in question by referring to its registered address against the relevant accreditation board according to the geographic location.
The most obvious tell-tale sign of fraudulent online degree offerings are those you frequently receive over email. When you can get degree certificates in any major you want immediately upon paying online, what else do you expect but a fake printed piece of paper that tells your prospective employer how much your integrity is worth? Yes, it is tempting to try and fake your academic background but the risk is often not worth it since most companies do a complete employment background check before offering you any positions, no matter how much they like your credentials on paper. There are too many high profile farces and education qualification lies that have been exposed by human resource departments that such background checks are often mandatory these days. Furthermore, even if you get away thanks to a sloppy human resource team, your complete lack of knowledge and competency in that major will also show right through on your first day of work.
These fake distance learning institutions cater to individuals who are desperate for a college degree, but are either not able to go through the years of proper college due to lack of funds or time or simply have problems with accredited online degrees and are unable to complete the degree requirements. Some of these setups will advertise fast track 6-month degree courses (so a person who is unable to study everything required in a four year college program can miraculously do so online in 6 months?), guaranteed graduation and degree conferment etc. These in run online classes conducted by poorly trained instructors, offer certificate of attendances, eliminate the need for tests and examinations and other questionable practices that will not be tolerated by legitimate online education providers. These setups are also likely to have questionable accreditation claims and can be easily detected if you are careful.
Some of these fake institutions will even go all way out and print you a degree certificate from the top ivy league college of your choice. Just pay a couple of hundred bucks and receive your shiny new degree cert in 7 days. If you want a doctorate degree even if you only have a high school diploma, no problem! Just pay and you will get it! These people will just twist facts in their attempt to justify a degree for you. Examples include giving credit for your outstanding life experiences (they will find something to write about even if you live a boring life), work, community, travel experiences and even hobbies will be pulled in for this purpose. After all we have said, if you feel that you deserved a doctorate degree for helping 5 abandoned kittens find new homes, they will award you one as long as you can pay for it.
So is it really possible to obtain an accredited graduate degree online? In many professions, a Bachelor degree is often considered as entry level and you start at the bottom rung with low wages even though you are a “professional”. That is because competition is fierce in the job market and there is a tremendous influx of Master and Doctorate degree graduates from overseas (a large percentage from China and India) will to accept lower payrolls as long as they get to work in the U.S. (well, a low salary here is still worth several times more compared to back home for these grads). Armed with only a Bachelor degree these days, you tend to have limited career advancement opportunities. To gain equal standing ground, many fresh college grads are choosing to continue working and gain practical experience in their chosen fields while earning an online MBA (by far the most popular graduate degree program) on a part time basis. It is now considered the norm to have a graduate degree in order to stand a chance for job promotions in nearly every professional career as fierce competition has upped the ante again in recent years.
What if you are stuck with personal and financial obligations and cannot afford to throw away even your current low-paying job. Like you, many working professionals cannot just simply quit their current jobs and go back to graduate school. Instead, they opt for an accredited online degree. Although there is still some bias and negative views on the validity of online Associate and Bachelor degrees, viewing them as inferior to graduates that spent three to four in college classes, surprising there is not much criticism against online postgraduate degree courses. Maybe it is expected that post graduates have sufficient maturity and self-management to succeed and they do not take their education lightly. Many online graduates show their strengths in immediately applying new concepts learnt from their internet courses to solve problems encountered in their daily work. This is a powerful force in shaping the opinions of top management on the usefulness and validity of online Master degree graduates. Furthermore, many reputable and well-established universities offer accredited online graduate degrees that have a strict acceptance policy that only the best students can qualify, such that their graduates are held in high regard even when compared to traditional full time graduates. Accredited online college degrees are recognized by major companies worldwide and boosts your career prospects.
