The Federal Trade Commission, America's watchdog consumer agency, has issued yet another warning about an education-related scam. Entitled "Diploma Mills: Degrees of Deception", the FTC memo takes issue with diploma mills, a form of online deception practiced by companies all too eager to exploit the country's fascination with online learning and online degrees. The companies behind these diploma mills usually approach their prey using an email that promises respondents a degree based on their life experience, all in exchange for a one-time, up-front fee. For some, the fact that little, if any, course work is ever required makes the offer virtually irresistible. In some ways, diploma mills have been a scam waiting to happen. The rise of legitimate online universities - the University of Phoenix, Westwood College and Kaplan University are good examples - have made it easier than ever for America's working adults to participate in the learn-to-earn revolution. The job qualifications that come with an online degree generally translate into better pay and better career prospects. While employers now regard legitimate online degrees with much greater favour than they did just a few years ago, they're far from keen on "diploma mill" graduates. If you get caught holding a diploma mill degree when applying for a job or - perhaps even worse - a graduate degree program, expect to be shown the door in no uncertain terms. According to the FTC, diploma mills trolling for "graduates" often set their hook and then reel in their catch using a bogus claim of accreditation. By claiming to be "accredited", a diploma mill can easily create a sense of security in those it targets. While many people are aware that American colleges and universities voluntarily have their educational programs reviewed as part of the accreditation process, few are familiar with the approximately six regional and eighty professional accrediting associations in the United States. When a diploma mill fabricates an official sounding designation for its alleged accrediting agency, it's easy to be fooled. One way to positively confirm a school's accreditation credentials is by checking the list of accredited colleges and universities at the website of the Department of Education. It pays to remember that a claim of accreditation is really just the icing on the cake for diploma mill scammers, says the FTC. If they're going to take the bait, most recipients of an email offering a diploma mill degree are already sucked into the scam by the idea of having their life experience "officially" recognized, especially if they don't have to wait for the degree to be issued and don't need to attend classes. But there are other giveaways, too, that an email offer of a degree isn't legitimate. Topping the list, perhaps, is the ever-present offer of a degree in exchange for a one-time fee. Legitimate online colleges and universities charge by the credit hour, reminds the FTC, and not by the degree. Also, an instant degree offer made through an unsolicited email or online pop-ups is almost certainly a scam. Finally, watch out for imitative names. While not always a dead giveaway - some search engine marketers legitimately target common misspellings of a university's name - diploma mills like to select names that intentionally mimic the names of well-known colleges and universities, a practice that goes so far as to proffer instant degrees from institutions with foreign-sounding names that seem both persuasive and credible.
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