What is a Diploma Mill?

Diploma mills are a real problem to watch out for when examining online degree programs. Cranking out diplomas to people who have not really earned them, these businesses make money by presenting themselves as real colleges, universities or schools, but lack the accreditation it takes to give out legitimate degrees.

The worst diploma mills (also known as degree mills) commit fraud, getting their cash by selling printed degrees, academic references and even fake transcripts to people willing to purchase them. Others have the false front of a true university, but do not properly evaluate academic work from their so-called students. Some claim you can “earn” your degree in mere days and others claim that “life experience” can count toward your online degree.

Still others assign coursework at a level far less rigorous than legitimate online colleges. Some degree-seekers are attracted to these operations because they assign little to no serious coursework, but don’t be fooled. Online degrees from diploma mills are not typically respected in the workplace and are essentially worthless.

Diploma mills can sell any level of degrees, ranging from bachelor’s degrees all the way up to doctoral degrees. A customer of a diploma mill can even buy honors like the coveted summa cum laude designation. Some people unwittingly go to diploma mills looking for a legitimate degree program; others go to these businesses with eyes wide open, willing to commit fraud in order to possess false credentials in academia or in their professional careers.

Look for the following when determining whether an online degree program is in fact a diploma mill:

• No accreditation by a nationally or internationally recognized accrediting agency
• No teaching facilities—the address is a postal box or mail forwarding service or suite numbers
• Little to no interaction with professors/instructors. Classwork/performance on assignments has no bearing on whether or not you get a degree
• Degrees can be obtained within several days, weeks or months from when you enroll and it’s possible to back-date
• Check out these other clues that are tell-tale signs of diploma mills.

Accreditation organizations were formed to combat diploma mills, but also present another problem—accreditation mills, or illegitimate bodies of accreditation. Many of these accreditors are in fact the brainchild of the diploma mills, so keep an eye out for bogus agencies as you sift the good from the bad in online education.