Credential evaluation with The name recognition afforded by the University of Miami

I found this credential evaluator to be credible and may be as recognized or even more than NACES.

http://www.miami.edu/umevals/benefits.htm

Quote from their web site

Benefits of UM ACE

The University of Miami Academic Credentials Evaluators have the capability and resources to reliably conduct comprehensive research of your credentials, regardless of how remote their origins might be.

Providing the respective U.S. academic equivalents is made possible by:

· The university's close ties with renowned academic institutions and exchange organizations around the globe
· Up-to-date resources
· Skilled international admission professionals

Your University of Miami evaluation provides you:

· The name recognition afforded by the University of Miami
· International admission specialists with more than 50 years of combined experience
· Leaders in the field of educational credential evaluation
· Personalized and dedicated customer service

End quote:

So in additional to all the NACES member evaluators we have this
leading research university providing evaluation of foreign credentials.

One person I know writes on his resume that he has degree equivalency ( MSEE ) from University of Miami
along side of his USSR state degree.

Learner

 

Lerner - reading your post my first thought was that this was a service offered by the University of Miami solely for those international students that were applying for admission to the University of Miami (perhaps for graduate admissions). However, having read the link you provided, this does not appear to be the case. This just seems to be a service that anyone can access regardless of their relationship to the University. Can you confirm this? How about cost?
Just curious.
Jack

 

Their rates and fees are very reasnble.

http://www.miami.edu/umevals/index.htm


Quote

The University of Miami now provides Academic Credentials Evaluation services to foreign educated professionals who need a U.S. equivalency of their earned post-secondary educational documents for educational, employment, immigration and other purposes. Since 1925, the University has been evaluating foreign academic credentials for its students and now you and your clients can benefit from that expertise.

End quote

http://www.miami.edu/umevals/rates.htm

Quote

Basic Evaluation Services:

Document-by-Document Report US $ 90
This type of evaluation report lists each educational document submitted and gives its U.S. equivalent.

Course-by-Course Report US $150
This type of evaluation report lists each educational document submitted and gives its U.S. equivalent and provides a breakdown of all post-secondary study in terms of U.S. semester credits and grade equivalents.

Grade Point Average (GPA) Calculation US $ 30
An added option for a Course-by-Course report is a grade point average (GPA) calculation based on a 4.0 scale for each educational document submitted.

Upper/Lower Division Identification US $ 30
An added option for a Course-by-Course report is the upper or lower division course identification for each course in the report.

24-hour US $200
The evaluation report is mailed within 24 hours.


3-day US $100
The evaluation report is mailed within three business days.

End Quote


Fees are not refundable and are subject to change.

 

Wile not a degree and clearly states the real name of the awarding institution I think this may be viewed as endorsment
by leading US research university.

Does raise the issue about whether a state institution should be competing in a sector currently filled by private organizations?


Learner

 

U of Miami

U of Miami is not a public university it is a private institution. And private universities compete with public universities, why not public universities competing with private organizations. Also, ECE is a non-profit organization. I don't think these things matter.
-Pat

 

email from UM
My friend sent me this

Dear xxxxx,

Unfortunately, we can't give you an answer on email. Please submit an application with your documents and we'll let you know the result of our evaluation 7 to 10 working days after. We don't tell anyone the equivalent to their degree before submitting an application and payment.

The cost for a document by document is $90.00.

Best Regards,

UM ACE



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: T [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Thursday, September 22, 2005 11:44 PM
To: T; UM Academic Credential Evals
Subject: Re: Diplomas Evaluation

 

This evaluator is nothing more than the foreign credential evaluation department of a legitimate university whose department head woke up one day and said to himself, in effect, "Self, we could make some money at this. Why didn't we think of this before? We obviously know how to do this credential evaluation thing... after all, we're doing it for our own, accredited University of Miami. Other accredited institutions, therefore, would be able to rely on our work. So, why don't we start doing this evaluation thing for pretty much anyone willing to pay us... just like AACRAO and the NACES member agencies do!"

You're right, Lerner, that this evaluator is credible... strictly speaking. University of Miami is an accredited institution and so its foreign credential evaluations need to be done right... and so I'm sure they have been (and continue to be) by this evaluator, which is nothing more than the university's own evaluations department that has decided to, in effect, go public. And I'm fairly certain that this evaluator would do a good job for the general public which has nothing to do with University of Miami, too. So, in that sense, yes, it's credible.

But it's not a NACES member agency... and that's a big problem. This is nothing more than the "unaccredited, but nevertheless credible" argument, but in different clothing. Instead of being about an unaccredited-but-nevertheless-credible college or university, it's about a credible-but-not-a-NACES-member evaluator.

What accreditation does for colleges/universities, NACES membership does for evaluators. Sure, the prospective student may, after doing some research and other due diligence, determine that the unaccredited-but-nevertheless-credible college/university would be a perfectly good place to get a fine education; but accreditation saves the prospective student from having to even wonder in the first place. It saves him from having to bother to do all that research and due diligence. That's one of accreditation's main benefit.

NACES membership saves the prospective credential evaluation client from having to take the time to figure out if University of Miami's credential evaluation service is legit. Of course it is legit, but without it being a NACES member agency, the service asks too much of its prospective clients. Time is money, after all.

Additionally, if the private/public employer, governmental agency, or accredited college/university to which the foreign degree holder plans to present said degree for consideration doesn't recognize University of Miami's evaluation service as legitimate, then it's asking even more people to drop what they're doing and do research on the evaluator to see if it's legit. None of said people, I assure you, will bother.

So, while University of Miami's public credential evaluation service, when evaluating a foreign degree, will almost certainly perform the same steps, and come to the same conclusions, as one of the NACES member agencies would have had it evaluated that same degree; and while, therefore, said evaluation by University of Miami will most certainly be credible, if the foreign degree holder's potential employer or college/university doesn't have any faith in it (because it's not on the NACES member list), or is unwilling to check it out (which it most certainly wouldn't be), then it will be of no value to said foreign degree holder.

If University of Miami's new, now-public credential evaluation service wishes to be taken seriously, then it needs to join NACES. There are too many credible-looking but, in actually, fly-by-night credential evaluation services out there. Next to the fake diplomas themselves, fake credential evaluation services are now the diploma mill operators' second-favorite revenue source. It's too easy to be deceived by the fake credential evaluators. No employers, governmental offices/agencies, or accredited colleges/universities dare fiddle around with any evaluator that isn't either AACRAO or a NACES member agency.

Moreover, I would caution any foreign (non-US) degree holder who is reading these words, and who wishes to have his/her degree considered by a US employer or accredited college/university, to confine his/her choices of credential evaluation services to either AACRAO's service, and/or that of any of the NACES member agencies. Period.

 

Gregg,

I agree that in majority of cases the government agencies and other employers refer foreign degree holders to one of the NACES
member agencies.

Ocasionally one will see non NACES member agency as acceptble.

Now here is quote from one legitimate agency that is not NACES member and this agency is on the list of approved agencies for
TX State SBEC.

Quote:

The United States is a federal republic with a decentralized system of education. Degree, Diploma, and Credit recognition are not performed or regulated by the federal government. Within the US, no government agency monitors the Evaluation of Educational Credentials completed outside the country.

National Council for the Recognition of Foreign Academic Credentials is the U.S. national body responsible for developing and publishing comparability statements designed to assist U.S. educators and credential evaluators in determining how international qualifications correspond to US Certificates, Diplomas, and Degrees at various educational levels.

End Quote:

I would say that NACES did a good job to earn solid reputation but there is no such accreditation - there is growing acceptance and recognition of their services but there are other recognized services as well. I used WES - NACES member for my self.

Maybe one day NACES will be the National Accreditor of agencies but I will demonstrate that this day is not here yet.

Using a member of NACES is not necessarily safe but it is safer and Gregg is 100% corect when he recomends that one should check with the requesting institution which agency they accept. A coworker used a NACES member agency and then the evaluation was not accepted. The school only accepted WES or ECE - not the rest of the NACES group. People must always contact their school - job - etc., and find out which agencies are ok. Sometimes they are happy with non-Naces. But there is no safety net.

Things change so one should verify.

The following example is a colection of acceptble evaluators for the state of TX SBEC NOT ALL of them are NACES members.

Eample:

http://www.sbec.state.tx.us/SBECOnline/certinfo/forcredevalservice.asp?width=1024&height=768

TX State Board for Educator Certification - SBEC

Foreign Credential Evaluation Services updated 11/17/04

These services are known to SBEC as following the standards of recognized national organizations of foreign credential evaluators. SBEC does not approve or accredit credential evaluation services.

American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers
Office of International Education Services

C.E.I.E. Specialists, Inc.

Center for Applied Research, Evaluations, & Education, Inc.

Center for Educational Documentations, Inc.

Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc.

Education Evaluators International, Inc.

Educational Records Evaluation Service, Inc.

Evaluation Service, Inc.

Foreign Academic Credential Service, Inc.

Foreign Consultants, Inc.

Foreign Credential Services of America

The Foreign Educational Document Service

Foundation for International Services, Inc.

Global Credential Evaluators, Inc. (Mid-Atlantic)

Global Credential Evaluators, Inc. (Southeast)

Global Credential Evaluators, Inc. (Southwest)

Global Credential Evaluators, Inc. (West)

Global Education Group, Inc.

Globe Language Services

International Academic Credential Evaluator, Inc.

International Consultants of Delaware, Inc.

International Education Research Foundation, Inc.

Josef Silny & Associates, Inc.

Lincoln International Educational Associates

SDR Educational Consultants

SpanTran Educational Services, Inc.

World Education Services, Inc.

Worldwide Education Consultant Services

http://www.sbec.state.tx.us/SBECOnline/certinfo/forcredevalservice.asp?width=1024&height=768

So there are others and I have many other links to show that.
But it is a good edvice to get NACES evaluation.

Learner

 

Here are a few to start with. (Not to say that NACES are not more widely accepted but there are others that are well accepted):

California State University

University of Miami

http://www.sbec.state.tx.us/SBECOnl...1024&height=768

http://www.dese.state.mo.us/forms/d.../foreignltr.pdf

http://www.dallasisd.org/depts/altc...val_foreign.htm

http://www.wcjc.edu/admin_offices_n...ty_parttime.asp

http://www.usoe.k12.ut.us/cert/OOS/outcountrycred.htm

http://www.uewm.edu/admissions/foreignstudent.html

http://www.uhd.edu/admissions/naces.htm

http://www.bauer.uh.edu/mba/admissionfaq.htm

Now on the other hand there many bogus evaluators so olways check with requesting body.

learner

 

After doing some thinking I think that there should be alternatives to NACES in order to prevent Monopoly.

In the world of accreditation we have more then one accreditor.
they are recognized by CHEA or USDOE.

In case of University of Miami I would argue its better if they stay
independed and don't join NACES, chalange NACES and create competition of the free market.

Who has to gain from this ?

Us the consumers, we can get NACES member and or UM, CSU evaluations.

And for our Canadian learners we have ICES.

ICES is a founding member of the Alliance of Credential Evaluation Services of Canada (the Alliance). The Alliance ensures that individuals have access to fair and credible credential assessment services. Members of the Alliance follow principles of good practice that are consistent with international standards.

A SERVICE OF THE BRITISH COLUMBIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Now they are members of Canadian version of NACES so here is an example that Gregg sujested and followed by this organization.

http://www.bcit.ca/ices/

Each way is fine, concumers can gain from NACES and UM recognition more than just UM alone, yet I would prefer the separate organizations to have freedom of chice of recognized, legal and accredited - by more than one accreditor evaluation services.

Learner

 

I'm not making an accreditation argument, Lerner; nor am I equating NACES with accreditors, generally. I merely used an example of the utility of accreditation to make a point about the utility of NACES membership. Somehow you have twisted this into my suggesting that NACES is some sort of accreditation for evaluators when, in fact, it is merely a membership organization in which many -- if not most -- US employers, government agencies and accredited colleges/universities have come to place their trust... alongside AACRAO.

Perhaps your failure to grasp it is an example of how your weakness in the English language may serve to mislead you. So I'll say it again, but slightly differently this time, in the hope that you'll now understand:

• Just as there are unaccredited colleges/universities that are perfectly legitimate and provide an excellent education, there are, no doubt, perfectly legitimate foreign credential evaluators that aren't members of NACES. But as is required of potential students of unaccredited colleges/schools, the prospective foreign credential evaluation firm client must perform his/her own due diligence to determine if said evaluator is legitimate. However, everyone's busy; and their time precious. Just as it's faster and easier for the prospective student to just stick with accredited institutions to both save time and play it safe, the prospective foreign credential evaluation firm client should just stick with either any NACES member agency, or AACRAO's credential evaluation service. Period.
  
  Moreover, there is also the acceptability of the credential evaluator to the prospective employer or college/university that the holder of the foreign credential must consider. A given credential evaluator may be legitimate, ethical and competent; however, if the only evaluators that pretty much all the US employers, government agencies and accredited college/universities trust happen to be NACES member agency, or AACRAO's credential evaluation service, then none of them, I promise you, will bother to figure out if any other evaluators are worthwhile and trustworthy.

Your proffering, here -- in an enthusiastic, don't-miss-my-point flurry of posts -- of a long list of credential evaluators that, many of them, are not either NACES member agencies, or AACRAO's credential evaluation service; and making the time-warn, libertarian, free-market, anti-monopoly argument does the reader, here, a disservice by suggesting that s/he could be equally well-served by deviating from the well-established list of NACES member agencies, or AACRAO's credential evaluation service when selecting a foreign credential evaluator.

Such lists as you have provided make me nervous on behalf of the reader, here, who seeks useful information and guidance from these fora, but who may not realize that s/he should approach your list with appropriate caution because your free-market arguments, while valid, are nevertheless unsound as a practical matter.

Moreover, if there were ever a good example of why I have been one of your harshest and most severe critics here, this is one. You have a history of starting threads like this in which you seek to promote the less-trodden path and, in so doing, occasionally slip-in to the discussion links to good-for-nothing entities that might appear to the newbie as credible and legitimate and which, therefore, might mislead said newbie, resulting in his/her being objectively harmed. No one here has time to look at every one of your links and make sure that there are no nefarious credential evaluators lurking among them. Your history of promoting the nefarious here (like the notorious diploma mill IUFS, for example, just to name one) is just one of the reasons why I fear your lists and links. I know that you know that no one here has time to check-out everything you suggest; therefore, given your history of suggesting things that would, if followed-up on by newbies, serve to harm them, I fear that buried-in among them will be links to entities that will hurt people. If I'm wrong about that, then I apologize. As I've said many times here, Lerner, nothing would make me happier than to trust that you finally get it, and that there will tend to be nothing in your posts that could in any way harm anyone who takes them too seriously. Given your history here, I don't think I'm out of line to be concerned.

I don't know if your arguments hold water, Lerner... nor do I care. I don't know if all the evaluators to which you have linked us, here, are credible and legitimate... nor do I have the time to check them out. And, therein, lies the very foundation of my argument:

• Just as it's faster and easier for the prospective student to just stick with accredited institutions to both save time and play it safe, the prospective foreign credential evaluation firm client should just stick with either any NACES member agency, or AACRAO's credential evaluation service. Period.

I reiterate my warning to the reader: Stick with any NACES member agency, or AACRAO's credential evaluation service for your US foreign credential evaluations.

 

Gregg I had no problem to understand your points, and in many ways support your opinion.

Now I also remember reading some very useful suggestions by Dr. Bear. It pays and worth to shop around.

Some agencies on the list for particular school or board may be more liberal in awarding academic equivalency credit.

My WES evaluation was very conservative but my friends evaluation of very similar degree and almost the same transcript by ECE resulted in 30% less credit, and it meant more classes and more money to spend.

A legitimate non NACES member evaluator that was on the list
of accepted evaluators provided Vlad with even better evaluation that I had from WES.

As a result it was thousands saved by him.

So he has 2 evaluations one from ECE that evaluated him as holder of BS degree and percentage of graduate credit.
And another respected agency - very legitimate not the kind that is in bed with mills, his degree is evaluated as graduate MS and fair amount of credit.

I sent an email to UM asking why are they not members with NACES.

will share the reply.

Learner

 

UM isn't a member of NACES because they most likely are not a private institution. NACES only accepts membership from private groups.

And for the record, there is no standard when it comes to evaluating a degree. All evaluation companies (be they NACES or not) have their own opinion on how a degree should be viewed.

IE. Some companies do not consider a 5 year degree from Russia to be equivelant to a MS degree in the states some do.

 

UM is a private school.

 

To be a NACES memeber all you must be private and independent. Therefore this would exclude UM based on the fact that they accept research grants and other fun things.

 

Legit Transcript Evaluation For Foreign Transcripts

Hi,
I have tried to no avail to find a us department of education appproved service that evaluates foreign transcripts from foreign schools that are borderline. For approved equivalency and issuance of a doctorate after examination of transcripts and dissertation.Borderline in that the course work completed and employment may be evaluated in combination?Or just the transcripts and dissertation standing alone. So doctoral status is granted transferable to USA universities. I know in the past I had 3 of these email and contact addresses. Now I cannot find them.Please you are one of the only rare legit authorities on this. Can you please provide contact details so I may submit my foreign transcripts for accurate evaluation by one of these approved evaluation services. Respectfully and Thank You.

 

Maybe this can be of help to you


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