calling Dr Bear

Discussion in 'Accreditation Discussions (RA, DETC, state approva' started by bullet, Oct 5, 2005.

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  1. bullet

    bullet New Member

    Doctor Bear:

    Would you consider a degree to be fake from a university that operates in a country where a certain type of education is not contemplated in the law?
     
  2. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    What exactly does "contemplated in the law" mean?

    -=Steve=-
     
  3. Anthony Pina

    Anthony Pina Active Member

    The question is worded too ambiguously to provide a reasonable answer. If, for some reason, you do not wish to name the university, then you could provide some more clarification.

    Is the university licensed and approved by the country in which is operates? Your question appears to imply that it is not.

    What type of education is "not contemplated in the law"? By "contemplated", do you mean that it is not mentioned or addressed at all in the laws of that country or that it is forbidden?

    If you would really like John Bear or anyone else to answer your question, you would be wise to re-word it in order to make your intention clearer.
     
  4. bullet

    bullet New Member

    common mistake

    I am not reffering to a specific university.

    The question was/is:

    If the law of a country does not address a certain type of education (say DL) and a university (ANY UNIVERSITY - NON SPECIFIC BLOOD TYPE or Rh) operates in that country....., would Doctor Bear consider it to be a "fake"?

    I don't want to twist and turn this into another "huff and puff" thread.
     
  5. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    While we're waiting for Dr. Bear to respond, I'll chime in.

    It sounds like you're describing a situation where a school operates in a governmental jurisdiction that does not regulate such schools, and you're asking if that condition in and of itself makes the school fake. If that's what you're asking, my answer is....

    Of course not. Not just for that. But because such a school operates in an unregulated environment, it has to demonstrate its legitimacy in other ways sufficient to ward of such conclusions.

    Additionally, the degrees from such a school would not be recognized as such in almost any case, rendering them "fake" (or something near it). There are a few exceptional schools in this category, but that doesn't give the fakes a free pass.

    Now, once we've established that no external, recognized form of evaluation is going on, we have to look at the school itself. (Again, recognizing that the school could be legitimate, even if the degrees it issues are unrecognized.)

    There aren't many examples where the school is operating in an unregulated environment, yet it (or its degrees) is/are considered legitimate. Most of them give off an odor that should tip you off.

    In short, the conditions you describe do not prove a school is a fake. But it is a strong indicator, shifting the onus back to the school to prove otherwise.
     
  6. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    I agree with Rich.

    It used to be the standard 'game' of the goatbags to find states that had literally no laws on school regulation, or very very minmal laws, and relocate to there. Hawaii was one of the first. 20 years ago, Hawaii had one small unaccredited school. Ten years later, they had over 100. South Dakota was another: from zero to dozens in just a few years, then back to zero after a good law was passed.

    If an institution chooses to locate (or claim to have located) in a country that has no laws, then it could possibly be a serious legitimate place that happens to have a good reason to be there, however unlikely*. So I guess I'd need more information before judging them.

    Example: of the 3 or 4 "universities" that have claimed to be located in Niue, such as Cal Southern University (run, apparently, from Bellaire, Texas), it is very unlikely that they actually operate from this incredibly remote dot in the south Pacific with something like 600 people (after the last typhoon), but rather just making use of the available ".ni" URL suffix.

    ___________________
    * As I have often explained, Greenwich University was established in Hawaii not because of its weak laws, but because that is where I happened to live, and it was my full-time job.
     
  7. miguelstefan

    miguelstefan New Member

    Hola Bala,

    My friend from Argentina, there is an old legal premise that states that "if something is not forbiden, then it's allowed". However, keep in mind that even if that applied here (I don't think it does) and the degrees in question is "legal" and not fake, laws and regulations may become reality at any given moment regulating the institution degree granting activity, posibly rendering the degree illegal. It's best to stay within the bounds of the existing laws and regulations of an established jurisdiction and avoid future problems.
     
  8. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    "Anything not forbidden is mandatory."

    --Johann Bonengel (who is, in fact, a fictional
    character in the Shadowfist world, but he is
    all a Google search found)
     

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