I coworker just informed me that he received his PhD (while studying for his Masters) in one year from Hamilton University. I wasn't familiar with the organization, but had to question him a little about it. I asked how many courses he took ("a few") and asked to read his dissertation (he called it a "research project"). We started discussing the process (I told him that I'm working on my proposal and he had the "deer in the headlights" stare). Obviously, I needed to do a little research myself. So, I confirmed my suspicions through this forum. One question for all of you: How much did he spend on this fake degree? I plan to present a 'package' showing what he bought and what it's really worth and I want to gather as much information as possible. Thanks, Gary
...probably more than it was worth I don't know about their prices... perhaps they'd tell you if you called them to ask? The web site gives the number 800-951-0857 on the "contact us" page. If you find out, could you post the answer, please? There 's a little more information to be found here: http://www.osac.state.or.us/oda/oregon_north_dakota/index_or.html#hamilton_university G
I received a proposal to complete my PhD at Hamilton University through a referral service know as Academic Resource and Referral Center which Hamilton obviously owns. I was total the cost would be $3600.00 if I payed in full with cash. To get the PhD all I had to do was: 1) Take a business ethics class (any irony here?) in residence at Hamilton or through correspondence in my home. Average time to complete this 5-8 hours. 2) Submit a 2000 word academic paper on a subject that my PhD would be in and this would be "referred to" as my dissertation. After taking all of this in bells and sirens went off in my head and I did some more research and found degreeinfo.com So your co-worker probably completed his PhD in a day!!! Hamilton is very high priced for a degree mill. Most only charge $500.00 and require no work at all. I threw the proposal from them in the trash after reading it and consulting with several members on this forum.
post There are many schools that claim to give a degree based upon life and work experience. Hamilton University, Capital University, Trinity College and University, and the lists go on of such places that do this sort of thing. I guess there are some that are desperate in their attempts to con people into thinking that a degree from these kinds of schools is legitimate. It goes to show you that even though we have excellent resources such as degreeinfo.com, there are going to be people that will still be snickered into spending money on these foolish schools. As they say, money talks, and that is why even some schools will say that they will authenticate your degree with some particular agency or source to make it look like it is the real thing. Such behaviors like this hurt the people who do not have a degree and decide to go to a reputable school for portfolio assessment or credits based upon life and work experiences. It is to be said that the schools that do offer these legitimate alternatives stress the fact that they are not based upon solely what your life and work experiences are, as this can be very general, but to state that what you have learned corresponds with college level learning. To pay $3000, $5000 or any monies to these diploma mills, one would be best to go through legitimate means to get there education that is accredited and has a good reputation. Ultimately, like they say “the truth always seeks its own level.” If one does decide to defraud, it is going to come out in the wash. Glad to hear that you were able to determine that this person was indeed a fake. As they say, “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
UPDATE! I confronted my coworker today. He still insists that his degrees are absolutely genuine and that everybody will accept them because he can back them up with his credentials. So, he thinks that he deserves a Masters and a PhD for his expertise as a "Safety Officer" for the last 10 years. Silly me, I've been going to school for my degrees...why did I waste so much time and money? I've argued with him, presented evidence, and he doesn't want to listen. Well, I tried! I sure hope he doesn't try to use them on a resume'! Gary
Re: UPDATE! A great way to embarrass him is to have him show you a copy of his doctoral dissertation. Then ask him to defend his hypothesis and conclusions to you and your colleagues.
Safety Officer How Ironic about your co-worker being a safety officer. I am also a safety officer and did not go the easy route at Hamilton. Tell your co-worker if he ever attempts to get his (CSP) Certified Safety Professional certification he may be disappointed. The CSP requires a four-year degree in safety from an ACCREDITED college or university. So much for the easy way out. Its an atomic bomb ready to go off. Nothing safe about degree mills at all!!
Re: Re: UPDATE! He doesn't even have a dissertation. He apparently feels that he deserves a Ph.D. simply because he's worked for ten years, he wants a Ph.D., and Hamilton lied to him that he earned it just to get his money.
FURTHER UPDATE I have a moral responsibility to report this to those who have the power to do something about it. I don't really think it is necessary to punish the individual (he didn't get the job using these credentials, only added them recently). I will try to educate the HR department and have the false degree removed from his (and presumably others') file(s). As this unfolds, I will update this thread so as to provide closure and/or a method for others to follow (or not follow if I'm not successful). Thank you for your support in this matter. Gary (for those who asked, please take a look at my updated "signature")
Gary, if you are a federal government employee (may also affect contractors if the position required education) you may want to search the threads regarding Laura Callahan and/or do a websearch. There is a discussion of federal criminal charges. She, however, did use her degree as a means to a position. I posted several articles from various publications regarding this topic and there are other threads going back regarding her use of Hamilton degrees.
