I am writing some newsletters on Distance Learning and while looking for information, it is becoming increasingly obvious that there is alot of Internet course material .. probably certificates, maybe even degrees that can be had from many non-accredited schools. Is this going to be a big stumbling block for distance learning in the future ... are many students getting "educations" that are going to prove to be worthless on resumes? Is there a trend in distance education for accredited institutions to utilize the Internet for distance learning, or is mostly inhabited by non-accredited institutions? I am just beginning to research this topic and any info, URLs, opinions will be useful. -- __________________________________________ Suzanne @CampusTech http://www.campustech.com Big Discounts on Software for Students & Teachers
Of course, that diploma mills pre-date the Internet by more than 100 years. Just as the mails were filled with postings from diploma mills and legitimate correspondence courses, so shall the Internet. The biggest differences I see are (1) the Internet is "instant on" and more of a "broadcast," whereas the mails were both slow and more narrowly targeted, and (2) it seems easier for diploma mills to hide, move, and change identies on the Internet. Many writers have warned of this potential/reality, including Noble, Bear, Bender and Davis, Guernsey, and Kerka. Hirst spends a great deal of energy gathering and posting such information on her web page at http://distancelearn.about.com/education/distancelearn/mbody.htm Ten Speed Press has some good information as well at www.degree.com I suspect it is analogous to the "drug war." Do officials fight supply or demand? Do they go after the diploma mill operators, or do they focus on getting the word out to the public about issues like accreditation and legitimacy? I favor the latter. I strongly feel there is an inexhaustable supply of scoundrels, but their customers can be forewarned and dissuaded. And certainly a climate can be established where the passing off of illegitimate credentials is much more difficult. Rich Douglas
Ah thanks, My boss and I are in a sort of debate. We sell software at an educational discount to students, teachers of accredited educational institutions and accredited institutions only. This has to be proven to us with the proper ID. Increasingly, we are getting orders from students of online "schools" that have no accreditation. Under the rules that our vendors make us abide by, we cannot sell to them. He sees the Internet as a new college of sorts, but I am on the front lines with customers and hate to turn down people who are pursuing an education (and in many cases, they seem to be great courses). I really don't know if there are going to be a bunch of certificate schools that have little to no value to their customers and ours, or if accredited institutions will and have already begun to move to the Internet to bring education to people rather than people to education. By the very nature of the Internet, I can see clearly that for those pursuing their education, let the buyer beware when giving your money to online schools that lack accreditation, particularly if you are interested in the educational reference on a resume carrying any weight with prospective employers. Very interesting topic to me. I have checked in on degree.Info also and will look in on the info there. Thanks for your thoughtful response. -- __________________________________________ Suzanne @CampusTech http://www.campustech.com
Yes. I think that operating fake internet "universities" may be one of the fastest growing forms of fraud. Actually, whether it is fraud in the strict legal sense is debatable, since some US states and foreign jurisdictions make it possible to legally open a "university" merely upon acquiring a business license, and because many students actually seek out degree mill diplomas and know exactly what it is that they are buying. But ultimately somebody is defrauded if the "graduate" tries to pass the degree as legitimate and employers end up hiring unqualified employees. These "universities" are easy to set up, often only consisting of a website and a secretarial and mail forwarding service. They commonly hide behind a succession of fake addresses and shell corporations in widely scattered places, so even deciding who has legal jurisdiction over them is sometimes difficult. If the law puts heat on them in one place, they mysteriously reappear overnight thousands of miles away, as Trinity College and University recently did. So, since there is little legal risk and literally millions of dollars to be made, this thing is exploding. My personal (but unproven) opinion is that organized crime is in the process of moving into this area, and that they are quite likely responsible for the international networks of multiple interrelated fake schools that are appearing. Yes, definitely. It is already a much larger problem than most educators and law enforcement figures are willing to admit. Sometimes Dr. Bear seems like a voice in the wilderness, and the rest of higher education and law enforcement don't even want to touch it. There is a HUGE trend by legitimate accredited universities to use the internet in delivering courses. Probably more than half the accredited universities in the US already offer at least a few courses that way, and several hundred offer entire degrees (usually MBAs it seems). But these are traditional brick-and-mortar universities with physical campuses that are branching out. The number of actual accredited internet universities whose entire activity is online is still very small. I think that there is going to be a terrific collision in the next few years between legitimate distance education and the degree mills. Since it is so much easier to start a fake internet university than a real one, the bogus schools are growing much faster than the legitimate internet universities, and already number in the hundreds. The general public is gradually becoming aware of them, and more and more people are starting to see all internet universities as simply a joke. But legitimate education is putting lots of money and effort into distance education. They have a vested interest in the medium and won't just concede it to the mills. So conflict is certain, I think. Legitimate higher education will eventually move to defend its turf, the press and public will wake up to the problem and there will be belated demands for somebody to do something.
a)"are many students getting "educations" that are going to prove to be worthless on resumes?" It depends if anyone checks. If anyone were to verify their resume the degree would be worthless, perhaps even worse, however telling a lie on a resume is not unheard of. b) "Is this going to be a big stumbling block for distance learning in the future" I think this could be a real stumbling block for legitimate alternative schools and programs who may end up facing a lack of acceptance... i.e. totally online schools or programs that are not a traditional program offered via alternative delivery. I don't see this as greatly affecting traditional programs from more traditional schools (with real buildings) offered via alternative means. That is why I would generally recommend students to play it safe and try to stay with that formula... a traditional program from a traditional school offered via alternative delivery. "Is there a trend in distance education for accredited institutions to utilize the Internet for distance learning, or is mostly inhabited by non-accredited institutions?" There is definetly a trend in the US for almost all institutions to utilize distance learning, however most institutions do not offer complete degrees... they are often a add-on to a full-time or part-time program. The schools that do offer complete degrees tend to be your third and fourth tier. Finally, to do serious research into DL you need to hop some ponds. DL is much more mature outside of the US and Canada. The DL offerings in Australia are amazing. The whole public Scottish University system is organizing to offer DL courses around the globe, the two largest DL schools are South African (UNISA) and British (UoL). Perhaps the largest DL MBA is Scottish (HW). And most of these programs can be 100% nonresident, full-degree, traditional school, traditional program, alternative delivery.
