Who has any experience with Wakefield International University? Are their degrees of any value or is it a diploma mill? Stefan [email protected]
Hi, Stefan. Don't waste your time with Wakefield. Not only do they have no accreditation or any equivalent recognition, they are disingenuous about it on their 'accreditation' page. (Accreditation does not exist merely for the purpose of getting US federal funds, and it is available to distance education institutions.) What's more they tell us that they are legally registered on the island of Nevis and that their degree granting authority comes from their bylaws. In other words, they simply gave themselves the authority. A diploma from Wakefield may be valuable for wiping your butt after a bowel movement, but far less expensive and much softer options are available. If you are looking for a legitimate distance learning program, tell us about what subject you want to study and at what level, and the people here can make some suggestions for you to check out.
Hi Bill, Thank you for your open words on Wakefield. I'm not asking for myself, I'm writing in behalf of a friend of mine, Ulrich Güth. Ulrich has a photographer's education and has worked as an editor with several TV stations. He attended various seminars on camera work and editing. Recently he has given courses in a media academy. For Ulrich's further career development it would be very helpful to have an academic degree, but with full-time work and family he isn't able to attend classes. That is why he is thinking of enrolling in a distance learning program to attain a Bachelor's degree in whatever subject would best match with his experience. A requirement would be that his credentials (training certificates, references of various employers) be credited towards a degree. Before he spends a lot of money to have his German certificates translated he wants to be sure that his plans are realistic. A major obstacle is that he has only limited knowledge of the English language - that is why he asked me to write this letter. He plans on taking a crash course shortly. Any suggestions (or warnings) are welcome, Ulrich appreciates your help. Regards, Stefan
Wakefield and Berne--Two of a kind. Sorry to wake up an old thread, but I stumbled across this "school" when doing a Google search on another topic. I note that it is approved to operate by the government of St. Kitts and Nevis, that bastion of higher educational authority that also "accredits" Berne University. If St. Kitts and Nevis is willing to approve a sham like Wakefield, is there any reason to take Berne seriously?
Hallo Stefan: I don't know much about it, but there is a legitimate German distance learning provider Fern-Universitaet. One difficulty you and Ulrich might want to investigate is whether or not it will be legitimate to use within Germany a degree/title from a particular university outside Germany. I read somewhere that this requires approval from education authorities in the Land where you reside. In writing this, I'm hoping someone more familiar with all this will supplement this post with far better information. My concern is that Ulrich not spend a lot of money on a degree he then would have difficulty using. Best wishes to you.
Re: Wakefield and Berne--Two of a kind. It seems that most of the unaccedited schools and diploma mills like Wakefield use small nations as their home base. My guess is that they use countries like St. Kitts and Nevis, Liberia and Lichenstein as a ploy to lure unsuspecting prospective student into their programs. After all, if the school is accredited or approved by the government, it is assumed that the programs the equivalence of a GAAP or RA school. I mentioned this before on another thread, in some countries you would have no difficulty in getting governmental accreditation if you "grease the Education Minister's hand".
Stefan Peters: "A major obstacle is that he has only limited knowledge of the English language - that is why he asked me to write this letter. He plans on taking a crash course shortly. Any suggestions (or warnings) are welcome, Ulrich appreciates your help." Stefan, your friend's limited knowledge of English may be a problem. Many schools require non-native speaking students to pass a language exam before they are admitted. Not to mention the fact that all the materials for American, British, and Australian courses will be in English. He might look into taking some English-As-A-Second-Language courses (available at many community colleges and adult schools) before applying to a college.
Verbiage used both at Concordia College & University and at Wakefield International University: "Our students come from many different backgrounds and have a variety of education, training, and experience. We also know that many of our degree candidates, while having the knowledge and experience in their field, are faced with the day to day pressures of a job and family, leaving little time to devote to traditional classroom education." http://www.concordia-college.net/pages/145824/page145824.htm? http://www.wakefieldinternational.com/president.html
