How can I know if a Canadian , an Australian or a English university is degree mill?

Since there accrediation system is different from the US one, how can I check it?
Thanks for your time!

 

It's a simple matter for institutions in the U.K.: the URL suffix will end with ac.uk
Unlike the .edu suffix, use of ac.uk is tightly regulated.

Thus http://www.ox.ac.uk/ is the University of Oxford, whereas http://www.ses-consultants.co.uk/trinity/ is a diploma mill.


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Bill Gossett

 

Simplest way is to ask here. While there have been a few apologists for dreadful schools who post comments, by and large the opinions given are reliable and clear.

John Bear (whose book, Bears' Guide,
describes more than 500 fake and
non-wonderful schools, as well as
nearly all the good ones) www.degree.net

 

For Australian schools:

It won't tell you definitively that a school isn't a degree mill, but any university listed in the Australian Qualifications Framework directory of approved institutions should be kosher.


Peace,

------------------
Tom Head
www.tomhead.net

 

*sigh* The noun knoweth not what the verb is doing. What I meant to say was that a school not listed in the AQF directory may or may not actually be a degree mill, but any school listed in the AQF directory is, at least at the present time, most assuredly not a degree mill.

Peace,

------------------
Tom Head
www.tomhead.net

 

The most reliable source of canadian universities is:
http://www.aucc.ca/

It is an official site, if a university is not listed it doesn't mean that is a mill, but it means that it might be one. In canada there is a recent invasion of mills, so be careful, the ones that I know are:

Vancouver Worldwide University,
Calgary Institute of technology,
Senior University,

 

***NEWS RELEASE***

Earth is bracing itself for an invasion of degree mills, as alien entities are appearing everywhere. No nation, city, island or geographical area is safe from the deceptive and fraudulent tactics of these dubious life forms. Promising legitimate credentials for little or no work, and a minimal fee, these extra-terrestrial life forms are definitely hazardous to human life.
When a human receives a credential from such an entity, it lies dormant for days, weeks, even years--then, when least expected, it explodes, wreaking havoc on the recipient.
The United Nations has issued a global warning asking all humans to avoid degree mills at all cost.

Russell
UN Network News

 

Try either the _International Handbook of Universities_ or the _World List of Universities and Other Institutions of Higher Education_. Both are put out by the International Association of Universities, which is a part of the UNESCO Information Centre on Higher Education. The preface to the fifteenth edition of the _Handbook_ states that "it includes over 6,000 institutions in 174 countries that are considered, by the competent national authority or academic authority, to be of university level. Basic information on other institutions of higher education may continue to be found in the directory-style _World List of Universities and Other Institutions of Higher Education_, which contains close to 12,000 entries. The differentiation between university level and other institutions of higher education is based solely on the distinction made by the competent national higher education body of each country. The authoritative information for the _World List_ entries is provided by the national higher education bodies, thus assuring the full complementarity of the two reference works."

Cheers,

------------------
Michael Wilson

 

The Brits have a very nice web site that lists all the schools operating under a Royal Charter or an Act of Parliament. Anything that is on this site would NOT be a degree mill. Anything operating from an address in the UK that is not listed should be avoided.

Here's a link to an email that explains some more details and has a link of the web site. http://follies.werewolves.org/archives/1DerekHistory/1PostPhDFraud/GovEmailListOfSchools.htm

 

While certainly this listing should be taken into consideration, there are a number of UK schools who offer degrees validated by a recognized British university, for example:

Spurgeon's College (Univ. of Wales)
London Bible Collge (Brunel Univ.)
Highlands Theological College (Wales)
International Christian College (Aberdeen)
and so on.

And of course, there is Greenwich School of Theology, which tutors postgraduates for degrees awarded by Potchefstroom University in South Africa.

Craig

 

All of the resources that have been mentioned are useful -- one resource and technique not yet mentioned are one's own intelligence and critical reading of the school's promotional materials.

Good signs:
-Descriptions of degree programs and courses (rather than a mere list)
-Information about administration and faculty, including names and contact information
-Information about policies such as awarding credit for prior learning or for portfolio assessment

Bad signs
-Hosting on a free website such as Angelfire, Tripod or Geocities
-No names of any administration or faculty
-Long list of degrees available with no further information
-Mention of accreditation by the World Association of Universities and Colleges or another association not recognized by the U.S. Department of Education
-Picture of a sample diploma
-Promise of credit for life experience
-Promise of a degree in 27 days ... or that you may already qualify for a degree
-One flat fee for a degree
-Many grammatical and punctuation errors (confusing "its" and "it's" for example)
-Enrollment not available to residents of a particular state or country

See http://distancelearn.about.com/library/weekly/aa011701a.htm for more and for links to resources for reporting fraud.

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Kristin Evenson Hirst
DistanceLearn.About.com

 

I do believe those are also officially listed. There are actually three lists. I checked the first few on your list and they appear to be on the second official list, "PROVIDERS OF COURSES LEADING TO A DEGREE". http://www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1997/97005401.htm

 

You are correct. That page would not come up on my Netscape, but when I tried IE, then the list was there. Very helpful!

Craig