Would like your feed back on this email re: BIU

I found below email in my spam box, makes interesting reading....
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OPINION & DEBATE

Critics about BIU?
There are a few Internet references that consider BIU a questionable institution. There are three States (Texas, Michigan y Oregon) out of the 50 States from the USA that publish a list of institutions whose degrees may not be used in their jurisdictions. There are initiatives like Wikipedia managed by activists from the traditional education establishment that pretend to "alert" the public about institutions like BIU, or that consider "nonsense" any institution related to natural health sciences.

How to correct these comments?
BIU contacts these websites and provides correct information and supporting evidence that demonstrates the legitimacy of BIU, consumer guarantees offered and academic quality.
Throughout the years some websites corrected their opinions, others made some changes, and others still keep their criteria. Time, BIU presence and quality are our best arguments and will finally prevail.

Legal actions?
Sometimes it is difficult to win legal actions, mostly in the Internet. Every person is free to express his or her opinion, and it is legitimate to consider that an institution is questionable if it does not meet the author's criteria. BIU initiates legal actions when false information is detected, but Internet legal processes are complex, and final results are achieved slowly.

Is BIU authorized to grant degrees?
Yes, but BIU degrees are not recognized by a Ministry of Education. BIU is a provider of non-formal or nontraditional education, so it does not need an expressed authorization from the Ministry of Education of Spain. BIU activity and degrees are authorized by its registration under section 932.2
http://noticias.juridicas.com/base_datos/Fiscal/rdleg1175-1990.t1.html#c9
(Higher non formal education). This fact is usually not well understood by many American organizations (AACRAO, Mexico, Wikipedia, etc...).

Can BIU get the recognition from the Ministry of Education?
BIU believes that the success of adult higher learning resides in a personalized syllabus for each student and the evaluation of the learning outcomes through reports written at home. Both factors are still far away from the regular procedures and requirements established by the Ministry of Education. This is the reason why BIU degree programs fit in the non-formal education section and lead to non official recognized degrees. Today, it is impossible within the traditional educational system to offer a program with the flexibility, curriculum design and pedagogical approach offered by BIU.

What about the USA Accreditation?
Accreditation is not equivalent to legality or recognition, it is a non-governmental and voluntary quality standard. CHEA accreditation is important in the USA for two reasons: it provides standards in academic mobility in a country whose Constitution establishes freedom of education, and it distributes US Federal Grants to its members, except distance learning. CHEA academic quality standards are good but they are not the only ones in the world.

Why is BIU attacked?
Probably, among other interests, there is a nice consumer protection intention behind the comments posted in the Internet about BIU. Unfortunately there are questionable educational institutions that offer degrees without any academic quality.
Most of them are located in the USA and are known as Diploma Mills. The fact that BIU lacks the US CHEA Accreditation and the expressed authorization from the Ministry of Education leads to the easy but incorrect classification of BIU in a profile similar to those questionable institutions.

Is there an end to these comments?
BIU has been dealing with Internet opinions since its foundation. Along the years, many opinions have been corrected or disappeared, and some others sprang new. BIU is an pioneering initiative that intends to resolve the deficiencies of adult professional traditional education. The presence and academic category of BIU is constantly improving, so we may expect that the more we grow the more critics we will receive. Mostly from those who try to defend their market with different arguments.

How to make sure that BIU is a good option?
Common sense is first. Read BIU website, talk to BIU staff. A questionable institution does not offer consumer protection guarantees, clear information and evidence about its legitimacy and recognition (you may download copies of documents from http://www.bircham.edu/pdfdownload/), a sound academic board, tangible offices http://www.bircham.net/, an admission process, or detailed academic programs. Additionally, during the year 2005, the Spain National Institute of Consumer Affairs (Instituto Nacional de Consumo -
INC)
http://consumo-inc.es/arbitraje/interior/adhesion/adhesion.htm
from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs awarded BIU with the official distinction of consumer protection. This seal provides a solid international consumer protection and a unique guarantee to all BIU students worldwide.

Are BIU graduates affected by these opinions?
Obviously these opinions generate certain unease or even anxiety, nevertheless there is nothing to worry about. We must assume that there always be some comments. The more important BIU becomes the more opinions will be generated. Any pioneering initiative that breaks the pre-established schemes and traditional regulations is observed warily and criticized, and education is not an exception. Since 1992, the students who trusted BIU in the past benefited from a better conditions and costs than the students currently enrolled. We expect that when the traditional education establishment accepts and recognizes the BIU system, then the costs and procedures will not be the same as the ones offered today.

What to do about any comments detected?
BIU appreciates that you tell us about your concerns and inform us about any comment that you detect. BIU always welcomes constructive criticism because it is considered a valuable feedback that contributes to our continuous self improvement and quality. Your opinion is important for us. On the other side, false statements or destructive criticism will lead to the corresponding legal actions.

A final advice for the future student.
If common sense, all the references and evidence provided are not enough to relieve any distrustful feelings about BIU, we suggest you to wait and watch BIU progress and improvement. Time is the only way we can demonstrate our institutional integrity and academic quality.
Your motivation is the key to the success of distance learning. If you feel that your educational effort may be useless you will surely loose the power to complete the degree program.
BIU does not want you to enroll but to graduate and achieve your goals. We are not in a hurry, are you?




QUICK BIU WEB LINK GUIDE - http://www.bircham.edu

* More information about BIU, recognition & accreditation, degree programs offered, admission
process, and study guide: http://www.bircham.edu

* Lists of Students, Graduates, Academics & Staff, BIU Offices contact data:
http://www.bircham.net

This message and its contents may contain confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient of this email, please advise the sender and delete this message.
Non-authorised use of this message is prohibited by law. Bircham International University implements control measures to ensure the security and privacy of all its electronic correspondence.

--
Irene Fernández - BIU Info Services
Bircham International University
Plaza Chueca 8 - Madrid 28004, Spain
Tel: (34) 91 5217009
http://www.bircham.edu

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Spam, indeed.

 

Now that the search engine here works . . . I just typed in "Bircham" and chose 'posts' and it produced many hundreds of posts on this nonwonderful institution.

 

Bircham sells "doctoral degrees" in just about every subject there is. Links to lists of available programs in various academic areas are here:

http://www.bircham.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&id=4&Itemid=39

I've provided the program lists for the Humanities, Engineering and the Sciences down below.

It's a lineup of doctoral programs that dwarfs what individual University of California campuses are able to offer.

Ok, so what is there to show for it?

Google Scholar generated 13 hits for "Bircham International University". Several of these were publications that happen to mention Bircham (including a link to 'Bear's Guide') as opposed to publications by Bircham-identified authors. Virtually nothing has been published by anyone claiming a Bircham institutional affiliation. For a comparative look at what a real university looks like, here's the results for "University of California Riverside", one of the more modest UCs that doesn't presume to offer nearly as many doctoral majors as Bircham. 65,000 hits including technical publications in many fields.

A Google search for occurances of "Bircham International University" on .edu domains generated 56 hits. Most of these were Bircham's own pages. Several others were pages about degree mills. That's better than its performance on .ac.uk sites, where there was only one hit, a report about Bircham operating programs illegally in Kenya.

Here's some of the amazing Bircham program lists:

In the humanities:

Specialist, Expert, Bachelor's, Master's or online Doctorate (Ph.D.) in...

Advertising Creativity
Ancient History
Anthropology
Archaeology
Art History
Artistic Design
Audiovisual Communication
Child & Special Education
Community & Social Development
Comparative Literature
Creative Writing
Criminology
Education & Pedagogy
Educational Administration
Educational Technology
ELT - English L. Teaching
English Literature
Film Direction & Production
Human Rights
Humanities
Interior Design
International Law
International Relations
Journalism
Linguistics
Military Strategy
Multimedia Design
Museology
Mythology & Occultism
Performing Arts
Philosophy
Political Science
Political Science
Religion
Sociology
World History

In Engineering:

Specialist, Expert, Bachelor's, Master's or online Doctorate (Ph.D.) in...

Aeronautical Technology
Architecture / Archite. Design
Automotive Technology
Building Tech. & Design
Chemical Engineering
Civil Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Electronics Engineering
Environmental Engineering
Geotechnical Engineering
Industrial Engineering
Landscape Architecture
Materials Science
Mechanical Engineering
Mechatronic Engineering
Occupational Safety & Health
Petroleum & Natural Gas Engineering
Robotics & Automation
Telecommunication Engineering
Urban Planning & Design

In the Sciences:

Specialist, Expert, Bachelor's, Master's or online Doctorate (Ph.D.) in...

Agriculture & Animal Sc.
Applied Mathematics
Astronomy & Astrophysics
Atmospheric Science
Biology & Biochemistry
Botany & Plant Science
Earth Science & Geology
Ecology & Enviro.Health
Fire Science
Genetics & M. Cell Biology
Geography & Cartography
Microbiology & Immunology
Oceanography & Marine Sc.
Optics
Physics & Chemistry
Soil Science
Wood Science
Zoology & Ethology