Dare you put a degree in your resume? If it from an unaccredited school.

Dare you put a degree in your resume? If it from an unaccredited school.

 

Probably best to add a brief description, to avoid problems later on (or deflect them to the person who approved the resume):

MBA, California Pacific University, 2003
(California Pacific University is not accredited, but is approved
by the California Bureau of Private Postsecondary and
Vocational Education.)

 

I advised a friend of mine (who unfortunately insists on using a diploma mill degree) to put Bachelor's Degree, ****** College, Degree based on Life Experience.

 

Hi, zvavda.

Personally, I would have no hesitation in listing a degree from a non-accredited school IF I believed that I could defend the school convincingly.

(Here's) a CA-approved school that I think is defensible, especially if a degree from here was accompanied by a strong portfolio and by industry recommendations.

Of course, as the press coverage of the Collins hearing in Washington illustrates, lots of people are either unwilling or incapable of making subtle distinctions. They will simply assume a-priori that any non-accredited school is a degree-mill.

That means that a non-accredited degree can be dangerous. In the hands of your enemies it might turn around and discredit you, unless you can successfully defend it.

If I wanted to take courses from a non-accredited school for personal interest, but if I feared that I couldn't defend the school or that people wouldn't understand, then I probably wouldn't mention it at all.

 

Thank goodness I live in Canada and every American degree from an unknown school is considered worthless. I'll blend right in with Podunk State U.

 

Seems rather provencial, but Americans probably think the same of Canadian schools known or unknown.

 

It depends...i

On what he/she is applying for. If it is my secular resume, I either do not add it or generalize the whole thing as time spent and classes/credits and degrees in Religious Education.

On my church employment resume I put the degree but list it as Unaccredited and only for use in Church/Missionary Work. If interviewed I explain to them my choice and offer to go back to school if they would pay for it and would bring them straight A's.

In 16 years I have had no takers and have never been fired, reprimanded, outed, lost a job because of, embarresed about the unaccredited degrees because I put it on the table first. In only one case (1996) was it ever used against me, and then it was by the other minister who was canidating for the same church. Mind you he did not attack it as being unaccredited, just that I was not a graduate of his school therefore I had no resources (preachers, money, reputation of school, etc.) to bring to them. (He is long gone from that church) I also have not been automatically disqualified for secular employment because of having degrees, or having degrees of a religious disicpline.

 

Thank you for every respond.
That make me surely understand that attend class in unaccredited school waste time, waste money, risk from enemies to destroy and not suitable to list in resume.