Steve Levicoff used to make (and still does?) a distinction between the terms "degree mill" and diploma mill. To risk paraphrasing Steve, a degree mill was a substandard school that, while not a diploma mill, still cranked out degrees based on programs that weren't up to snuff. "Diploma mill" referred to schools that sold fake degrees. Well.... Every few days or so I use Google News to search for articles related to unaccredited schools. I search on three terms: "Unaccredited" "Diploma Mill" "Degree Mill" "Unaccredited" always leads to some hits, although some are irrelevant (unaccredited journalists, high schools, diplomats, etc.) "Diploma Mill" always leads to some hits, and is the most productive of the three. "Degree Mill" almost never turns up any hits. (it turned up one today, dated July 18th. It would appear the term "degree mill" is not in very wide use, and that no distinction between "diploma mill" and "degree mill" is in effect. Does anyone else use Google News for such searches? If so, what other search terms do you find useful?
Reply You have too much time on your hands! Why bother with doing such stuff? If you are interested in getting an accredited degree then why not pursue searches such as this? I just feel that I can use my time more wisely by trying to see what I can do to learn something new and to help others. That is just my opinion. So, no I do not do these kinds of searches.
Re: Reply Thanks for the advice. However, I have 6 accredited degrees, leaving me time to pursue such things. Oh, and the Ph.D. is in nontraditional higher education, making such searches an extremely relevant activity. But I shall seek another hobby. (Besides computers, golf [a 5-handicap], and teaching part-time, along with a family and a full-time job.) Anyone else who actually uses the internet to search for such things?
Re: Reply Hi Philosophy, Dr. Douglas is a professional in this field (as am I). All he is doing is engaging in research to monitor the current trends in this field (much as economists monitor the stock market, consumer trends, etc.). The work that Rich has done has, indeed, helped him (and many of us) to "learn something new and help others". Hi Rich, Google is certainly the most comprehensive search engine, but is not always the best. Try searching on Dogpile (a meta-search engine that gives you the results of multiple search engines, including Google and Yahoo). Altavista is also a useful one, as are many others. I have gotten numerous hits using Degree Mill and Diploma Mill. Does Union or VIU subscribe to EBSCO? It is a database of hundreds of full-text journals and has proven extremely valuable for my research (especially since journal articles tend to be somewhat more recognized and reliable than web sites). By the way, my research has led me to the same conclusions as yours: "diploma mill" is used more commonly than "degree mill" and the two terms are most often used as synonyms. The disctinction that Dr. Levicoff makes is technically correct, but does not seem to be recognized by anyone other than specialists. The same thing happens with the terms "instructional technology" and "educational technology". Specialists distinguish between these two terms, but hardly anyone else does. Cheers, Tony Pina Faculty, Cal State U. San Bernardino
Re: Re: Reply My use of Google News was to keep up with things being reported (diploma mill scandals and the like) on a daily basis, as opposed to doing research. I'm no longer affiliated with VIU (and haven't been for almost a year). I'd have to check the Union website, but I suspect so.
reply I honestly did not mean any insult or bad for my comment to you. However, I think it would be best to say what you do it for. Even though, there are some in here who know who you are, and this is what you do for a living or for research, then that would make it more useful. To just generally say, I do searches for "diploma mills" and "degree mills" makes you just wonder what was up with all of that. So, to Dr. Douglas, I send an apology to you, but when dealing with a public forum like this, you have to "assume" and answer those questions so that people do not "assume." I hope you will accept my apology. I think most people on degreeinfo know that I have had some good posts, and that I am very civil in my comments to others. I just think it is good to tell people up front, even if you have to say it over again, because there is always someone new, and it is better to lay all your cards out on the table. Have a good day!
Re: reply I've posted more than 4.500 times on this board. Anyone perusing this forum who is curious about why I'm involved with this subject may do so without the insulting post you left. Posting what I've done and where in DL would be silly and redundant to almost anyone reading this. For the rest, there are searches to conduct or civil questions to ask. But telling me I have too much time on my hands is hardly fits your now-stated intentions. Thus, I responded. As for your desire to get an answer, I've suggested two methods. Good luck!
apology Again, my apologies to you Dr. Douglas. My intention was not to create any ill feelings. I hope that you can move on and accept my apology.
I use similar terms to google news in these categories. I'll try some new terms/combinations and see how it goes. Having interest in such areas since 1980''s, I do it because I like to be able to distinguish between the outright mills and the unaccredited but viable schools. Much of the news revolves around those who have used degrees in ways that got them in trouble or whole countries that are making sweeping changes to deal with degree/diploma mills. Thanks Rich for your leadership in this area. I can see it's a passion of yours which benefits us.
