Scam Schools And Diploma Mills

[TheCommuter]

Several generations ago, a high school education had been sufficient enough to land a good position. An individual could graduate from high school, find an entry-level job, remain with the same place of employment for thirty to forty years, enjoy some middle class comforts along the way, and retire with a generous employer-sponsored pension. Well, those days are a thing of the distant past.

With a high-school education no longer a ticket to a well-paying job, and 77 percent of adults over 25 without a bachelor's degree, trade schools have enormous appeal to anyone looking to make more money (Yeoman, 1997). To make things worse, several of these schools are nothing more than boldfaced scams and diploma mills. Some scam schools are designed solely to amass tuition monies, federal grants, and student loans (Yeoman, 1997).

Diploma mills are schools that are more interested in taking your money than providing you with a quality education (U.S. Department of Education, 2009). The typical diploma mill or scam school has no selective admissions requirements and minimal or no academic work required. In return, the so-called 'graduate' receives a diploma or degree upon completion of the program that is basically worthless.

Multiple warning signs are associated with scam schools and diploma mills. Some people do not spot these red flags until it is too late. Therefore, be on the lookout for the following attributes:

• Diplomas or degrees are granted based solely on life experience.
• So-called 'professors' and 'instructors' are difficult to reach
• Diplomas or degrees are granted after a very short time frame.
• Instead of paying per college credit, students pay for each degree.
• The school has a lack of contact information.
• Tests are administered online and are not proctored or monitored.
• The school's website is riddled with grammatical and spelling errors.
• The school is accredited by a phony accrediting agency.
• The school's website does not end in .edu

Some of you might be reading this and simultaneously thinking, "All of this stuff should be common sense. Doesn't everybody know to keep an eye out for these red flags by now?"

Unfortunately, many people are conned by scam schools and diploma mills every year. High school dropouts pay money to odious institutions in exchange for diplomas that are later discovered to be worth far less than the paper on which they are printed. People who are too busy to deal with the rigors of higher education pay hard-earned dollars for college degrees that end up having no value in the academic world or the workplace. Click on the link below to read some of these peoples' stories:

Online Degrees: Schools Scam Aspiring Students

Always keep in mind that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Any schooling that is quick and easy is probably associated with a diploma mill or scam school. In a nutshell, keep your guard up and make sure that the people in your lives do not fall for any educational scams.

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[on eagles wings, ASN, RN]

I hate these schools. My poor mom got sucked into one of these and has incurred thousands in debt. She never used her degree. I am in Miami and we have loads of those down here, aimed at the Spanish-only speaking community who is desperate for getting a decent job here in the States. I agree with another poster, these schools should be illegal. They never give the quality of education they pay for.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

\I am looking at a school in Delaware that is accredited by the Delaware Board of Nursing (which I verified on the State of Delaware's website) and has a Better Business Bureau rating of "A". It is not a typical university or college but rather a trade school. They only train LPNs. The full-time program is one year in length while the part-time program is only a few months more.

The school sounds legitimate if it is approved to operate by the Delaware BON. Many fast-track LPN programs are found at private trade schools, so this is quite normal. In addition, the vast majority of LPN programs do not have NLN accreditation because it is simply not that important for schools that offer PN courses.

[KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN]

This is an informative article but some of us still aren't sure if a school is legit or not. I would appreciate some guidance on this.

I am looking at a school in Delaware that is accredited by the Delaware Board of Nursing (which I verified on the State of Delaware's website) and has a Better Business Bureau rating of "A". It is not a typical university or college but rather a trade school. They only train LPNs. The full-time program is one year in length while the part-time program is only a few months more.

The school is extremely small and shares their "campus" with other businesses such as an employment agency and the Justice of the Peace! I visited the school and had an interview with one of the teachers who took notes on everything I said. At the end of the interview she said I was accepted. She is an actual teacher there and was doing the interview on her lunch break. Some of the students talked with her so I know she teaches there and isn't just wearing a lab coat. I had a brief look at the classrooms which were nothing special but what would I expect for a place that shares the building with others?

They have a clinical lab area with everything that probably should be there for doing labs. The problem is, I am still not sure if they are a diploma mill or a scam school! Since they are a trade school and not a university I will not earn any degree but a diploma. I also live in an area where there are still some diploma nursing schools. Also, the school is overseen by a business I guess. The school is Leads School of Technology and their parent company is Leads Network, Inc. I can't find any information on the parent company and from what I found out on the school is not helpful. They have only been in business and accredited since 2007. From here, I am not sure what to do. The tuition sounds fairly reasonable I think: $16,002.00. This includes books, clinical uniform, fees for lab, fee for NCLEX prep course and other things that make sense. Their website ends with an "edu.com" and the site seems to be very well written. However, the teachers are not listed, just some of the staff. They have a working phone number of course. :)

Also, the tuition they ask can be paid in installments but they do not accept credit cards or personal checks. This was a red flag when I spoke with my dad about it. Although I got advice from someone else about the school, I'd like to know what other people think and if there is any other way if I can find out if they are a scam school or diploma mill. I think my next step is to call other nursing programs in the area and ask if they will accept my impending credits from this school if I decide to attend an RN program a bit later on. What do you guys think? What else can I watch out for? I have not paid any money at this point, not even for the application fee. I did submit all necessary paperwork and got my criminal background check, drug test, physical, and immunizations done.

I have seen threads on this forum about this school on the DE Nursing Program forum. Check those out & you can get an idea on how the program is. But if it's listed on the BON website,it's fine.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

The first schools that pop into my head when I read this thread are University of Phoenix and Kaplan University. As much as I don't believe these schools are true diploma mills as intended by the OP, I still cringe when someone says they earned a degree from one of these institutions, especially at the graduate level. I have never considered these schools to be of the same caliber as a long-standing traditional brick-and-mortar school.

[StudentNurseKitteh]

Here in California you pretty much HAVE TO go to a private, for-profit trade-style school for an LVN and then try to bridge through to RN. Because of CA's horrible economy, the public junior colleges and universities have severely limited the number of seats they offer in RN programs (lack of funding). There are 5-10 applicants for every seat and it takes highly-qualified candidates about 4 years to get in after finishing their pre-reqs. Or pay about 100k to a private university, if you have the grades to get in!

[WildcatFanRN, BSN, RN]

The first schools that pop into my head when I read this thread are University of Phoenix and Kaplan University. As much as I don't believe these schools are true diploma mills as intended by the OP, I still cringe when someone says they earned a degree from one of these institutions, especially at the graduate level. I have never considered these schools to be of the same caliber as a long-standing traditional brick-and-mortar school.

University of Phoenix near me is a brick and mortor school. It does have an extensive online component. I went when I lived in Tucson for one session and actually loved it. My math teacher worked as a missle engineer and taught evenings because he loved math and wanted to teach. And, boy could he teach. University of Phoenix has all the same accreditations that more traditional schools have. I just cringe at the cost.

[KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN]

I wouldn't consider U of Phoenix a scam school either. Now Kaplan on the other hand:uhoh21:

[klone, MSN, RN]

No, U of P is definitely not a diploma mill. It *is* a for-profit school, and is hella expensive.

[Stephalump]

I wouldn't consider U of Phoenix a scam school either. Now Kaplan on the other hand:uhoh21:

Yeah, I don't think they qualify as a scam. But YES they are expensive and I don't think they've reached the universal acceptance level they intended to. If you're already on your way in your career and just need more education to advance, they seem to be fine. But just starting out, you're probably not going to seem as competitive because of the stigma.

[That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

Meh serves you right for not researching the school you are going to.

[duckyluck111]

This is an informative article but some of us still aren't sure if a school is legit or not. I would appreciate some guidance on this.

I am looking at a school in Delaware that is accredited by the Delaware Board of Nursing (which I verified on the State of Delaware's website) and has a Better Business Bureau rating of "A". It is not a typical university or college but rather a trade school. They only train LPNs. The full-time program is one year in length while the part-time program is only a few months more.

The school is extremely small and shares their "campus" with other businesses such as an employment agency and the Justice of the Peace! I visited the school and had an interview with one of the teachers who took notes on everything I said. At the end of the interview she said I was accepted. She is an actual teacher there and was doing the interview on her lunch break. Some of the students talked with her so I know she teaches there and isn't just wearing a lab coat. I had a brief look at the classrooms which were nothing special but what would I expect for a place that shares the building with others?

They have a clinical lab area with everything that probably should be there for doing labs. The problem is, I am still not sure if they are a diploma mill or a scam school! Since they are a trade school and not a university I will not earn any degree but a diploma. I also live in an area where there are still some diploma nursing schools. Also, the school is overseen by a business I guess. The school is Leads School of Technology and their parent company is Leads Network, Inc. I can't find any information on the parent company and from what I found out on the school is not helpful. They have only been in business and accredited since 2007. From here, I am not sure what to do. The tuition sounds fairly reasonable I think: $16,002.00. This includes books, clinical uniform, fees for lab, fee for NCLEX prep course and other things that make sense. Their website ends with an "edu.com" and the site seems to be very well written. However, the teachers are not listed, just some of the staff. They have a working phone number of course. :)

Also, the tuition they ask can be paid in installments but they do not accept credit cards or personal checks. This was a red flag when I spoke with my dad about it. Although I got advice from someone else about the school, I'd like to know what other people think and if there is any other way if I can find out if they are a scam school or diploma mill. I think my next step is to call other nursing programs in the area and ask if they will accept my impending credits from this school if I decide to attend an RN program a bit later on. What do you guys think? What else can I watch out for? I have not paid any money at this point, not even for the application fee. I did submit all necessary paperwork and got my criminal background check, drug test, physical, and immunizations done.

Here is the thing, it is probably legitimate, however, like many "for profit" schools, your credits will likely not transfer anywhere else, so unless you know you know for sure that once you start, you will be able to keep going finish at this school, you might be out lots of $$, as opposed to say, a community college whose classes would likely be transferable to another program. They could go out of business or something and you'd be left with nothing.

[JulesDreamyT]

Thank you so much for your reply. :) This reassures me more that there are some that feel this school is legit. Thanks again!