Formal diploma and degree programs are not the only goal of an online education. There is something for everyone, including courses for general enjoyment, developing career skills, and just about any purpose that you can imagine. What motivates students to take classes online? Some reasons include working at your own pace, no commuting, and general flexibility with your working location. In addition, taking classes online may be less expensive than taking classes on campus. However, if you would like to pursue a degree, you should beware of degree mills and online diplomas!

A degree mill is a fake university that sells college degrees without requiring the education to earn it. As you may already know, bogus diplomas are a big online business. Vicky Phillips, CEO of www.GetEducated.com, LLC states, "Prestigious unaccredited university? No such creature. Not online...Accreditation is the highest mark of academic quality. Without accreditation a bogus online university can begin awarding degrees overnight. More than thirty bogus universities currently sell online degrees in the United States and Canada." How can you tell if an online education program is real or bogus?

Online Degree Mills: 10 Warning Signs of a Bogus Program

1. The U.S. or Canadian online program is not accredited. An accredited program will state it on the website. The website looks flashy, but doesn't mention accreditation.

2. The online program claims to be accredited, but not by an agency recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (http://www.chea.org). Bogus degree mills will claim accreditation, but only CHEA has the names of valid accreditors. The U.S. Department of Education Higher Learning Commission recognizes the following as national accreditation agencies:

*Middle States' Association of Schools and Colleges

*New England Association of Schools and Colleges

*North Central Association of Schools and Colleges

*Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges

*Southern Association of Schools and Colleges

*Western Association of Schools and Colleges

3. To be admitted to a bogus program, you are only asked for your credit card. Your academic records, GPA (grade point average), and test scores are not requested.

4. You are offered a degree based on your resume, giving you course credit for "life experience." Accredited colleges do offer some course credit (up to 30 credits) for career experience, but no accredited college will give a degree for life experience only. Check accreditation closely if you find an online graduate school advertising degrees based only on life experience. You are almost certainly dealing with an online degree mill. Degree mills are fake colleges that "mill" or crank out worthless paper degrees to...students each year." (Source: "College Credit for Career Experience" by Vicky Phillips, CEO, GetEducated.com, LLC) There is one exception to this. Thomas Edison State College of New Jersey, USA awards degrees based upon corporate training, career experience, military service, and course challenge exams. To earn a degree, you must carefully document and validate all your experience.

5. You are promised a degree (i.e.; a piece of paper) within thirty days of application regardless of your background. Usually, you are not required to take any classes or tests.

6. You are promised a degree for a specific cost, such as $2,000 for a bachelor's or $3,000 for a graduate degree. Accredited colleges do not do this; they charge per credit.

7. The program you are considering has many complaints on the Better Business Bureau website: http://www.bbb.org.

8. An employee of the college swears that online colleges can't be accredited by the CHEA or any agency.

9. The college has no faculty or lists professors who have attended colleges that are not officially accredited by the CHEA.

10. The college offers degrees to anyone, but is located in a foreign country that has no accreditation agencies.

If you are considering entering a U.S. online education program, check it out carefully for accreditation by the CHEA and avoid the bogus, online degree mills!