Recognized Degrees Is Key To Successful Online Education
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Online degree and certificate programs have come a long way since Colby Nolan, an actual cat, earned an executive MBA. The option of pell grant have grown substantially in numbers and enrollment. There are also many grants, scholarships and loans these days to help pay for them.
This money is available largely because of accreditation, a 2001 report from the American Council on Education Center for Policy Analysis and EDUCAUSE suggests. The federal government, which is considered the largest source of financial aid in the country, looks upon accreditation as a sign that colleges, universities and technical schools offer students a quality education that merits financial aid, according to the Council on Education-EDUCAUSE report. A U.S. Department of Education pilot program years ago apparently helped the government to realize the potential of college grants and technical school programs.
Online institutions can be accredited by national or regional agencies, but not all accrediting agencies are recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Agencies that are part of the nationally recognized Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions are. These agencies look at areas such as interactivity, trained faculty, student services and advertising as part of the accreditation process. In October, the U.S. Department of Education reportedly published updated guidelines that add requirements, such as verifying student identities and monitoring enrollment growth.
Officials have been taking measures toward stopping "diploma" or "degree mills" that allow people to buy phony credentials. Wisconsin State Senator Fred Risser, who's among them, says the problem with diploma and degree mills is increasing. Risser crafted a Wisconsin law intended to prosecute these operations and prevent the use of fraudulent academic credentials, according to a news statement from his office. Many other states, according to Risser's office, have taken similar action.
U.S. Congressman Timothy H. Bishop of New York has proposed cracking down on diploma and accreditation mills, a January report in the Chronicle of Higher Education noted. The Federal Trade Commission in 2005 issued a guide to help businesses avoid hiring people with fake degrees. The Department of Education, which cautions students against diploma mills, maintains a list of accredited schools and recognized accreditation agencies on its web site.
Even with accreditation procedures for online institutions in place, students as late as 2006 might have been hard-pressed to find government grants and loans for some online programs. The law until that time denied grants and loans to students attending institutions where more than half of all students and programs were online, according to a Chronicle of Higher Education report. The restrictions, part of what was known as a "50 Percent Rule", were created in 1972 as a means of curbing the rapid growth of fraudulent diploma mills and correspondence schools, a 2005 Inside Higher Education report noted.
The problem was apparently so acute that, for the bargain price of less than $400, Colby Nolan reportedly earned an executive MBA online. Colby, a pet cat, was accepted into the online degree program after investigators filed an application claiming he had attended community college and held babysitting and fast food jobs, according to reports. The online degree that the feline earned - with a 3.5 grade point average, mind you - was reportedly worthless. An attorney general's office is said to have filed a fraud lawsuit against the company that awarded it.
Article Source: Articlelogy.com
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