NIFI Criteria on Degree Mills (Part 1 of 2)
Steve Levicoff
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CRITERIA USED TO DETERMINE IF A
SCHOOL OR PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION
IS A DEGREE OR CREDENTIAL MILL
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Part 1 of 2
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The following criteria are used by the Institute on Religion and
Law to determine the institutional integrity of colleges,
universities, and seminaries; ministerial associations;
professional counseling associations, and other credentialing
agencies.
This list is reprinted from Chapter 4 of "Name It and Frame It?
New Opportunities in Adult Education and How to Avoid Being Ripped
Off by 'Christian' Degree Mills," by Dr. Steve Levicoff (Institute
on Religion and Law, 4th ed., 1995). Based on this, the criteria
on the whole are generally referred to as the "NIFI Criteria."
(For purposes of this ASCII printout, italicized words in the
original text appear between *asterisks*.)
1. Is the school organized as a proprietary (profit-making) or
not-for-profit corporation? While there are some legitimate
proprietary schools in existence, keep in mind that a profit-
making school generally has one primary goal - to make a
profit. They may or may not provide a credible education.
Remember, also, that when it comes to religious schools, many
degree mills are also incorporated as non-profit organizations.
However, if you find a religious school organized as a
proprietary or profit-making institution, that should
immediately raise a red flag.
2. Does the school claim accreditation by a regional or
professional agency other than one that is recognized by both
the U.S. Department of Education and CORPA? Unaccredited
schools that are legitimate don't claim accreditation at all;
if a school claims an unrecognized accreditation, chances are
that it's a degree mill. Be especially careful about any
schools claiming accreditation from the Accrediting Commission
for Schools, Colleges, and Theological Seminaries (ACI),
located in Beebe, Arkansas, or its predecessor, the
International Accrediting Commission for Schools, Colleges, and
Theological Seminaries, which was closed after an investigation
by the Attorney General's office for the state of Missouri (see
the story of ACI at the beginning of this chapter). An
interesting side note: ACI refuses to release a list of schools
accredited by the organization, a characteristic that speaks to
their lack of credibility. *All* legitimate accreditors (even
TRACS, about which I have expressed significant reservations in
this book) regularly publish a list of their member schools.
I'll go on the line with this one: *any* school that claims
accreditation by ACI is either too naive to realize they're
affiliated with a sham organization, or shrewd enough to use
their ACI membership to feign their own legitimacy with a
worthless accreditation.
3. Does the school claim that it is "investigating," "has been in
dialogue with," "is recognized by," or is "pursuing
accreditation" with a legitimate agency? Schools that use such
phrases are often, though not always, degree mills, since these
statements give no true indication about the institution's
chance for actually achieving accreditation.
4. Does the school attempt to overtly justify not being
accredited? One degree mill notes, "As long as we adhere to the
literal-intended [sic] meaning of the Word given to this
present dispensation of Grace, it will have God's approval; it
will be accredited by Him." If you think that's like using the
Lord's name to feign legitimacy, it might help to note that one
degree mill even claims to be accredited by "God Unlimited."
5. Does the school claim to avoid accreditation or purport to be
accredited by an unrecognized agency based on "separation of
church and state?" While some schools have legitimate
doctrinal reasons for not being accredited, be careful about
schools that use comments like, "We operate on principles of
church-state separation and non-governmental interference."
Autonomy for religious institutions is a legitimate goal, but
watch out for schools that use it as an excuse for
mediocrity . . . or worse.
6. Does the school claim to be accredited by organizations that do
not accredit institutions at all? Some of the degree mills
listed in this book claim to be accredited by the Internal
Revenue Service, the Library of Congress, and the National
Association of Evangelicals, none of which are in the business
of accrediting institutions of higher learning.
7. Does a school which is not accredited by a regional association
claim that regionally accredited colleges accept their courses
for transfer credit? If so, ask the school *which* regionally
accredited colleges accept their courses. If the school
hesitates in providing this information, it's a degree mill.
If the school *does* name one or more regionally accredited
institutions that allegedly accept their courses, call the
registrar's office at those schools to verify the claims. But
remember, there are always exceptions to the rule, and the
occasional recognition of credit for an unaccredited course
does not indicate that a regionally accredited college has a
general policy of accepting such coursework. The key question:
can you transfer credit for the courses you take to *any*
school of your choice? The only way you can guarantee this is
to take the courses themselves through legitimately accredited
schools.
8. Is the school listed in a standard directory of colleges such
as Lovejoy's or Peterson's guides? These directories are
available in any library as well as many bookstores, and
include profiles of legitimately accredited Bible colleges as
well as secular schools. The lack of a school's listing in a
general college or graduate school directory isn't a final
indication that it's a degree mill, but it should raise a red
flag.
9. Does a school claim that, while it doesn't offer degrees, its
courses are transferable to another school that does? With few
exceptions, the schools that will accept transfer courses from
a non-degree granting institution are diploma mills. Besides,
if you want to get a degree from "School A," why take the
courses from "School B?" Remember, there are a few legitimate
programs whose courses transfer to legitimate colleges. (These
include the Word of Life Bible Institute in Schroon Lake, New
York, and the Institute of Biblical Studies in Bellmawr, New
Jersey.) However, check any claims carefully, and verify their
truthfulness yourself *directly* with the school to which you
want to transfer the credits.
10. Does the school's catalog have a complete list of their own
faculty, and does the list include where they received *their*
degrees? (If not, they may have something to hide.) If they
are listed, are a large number of the faculty's degrees also
from unaccredited institutions? That, too, is a sign of a
degree mill.
11. Do an inordinate number of faculty members have one or more of
their own degrees from the school itself? That spells a home-
grown organization, and is often (though not always) an
indication of a degree mill.
12. Does the school list well-known persons as adjunct faculty
members based on the use of audio or video courses? For
example, a school may use course tapes featuring Billy Graham,
then claim that Graham is on their adjunct faculty. It's a
common degree mill tactic, and should raise questions about the
integrity of the school's program. Also be careful about
schools using the terms *invited instructor* or *visiting
lecturer*. Just because a school invites someone to lecture
doesn't mean that person is going to accept. (I can invite
Billy Graham to lecture at my school. Does that mean he'll
accept? Fat chance.) The term *visiting lecturer* can mean
someone who actually teaches an occasional full-length course
*or* a person who shows up to give a one-hour lecture once a
year. Be discerning.
13. Does the school list prominent persons on its board of
advisors? Listen up, campers: there's a major difference
between terms like board of advisors, board of directors, and
board of trustees. Directors or trustees are normally involved
in making significant policy decisions that affect an
institution. However, advisors merely *advise*, and their
participation in an institution is usually minimal. Let's say
that I start a degree mill, then call Billy Graham and ask him
to sit on my board of advisors. If he says yes, I get to use
his name to give my institution credibility. However, he will
neither teach at my school nor have any authority in policy-
making decisions. All I have to do is call him one or twice a
year and ask for his advice. (That's what makes him an
advisor.) Don't be misled by an impressive board of advisors
list; they mean nothing.
14. Does the school list persons to whom they have granted an
honorary degree? While some schools list persons who have
spoken at special functions or convocations, a school that
prominently features the names of persons who have allegedly
been granted honorary degrees is often a degree mill. The
caliber of a school's graduates (those who have earned, not
honorary, degrees from the institution) may, though not always,
be an indicator of their quality; a list of persons who have
been granted honorary degrees by the school is generally
irrelevant. The more prominently a school features such a
list, the greater the chance is that it's a degree mill.
15. If the school lists the number of students currently enrolled
as well as the members of the faculty, is the student-to-
faculty ratio realistic? A school that claims to have 5,000
students enrolled but lists only ten faculty members, for
example, would have a 500:1 student-to-faculty ratio. That
signifies a poor program. The average student-to-faculty ratio
in a credible ministry program should be 30:1 at maximum.
16. Does the school offer multiple degree titles within each level
of education? For example, some one mill offers degree titles
at the graduate level alone that include Master of Arts, Master
of Church Business Administration, Master of Biblical Studies,
Master of Christian Studies, Master of Religious Studies,
Master of Theological Studies, Master of Ministry, Master of
Divinity, Master of Theology, Master of Christian Counseling,
Master of Biblical Counseling, Doctor of Ministry, Doctor of
Divinity, Doctor of Theology, Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of
Christian Counseling, Doctor of Biblical Counseling, ad
infinitum, ad nauseum. Legitimately accredited seminaries
generally offer only two or three degree titles at each
academic level, for example: Master of Arts and Master of
Divinity, or Doctor of Ministry and Doctor of Theology. Any
school that offers more degree titles than sound reasonable is
very likely a sham.
17. Does the school offer degrees with British (rather than
American) titles, or do they award degree titles other than
those normally offered by legitimately accredited schools?
Remember the survey of degree titles in Chapter 1? The most
common academic degrees awarded in the United States include
the Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, and Doctor of Philosophy.
If you find an American school offering titles such as the
Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.), Doctor of Philosophy
(abbreviated D.Phil. rather than Ph.D.), or Doctor of Theology
(abbreviated D.Theol. rather than Th.D.), chances are that they
haven't met the licensing standards in their state that would
allow them to offer the more accepted degrees. Let me make it
clear: there is no *legitimate* reason for an American college
or university to offer degrees with a British title. Also, be
careful of schools offering "oddball" degree titles such as
Doctor of Apologetics (D.Apol.), Doctor of Christian Education
(D.C.E., rather than the more accepted Doctor of Education, or
Ed.D.), or Doctor of Biblical Studies (D.B.S.). The *only*
accepted doctoral degree title in ministry is the D.Min.
Again, any school offering odd degree titles is very likely
unable to qualify under their state's standards for offering
the more accepted degrees.
18. Does the school offer professional ministry degrees such as the
Master of Theology (Th.M.), Master of Sacred Theology (S.T.M.),
Doctor of Sacred Theology (S.T.D.), or Doctor of Ministry
(D.Min.) without a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) prerequisite?
In order to any of earn these three post-graduate degrees,
legitimately accredited schools *require* that students have a
previously earned Master of Divinity degree; a Master of Arts
or Master of Biblical Studies will generally not qualify a
student to enroll in a Th.M., S.T.D., or D.Min. program. If a
school is willing to enroll you in such a program and you do
not have an M.Div. degree already, chances are that the school
is a degree mill. (One exception to this is Dallas Theological
Seminary, a legitimately accredited traditional school, which
has a four-year Th.M. program rather than a three-year M.Div.
program. As with a few university programs in which students
go directly from a B.A. to a Ph.D. directly (even though they
do the equivalent work of both a master's and doctoral degree),
Dallas students move directly from their bachelor's degree to a
Th.M. However, the program takes four years and fulfills all
the requirements of both a normal three-year M.Div. and one-
year Th.M.)
19. Does the school sound too small to be credible? One Bible
college noted in their newsletter that in a recent semester
they had enrolled "9 students in the dormitory. In addition we
have 3 commuting full-time students, 8 part-time undergraduate
students, and 3 master's level students. This gives us a total
of 23 on-campus students." A school of that size is hardly
large enough to have a solid faculty, credible library, or
adequate resources to meet the needs of students in a higher
education program.
20. Are the school's degree requirements comparable to those of
legitimately accredited institutions? For example, a
legitimate Master of Divinity degree consists of about 96
semester hours. While some degree mills purport to have similar
requirements, others list an M.Div. credit requirement of only
36 semester hours. That's a dead giveaway. Another common
example is for schools to offer a Master of Theology or Doctor
of Ministry degree to students who have only a bachelor's
degree. Normally, both Th.M. and D.Min. programs require an
earned Master of Divinity degree as a prerequisite. Flexible
programs are nice, but beware of programs that seem *too*
flexible.
21. Is there more than one administrator or board member in the
same family? That, too, signifies a home-grown character.
Watch out for any school in which John Doe, Sr. is the
chancellor, John Doe, Jr. is the president, and Mary Doe is the
vice-president, etc.
22. Do administration or faculty members have more than one
doctoral degree, and are those degrees earned or honorary? If
you see a person listed who holds, for example, the "D.D.,
D.R.E., Lit.D., Th.D., and Ph.D.," there's either something
fishy about his credentials or he's been in school longer than
you and I have been alive.
23. Does the school's catalog make inordinate use of personal
testimonies? This may be fine if you're shopping for a
Christian diet plan, but it won't tell you anything about the
quality of an educational program. Remember that people who
offer testimonials may truly *believe* that they have
legitimate degrees, but that's not necessarily an indication of
reality.
24. Does the school offer credit for life experience at the
graduate level? Generally, experiential credits documented
through a learning portfolio are an accepted part of regionally
accredited non-traditional *undergraduate* programs. As a
general rule, however, legitimately accredited graduate
programs require that students pursue new learning and do not
offer credit for life experience at the master's or doctorate
degree level.
25. Does the school administer *unproctored* examinations for
correspondence courses? *All* legitimately accredited schools
that offer correspondence courses for credit require that
examinations be taken under proctored conditions, meaning that
the exam is supervised by a test proctor approved by the
institution in a controlled environment to ensure that the
student doesn't cheat or use an open textbook if it's not
permitted. Final examinations are generally sent directly to
the test proctor, who gives it to you to take, then mails the
completed exam back to the school. *Any* school that says they
will send you a final examination (as opposed to a quiz or
assignment, neither of which requires a proctor) and allows you
to take it at home without academic supervision is a degree
mill.
26. Does the school grant a master's or doctorate degree without
any residency whatsoever? This criterion is subjective on my
part, but I'll go for it anyway. I believe that graduate-level
degrees, especially in pastoral or counseling studies, should
have at least some degree of residency, even though the bulk of
the program might be non-residential, to ensure that the
student is learning how to competently apply skills that will
have a significant impact on other people. (For more on this
criterion, see Chapter 8.) Any school that purports to grant
ministry-oriented graduate degrees that are *totally* non-
residential is a degree mill. (Incidentally, I know of only
one regionally accredited school that grants a totally non-
residential master's degree, the California State University at
Dominguez Hills' M.A. program in Humanities. How many
regionally accredited schools grant a totally non-residential
doctorate degree? None.)
27. Does a theological seminary offer undergraduate degrees?
Generally, colleges offer degrees at the bachelor's level,
while seminaries offer only graduate degrees. There was a time
when the word *seminary* was used to signify a high school, but
that's rarely done these days. For the most part, seminaries
that offer bachelor's as well as graduate degrees are diploma
mills. There are a few legitimate exceptions (such as Columbia
Bible College & Seminary in South Carolina), but seminaries
claiming to offer undergraduate degrees without being directly
affiliated with a Bible college are often degree mills.
28. Does the school claim to use correspondence courses, tests, or
portfolio evaluation methods that have been developed by
legitimately accredited schools? Several degree mills have
purported to use materials developed by Columbia Bible College
& Seminary, the Institute for Theological Studies, Thomas
Edison State College, and other legitimate institutions, often
without the permission or authorization of those institutions.
If a degree mill claims to use the resources of accredited
schools, you may as well go directly to those accredited
schools so your studies will have legitimate value.
29. Does the school's catalog or marketing literature quote the
Sosdian-Sharp Study, a 1978 government survey indicating that
there is a high satisfaction level with non-traditionally
earned degrees? Virtually *every* school that refers to this
survey, some of which print adapted versions in their catalogs,
is a degree mill that misrepresents the survey's findings. The
study, which surveyed non-traditional program graduates about
their success in job promotions and graduate school admissions,
dealt solely with legitimately accredited institutions. Not
surprisingly, the degree mills don't mention that.
[The above refers to: Carol P. Sosdian and Laurie M. Sharp, "The
External Degree as Credential: Graduates' Experiences in
Employment and Further Study" (Washington, DC: U.S. Department
of Health, Education and Welfare, 1978).]
30. Does the school's catalog or brochure contain a statement
denying that the school is a degree or diploma mill? Listen
up, campers: any school that denies that it's a degree mill
most likely *is* a degree mill. Legitimate schools don't have
to make such an inane disclaimer.
31. Does a school or organization purport to certify you in a
particular profession, and if so, is it a legitimate
certification? Degree mills offer certifications that have no
professional validity at all. Because you're reading this
book, I can grant you status as a Certified Christian Non-
Traditional Education Specialist. With that and another fifty
cents, you'll be able to afford the other half-cup of coffee -
but not much more.
32. Does an organization or association offer to certify you in a
professional field (such as counseling) without your having to
take a board examination, or will they certify you without
requesting your academic transcripts? No legitimate
association would certify you without validating any
credentials you claim to have.
33. Does a school or organization purport to offer you professional
licensure? Don't buy into that one at all. Licensure is
granted by state licensing boards, not by schools,
organizations, or professional associations. Chances are that
any school or professional association that offers licensure is
a sham.
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Steve Levicoff, Ph.D.
7662...@compuserve.com
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JohnBear
The Nitpickers' League offers occasional reminders that the NIFI
Criteria are generally sound, but there are often exceptions.
<<<2. Does the school claim accreditation by a regional or
professional agency other than one that is recognized by both
the U.S. Department of Education and CORPA?>>>
Hundreds of major university business schools claim accreditation by the
American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business. AACSB was, but is
no longer recognized by the US Dept. of Education or CORPA.
<<<8. Is the school listed in a standard directory of colleges such
as Lovejoy's or Peterson's guides?>>>
For quite a few years, the totally fraudulent Thomas Edison College (of
Florida and Arkansas) was duly listed in Lovejoy's, even after the
proprietor, "Dr." Lyon went to prison. I wrote Lovejoy's many letters
over a five-year period, all (but perhaps the last) ignored.
Steve Levicoff
JohnBear <John...@degree.net> writes:
>The Nitpickers' League offers occasional reminders that the NIFI
>Criteria are generally sound, but there are often exceptions.
Always delighted to hear from a fellow nitpicker. (I would say that
prefer A-200 myself, but that might open a string of jokes that would
make everyone crabby. But I digress . . .)
><<<2. Does the school claim accreditation by a regional or
> professional agency other than one that is recognized by both
> the U.S. Department of Education and CORPA?>>>
>
>Hundreds of major university business schools claim accreditation by
>the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business. AACSB was,
>but is no longer recognized by the US Dept. of Education or CORPA.
True, but most major of these business schools are accredited by their
respective regional associations. Therefore, AACSB serves more as a
membership for them than as an accreditation.
><<<8. Is the school listed in a standard directory of colleges such
> as Lovejoy's or Peterson's guides?>>>
>
>For quite a few years, the totally fraudulent Thomas Edison College
>(of Florida and Arkansas) was duly listed in Lovejoy's, even after the
>proprietor, "Dr." Lyon went to prison. I wrote Lovejoy's many letters
>over a five-year period, all (but perhaps the last) ignored.
True, but as in all cases, there are exceptions to every rule. Face
it, Lovejoy's simply didn't want to admit that they blew it.
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Steve Levicoff
JohnBear <John...@degree.net> writes:
>The Nitpickers' League offers occasional reminders that the NIFI
>Criteria are generally sound, but there are often exceptions . . .
While I have replied to John's "exceptions" in another post, it does
occur to me that I have just been given the ultimate endorsement, for
which I graciously thank John . . .
"The NIFI Criteria are generally sound . . ."
- Dr. John Bear
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