Papa Bear and Douglas on IHU
Douglas the Clown
Subject: Bear on MIGS
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Newsgroups: alt.education.distance
Date: 2000-09-22 15:10:25 PST
I have just received a letter from Mlle. Genevieve Rabreau, Deputy
Director of the International Association of Universities/UNESCO
Information Centre on Higher Education, in response to my inquiry. She
writes that following their own research and investigation, they "have
updated our database accordingly. We are pleased to attach herewith a
file containing the information to be included in the forthcoming
edition of the International Handbook of Universities. The Monterrey
Institute for Graduate Studies (MIGS) is listed under 羨cademic
Divisions' of the university."
The listing as it will be in the International Handbook includes the
nine divisions of the university, one of which is the graduate division,
offering Doctorates in business and commerce, business administration,
education and teacher training, and psychology, through MIGS, which is
entirely a part of the university. Full-time staff (in this division),
12; part-time staff, 60.
The listing also refers to accreditation from the two major Mexican
accrediting agencies; makes clear that instruction is done in English as
well as Spanish; and refers to an "internatioinal cooperation" agreement
with Indiana University. The International Handbook is the book that, I
can say with confidence, 99+% of the world's academic registrars use to
determine the acceptability of a credential. If it's in there, then a
school and degree are acceptable. If not, then probably not.
According to Grove Press, the US distributor for UNESCO, the
International Handbook will be published in December at a cost of $245.
The current edition describes about 9,000 universities. If there is a
fake, or even a slightly dubious one in there, I have yet to find it.
These people do good research.
It seems safe to suggest that Dr. Levicoff is not only the only person
on this news group to call MIGS a diploma mill, he quite possibly may be
the only one on the planet. One can only remind him of the old Scottish
prayer, "Lord, please let me be right, because you know I am never going
to change my mind."
PS: I have learned, over the decades, that one of the best ways to
evaluate the way a school is run is to dip a few toes in their waters.
This is why I served, once, on a Union Institute doctoral committee, and
once on a Nova Southeastern doctoral committee, among others. I shall
now serve on one MIGS doctoral committee, for my friend of 20 years Rich
Douglas, who will be doing his Ph.D. research in the study of various
aspects of the world of distance learning.
John Bear
jo...@degree.net