Higher Education Fraud is helping to crush the U.S. job market now and into the future

White Collar Diploma Mills are the root cause of the higher education fraud in the United States.

They range from small hundred thousand dollar mail order or internet scams to multi-million, even multi-billion dollar operations. Some of the larger organizations are even traded on the New York Stock Exchange and have affiliations to mega bankers and high rolling investors. From small to large, these organizations will sell and provide certificates and degrees with illegitimate results in education or needed skills; some to boost corporate profits others to scam you for profit.

Many of these organizations are not recognized under the Generally Accepted Accrediting Practices, G.A.A.P., and many slip through the cracks of Government screening to pass G.A.A.P. standers with terrifying results.

The Government agencies that control the laws and regulations of this organization(G.A.A.P.) is: C.H.E.A. the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (located in Washington D.C.) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Education, and its honored secretary. The U.N.E.S.C.O., Education Departments and, or Ministries of Major Countries oversee matters regarding exchange students and over-seas affairs.

Good Agencies such as the N.A.S.C., National Association of Schools and Colleges, and their regional sister affiliations, do not and/or will not accredit these organizations for one or more reasons: their status and participatory record, or they are a privately funded Educator.

Some of these documents that are bought from these diploma mills (aka degree mills) look like everyday degrees students obtain from recognized accredited schools. As a matter of fact without checking you cannot tell the difference. Other degrees are skillfully ponded on you, bordering legality in written contracts.

These types of documents are given to you at the time of graduation, giving you the feeling of accomplishment. This  temporarily satisfies your proclivities of where your tuition money went and for what at the moment.

Many people knowingly and unknowingly obtain these degrees to get ahead in life: for a bigger pay raise, a promotion, to start a new business, etc. Unfortunately, many employers do not notice, nor do they check the validity of these documents and by not doing so: many people are accepted into jobs which they are not qualified, or they fake their way through by learning with on the job training. These falsified credentials can pose a major threat in the health, safety and wellbeing of others. Without knowing the trade in depth, an employee may not be able to prevent injury to his co workers or worse.

You might ask, how is it hurting the United States and why is it such a big problem? Let me list some prime examples, so you can see and judge for yourself, why higher education fraud is posing such a massive threat to the United States security now and into the future.

Without Home Land Securities knowledge, TERRORISTS are buying and/or obtaining diploma mill degrees with access to your governmental departments and high security jobs. Don't believe me? See for yourself. Here is an example: please view this video from Fox Channel News posted on youtube.com for everyone to see.

In 2005, the U.S. Secret Service investigated diploma mills.  Fearing they could be used by terrorists to gain access to sensitive jobs in the U.S., The Secret Service bought a degree for a fictional person named Mohammed Syed, a Syrian Army expert looking for U.S. employment.  Syed received three advanced degrees in engineering and chemistry for a total of $1,277 from James Monroe University.

463 Federal Employees, 257 Department of Defense Employees, 12 Department of Homeland Security and 9 NASA employees have degrees from diploma mills or improperly unaccredited institutions. Would you want them running the United States? See the proof for yourself in this NBC News video posted on youtube.com.

In 2003, Laura Callahan, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's deputy chief information officer, claimed three degrees a bachelor's, master's and a PhD-from Hamilton University, a distance learning college that is not accredited by any recognized agency.

During the 10-month investigation, Callahan was put on leave, but continued to collect her government salary of between $128,000 and $175,000 annually.

She was forced to resign in March 2004. After the Callahan case, the Government Accounting Office ran a check of eight federal agencies. The check uncovered 463 employees who claimed degrees from fake schools.

At least 28 of those caught in the sting were senior-level employees, including three unnamed managers with security clearances working at the National Nuclear Security Administration.

Some experts have estimated that many unaccredited institutions (known as diploma mills) sell as many as 100,000 to 200,000 phony degrees each year.

Think of all the millions of people that have inadequate education in the United States. If they don't have the proper skills and safety knowledge how are they doing their jobs?

The hiring or promotion of an unqualified employee may put an employer, company, or organization at risk if the employee's actions harm or mislead others. Even if no one is harmed, hiring or promoting an employee with a suspicious degree may compromise an employer, company, or organization's credibility and cause embarrassment to industry.

An 8-year-old diabetic child died after a North Carolina doctor advised the little girl's mother to take her off insulin. The doctor, Laurence Perry, claimed to be a specialist with degrees from several schools. His degrees were purchased from degree mills. Perry was eventually sentenced to 15 months in jail for manslaughter and practicing medicine without license.

New Jersey administrators earned raises based on fraudulent educational credentials and also charged the school district $10,750 for their fake degrees. Freehold Regional High School District Superintendent H. James Wasser called himself doctor after claiming a PhD from Breyer State University (a reputed diploma mill).

Wasser was forced to return his pay raise in 2008, but kept his $210,000 job through the 2009/2010 school year at which point he is set to start a new job created for him by the district, also at $210,000 per year (though he will be required to give up his district-provided SUV and won't be allowed to claim any further educational expenses).

Teachers are giving inadequate knowledge and skills to our students, causing a tidal wave effect on our education system.

In June 2009, GetEducated.com mascot Chester Ludlow, a pug dog, was awarded an online MBA from Rochville University for his career and life experience. The dog received his degree via express mail from the United Arab Emirates one week after paying the university $499 (had he paid $100 more, he could have graduated with honors). For more information.

This last case shows that online degree mills don't just restrict themselves to colleges but also are targeting those seeking high school diplomas.

The worst of all of the above, is the larger schools and their privately funded education management co's that promote huge ad campaigns to lure students and their families away from the traditional education process.

Many of these organizations fund large telemarketing agencies or have their own in house staff that is trained to do one thing and one thing only, GET YOUR MONEY!

They pose as administrative staff but under their wool they are executive wolves, and you are the lamb waiting for the slaughter.

These places look like schools and feel like schools, but much later in the game, you realize "you've been had" and for some people it is too late to turn back. Most students cannot transfer credits or their credentials to higher institutions to make up for the damage or make up for the loans or money they have been taken for.