Employer’s Guide to College Degrees
2006
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An Employer’s Guide to College Degrees
Office of Degree Authorization Oregon Student Assistance Commission 1500 Valley River Drive No. 100 Eugene OR 97401 (541) 687-7452 fax (541) 687-7419 Information: http://www.osac.state.or.us/oda Email: oda@mercury.osac.state.or.us
This guide has been developed to provide basic information to Oregon employers regarding the nature of college degrees. It covers Oregon law regarding the use of degrees, how to accurately describe degree needs when advertising for a position, how to evaluate a job applicant’s claim of a degree, the growing problem of diploma mill degrees, , and related issues. The Office of Degree Authorization (ODA) is a unit of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission, a state agency that also provides state-funded and privately funded scholarships, grants, and college access information. ODA exists in part to ensure that degrees earned and used in Oregon are valid educational credentials. A list of ODA services appears on page 6 of this guide.
What is a degree?
A degree is an academic credential awarded to a student who has completed a specified course of study, typically two years for an associate degree and four years for a bachelor’s degree . Graduate level (master and doctoral) and professional degrees vary in length. Degrees are distinguished from other courses of study such as certificate programs (short, specific programs such as seminars) or diploma programs (programs that vary in length and difficulty but do not yield a degree). The distinctions include the difficulty of coursework, the amount of student effort per credit, the educational attainment required of instructors, and the number of credits required in non-vocational, general education courses,such as liberal arts and sciences. (The minimum number of general education credits varies by type of degree and accreditation.)
When should a degree be required for a job?
A degree should be required for a position when the position requires knowledge, skills, evaluative ability or experience that can be acquired or demonstrated by successful completion of a college degree program, and which cannot otherwise be clearly demonstrated.
Full-color flat magnets of this reminder are available from ODA at no charge. Just call or e-mail ODA and ask for the “sheep magnet.”
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Oregon law generally requires that a degree offered as a credential be from an accredited institution or an institution that has been approved by the Office of Degree Authorization. Certain unaccredited degrees may be used with a disclaimer required by law.
What is accreditation?
Accreditation is an external evaluative process that helps ensure that colleges meet basic criteria for program operations and quality. Only accreditation by an accreditor that is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education meets the standard set in Oregon law. Recognized institutional accreditors may be regional (having authority to accredit schools within a given region of the United States) or national (having nationwide accreditation authority over specific types of schools, such as private-career or faithbased schools). Additionally, professional and specialized accrediting bodies are recognized for specific program accreditation. There are many bogus “accreditors” set up by diploma mills. Accreditation by such an entity is not valid under Oregon law. Information on federally recognized accreditors can be found at
http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html
What are religious-exempt degrees?
About half of U.S. states, including Oregon, allow certain unaccredited religious degree-granters to issue degrees without the usual state oversight. Some states have significant requirements of such schools, some have none. Such degrees may or may not resemble standard degrees and may or may not meet an employer’s needs. Oregon’s standards for such degrees are set forth in ORS 348.604 and 348.605 . However, the state does not know whether these standards are met beyond the initial issuance of exemption.
What is a diploma mill (or degree mill)?
Diploma mill: An institution of higher education operating without supervision of a state or professional agency and granting diplomas which are either fraudulent or because of the lack of proper standards worthless. — Webster’s Third New International Dictionary Diploma mills (or degree mills) are substandard or fraudulent “colleges” that offer potential students degrees with little or no serious work. Some are simple frauds: a mailbox to which people send money in exchange for paper that purports to be a college degree. Others require some nominal work from the student but do not require the college-level course work that is normally required for a degree. Still others require more than nominal work but it is either not evaluated by qualified individuals or is not evaluated at all. A precise definition distinguishes between diploma mills (selling fake degrees from real colleges, e.g. Oregon State University) and degree mills (providing credentials called degrees from fake or substandard colleges (e.g. St. Regis University). However, you will often see the terms used interchangeably. The legal definition of a degree mill in Oregon can be found at OAR 583-050-0011(11).
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How can I tell whether an institution is a degree mill?
Most degree mills have certain characteristics. The Council on Higher Education Accreditation has an excellent overview of the issue at http://www.chea.org/. The ODA summary can be found at http://www.osac.state.or.us/oda/diploma_mill.html.
Are all unaccredited colleges degree mills?
Not all unaccredited colleges are degree mills in the traditional sense of the term. Some unaccredited colleges provide legitimate academic work. However, unless these colleges are approved by ODA, degrees from them cannot be used for employment in Oregon without the disclaimer required in ORS 348.609(2). (See page 7). The reason for this is that unaccredited degree suppliers are often located in states with poor academic oversight and degrees issued there often result from minimal student work. A list of Oregon-approved unaccredited colleges can be found on the ODA web site under Unaccredited Colleges.
Does an ".edu" address mean that a school is legitimate?
No. Over 200 diploma mills and unaccredited schools have been able to obtain ".edu" extensions and EDUCAUSE, which controls that domain, has decided to take no action. An ".edu" extension therefore means nothing regarding a school's quality or legitimacy.
Evaluating applicant degrees
Suggested language for advertising and hiring
If you require a traditional academic degree, we suggest that you include the following statement in recruiting materials:
“Requires an [associate, bachelor’s, masters, doctoral] degree from a regionally accredited institution or foreign equivalent.”
Institutions such as Oregon State University, the University of Portland, Lewis and Clark, Clackamas Community College, and Northwest Christian College are examples of regionally accredited institutions. Foreign equivalents would include such schools as the University of British Columbia, Strathclyde University (Scotland, UK) or Monash University (Australia). If a degree from a technical school, degree-granting career college, or other school whose programs are more job-specific will work for your needs, we suggest that you include the following statement in recruiting materials:
“Requires an [associate, bachelor’s, masters] degree from an institution accredited by a federally recognized accreditor or foreign equivalent.”
Institutions such as Gutenberg College, ITT Technical Institute, Pioneer Pacific College and Eugene Bible College are examples of such nationally accredited colleges. Foreign equivalency would be the same as noted above.
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A list of all Oregon colleges that shows their accreditation status will be available from the ODA web site by early 2007; click the appropriate sidebar under Institutions. If you want to allow maximum flexibility in the degrees that you will consider, you can append the phrase “or an institution approved by the Oregon Office of Degree Authorization.” This would allow use of degrees from a small number of unaccredited institutions that have met ODA standards for degree approval. (NOTE: licensed professions typically do not allow the use of unaccredited degrees.) Degrees issued by religious-exempt schools are not considered ODA-approved, but Oregon law allows users to claim them with no penalty. If you want to allow use of degrees from unaccredited religious-exempt institutions, include language to that effect.
Degrees, Diplomas and Transcripts
A degree is the academic award that a person earns upon graduation from a degree-granting program; for example, Associate of Applied Science (AAS), Bachelor of Arts (BA) or Master of Business Administration (MBA). A diploma is the physical certificate on which the name of the school, the degree or certificate title, and the name of the graduate are printed. A transcript is the official form on which the college records courses taken and award of the degree. Of these, the most important for degree validation is the transcript. A degree title can be claimed by anyone, and a professional-looking diploma can be purchased from many sources. Only a transcript, provided directly from the institution and properly authenticated, can prove that a person is entitled to claim a degree or use a college diploma. Note that genuine-looking but false transcripts may also be purchased. Always verify with the issuing institution that a transcript is genuine.
Some common professional certifications are not degrees
Professional certifications such as RN (Registered Nurse) or CPA (Certified Public Accountant) are not degrees. They are professional licenses awarded by a licensing body. Be careful that you do not advertise for a person holding an “RN degree” or the like – there is no such thing. You can, of course, require the license certification.
Levels of validation
Employers must make choices about the relative value of time, money, and degree validation when filling a position. Validating a degree takes time and costs money. Most employers spend more time and money validating degrees for high-level or highly sensitive positions than they do for lower level positions. Here are ODA’s recommendations regarding the appropriate application of these levels. 1 Applicant claim accepted at face value This is acceptable for the lowest level positions for which a degree is not required, and the person is actually overqualified if a degree-holder. Applicant provides copy of diploma Essentially the same as Level 1, with increased likelihood of truthfulness by applicant. If a diploma isn’t offered, you needn’t bother asking for it.
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Applicant provides transcript showing award of degree* This is the minimum level of screening for any position that requires a degree. However, as indicated earlier, transcripts can be faked or altered and transcripts delivered by the degree-holder are less secure than those acquired directly from the school. At this validation level, which should be required for all professional and sensitive positions, it is also necessary to determine whether the school exists at all. The transcript should bear the name and address of the school, which can be checked in any directory of U.S. colleges. See Resources on page 5 of this guide. NOTE: Some non-U.S. educational systems don’t issue transcripts that look like U.S. transcripts. See Foreign degrees below.
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Obtain transcript from school* This is the ODA-recommended standard for all professional or sensitive positions. Any job applicant can and should be required to have an official transcript (that is, one on original transcript paper—typically colored and bearing a watermark and/or other security features, a signature (sometimes automated) and original seal—mailed directly from the school to the employer. The chances of fraud are significantly reduced through this process. We recommend that employers confirm that the transcript is genuine by contacting the school’s registrar using a phone number listed for the school in standard college directories. Do not use a phone number printed on the transcript or provided by the student; these may lead to false verification services. Transcript verification is considered “directory information” under the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), and any college should be able to confirm award of a degree.
Foreign degrees: if the degree is foreign, use a specialized evaluation service Any degree issued under the authority of a foreign country should be validated by a foreign credential evaluation service. This should be done for any validation at level 3 or above. Basic evaluation (simple confirmation that the school exists and offers such degrees) should cost under $100. Complex evaluations to determine whether the person’s degree program includes certain course work are more expensive, usually several hundred dollars. Information about such evaluators can be found on page 6 of this guide.
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Resources
Books We recommend the following general references for all organizations that do significant hiring of employees with degrees. Higher Education Directories ODA uses and recommends two directories. We use the annual Higher Education Directory published by Higher Education Publications (HEP) in Virginia as our basic directory. HEP’s web site is http://www.hepinc.com/. They may also be contacted at 703-532-2300 or at info@hepinc.com. This directory costs about $80 a year, is very easy to use, and provides all of the basic information that most employers will need. ODA also uses the biennial directory called Accredited Institutions of Postsecondary Education published by the American Council on Education in cooperation with the Council on Higher
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Education Accreditation. It is more comprehensive on some aspects of schools, but is more complicated to use. It has information on nondegree schools and U.S. accredited foreign schools that the other directory does not. Because it comes out only every other year, it tends to be slightly out of date for some contact information. It is published by Praeger (Greenwood Publishers), which can be contacted at 203-226-3521. Greenwood’s web address is http://www.greenwood.com/. Degree Mills. Allen Ezell & John Bear. 2005 (Prometheus). The best recent overview of fake degree providers and how to spot them. ISBN 1-59102-238-X. Guide to Bogus Institutions and Documents. 2006 (AACRAO). An excellent manual describing what to look for in the evaluation of college credentials, foreign and domestic. ISBN 1-57858-072-2 Very large organizations that are likely to hire a significant number of foreign degree holders should consider acquiring some of the specialized AACRAO publications (see below) on foreign degree evaluations or hiring one or two firms to evaluate such degrees on a regular basis. ODA Web Site A wide variety of information about degrees, valid and invalid, can be found at ODA’s web site, http://www.osac.state.or.us/oda/. This includes links to many other resources including sites in other states, federal and international sites, and a list of over 300 unaccredited degree suppliers whose degrees either cannot be used in Oregon or require a disclaimer. (The unaccredited list is, unfortunately, not exhaustive.). It is not possible to develop a complete list of bogus colleges because they change their names often and new ones can be started easily. ODA Services ODA performs degree evaluations on a fee basis. A basic validation of a U.S. degree costs $50, a foreign degree costs $75. Other agencies also provide such services. Detailed evaluation of foreign transcripts should be contracted to one of the providers noted below; ODA does not provide such services. Foreign degree evaluation services Diploma mills are quite creative in establishing their own bogus evaluation services that promote their fake degrees as real. Some of these fakes use names nearly the same as genuine evaluators. Stick to a proven, known evaluator. AACRAO: http://www.aacrao.org/international/foreignEdCred.cfm AACRAO is ODA’s principal foreign degree evaluation service. It also offers a subscriptionbased foreign college database (due in late 2006).
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NACES evaluators: http://www.naces.org/ ODA sometimes uses private evaluation firms as a primary or “second opinion” evaluator. We only use firms that are members of NACES. We have relied primarily on Educational Credential Evaluators of Wisconsin and Josef Silny Associates of Florida. Other NACES members are also reliable, and in complex cases we recommend using two evaluators. Non-U.S. evaluators The only non-U.S. evaluator we use (other than national government sources) is HigherEd Consulting of Australia. This firm is especially knowledgeable about Asian and Pacific island institutions. http://www.higheredconsulting.com.au/links.html
Oregon law regarding degree use
ORS 348.609 Representation of possession of academic degree; complaints; civil penalties; rules; fees. (1) A person who has been warned by the Oregon Student Assistance Commission, through the Office of Degree Authorization, to cease and desist may not claim or represent that the person possesses any academic degree unless the degree has been awarded to or conferred upon the person by a school that: (a) Has accreditation recognized by the United States Department of Education or the foreign equivalent of such accreditation; (b) Has been approved by the Oregon Student Assistance Commission through the Office of Degree Authorization to offer and confer degrees in Oregon; (c) Is described in ORS 348.597; or (d) Is located in the United States and has been found by the commission to meet standards of academic quality comparable to those of an institution located in the United States that has accreditation, recognized by the United States Department of Education, to offer degrees of the type and level claimed by the person. (2)(a) A person who has been awarded a degree from a school other than a school described in subsection (1) of this section may claim or represent that the person possesses an academic degree if the claim or representation is accompanied by a disclaimer that states: “(Name of school) does not have accreditation recognized by the United States Department of Education and has not been approved by the Office of Degree Authorization.” (b) The disclaimer shall be made in any resume, letterhead, business card, announcement or advertisement in which the person is claiming or representing to have an academic degree from a school that does not meet the requirements of subsection (1) of this section. (c) This subsection does not alter any requirement for obtaining a license, admission into a school, teaching or employment or for other areas in which a degree from an accredited school is required. (3) The Oregon Student Assistance Commission shall adopt, by rule, standards and procedures for responding to complaints about degree claims and for validation of degree claims. Failure of a person to provide documentation of a claimed degree shall be prima facie evidence that the claim of such person to such degree is a violation of this section. (4) The Oregon Student Assistance Commission, by rule, may impose a fee on any school or person requesting validation of degree claims. The amount of the fee shall be established to recover designated expenses incurred by the commission in carrying out the administration of ORS 348.594 to 348.615. Any fees collected under this subsection shall be deposited in the Office of Degree Authorization Account established under ORS 348.601. (5)(a) The Oregon Student Assistance Commission, through the Office of Degree Authorization, may cause a civil suit to be instituted in the circuit court for legal or equitable remedies, including injunctive relief, to ensure compliance with this section. The commission may recover attorney fees and court costs for any such action. (b) The commission shall adopt a schedule of civil penalties for violations of this section. A civil penalty shall not exceed $1,000 per violation. (c) In addition to any action or penalty provided by law, any person who violates this section shall incur a civil penalty in an amount prescribed by the schedule adopted by the commission. Any civil penalty imposed under this subsection shall be imposed in the manner provided in ORS 183.745. All penalties recovered under this subsection shall be paid into the State Treasury and credited to the General Fund. (6) The provisions of this section do not apply to a person who is a graduate of a veterinary college, or a veterinary department of a university or college, of good standing and repute, as determined by the Oregon State Veterinary Medical Examining Board. [1997 c.652 §12; 2001 c.454 §1; 2003 c.674 §3; 2005 c.196 §4; 2005 c.546 §10a]