It turns out that an MBA is one of the most popular degrees purchased at diploma mills, primarily due to the pay increases associated with MBAs. Therefore, we thought it was important that we include a section on diploma mills.

The advent of the Internet has created an explosion in the number of diploma mills. Highly lucrative, a recent book profiles one "school" that made over $450 million from selling thousands of fake degrees between 1998 and 2003.

There have been several high-profile cases of purchased degrees. For instance, in May of 2003, Laura Callahan, a senior official in the Department of Homeland, had her "Ph.D." in computer science exposed as a fraud. It turns out that Callahan received her Ph.D. from Hamilton University, an unaccredited "distance learning" school. To receive her Ph.D., Hamilton simply had to pay a fee, read a workbook, and take an open-book test.

A few warning signs of a diploma mill:

• A degree can be received in a very short amount of time.

• Students are required to spend little or no time in class.

• Very few requirements are made of students prior to graduation.

• The school’s physical location is difficult to determine.

• Little or no time spent with professors.

• The school is not accredited.

• The school is not accredited by a recognized accrediting agency. In the US, look for accrediting bodies recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

If you have decided to purchase an MBA from an online diploma mill, you might want to think again:

• There have been prosecutions against online diploma mills as well as those who are using these fake diplomas.

• Fake degrees are fairly easy to trace. There are many online databases listing diploma mills.