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It warns about “diploma mills” that sell degrees with minimal coursework and outlines how fraudulent education can damage credibility, expose organizations to liability, and cause embarrassment if discovered. The document describes tell-tale signs such as out-of-sequence degrees, quickie degrees, mismatched school locations, and sound-alike names, and provides verification steps.",{"@graph":69,"@context":123},[70,84,106],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/ftc-facts-for-business-avoid-fake-degree-burns-by-researching-academic-credentials/265430/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/ftc-facts-for-business-avoid-fake-degree-burns-by-researching-academic-credentials/265430.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Elsa","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-31","2026-09-14",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":105},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",11,{"@type":107,"mainEntity":108},"FAQPage",[109,115,119],{"name":110,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":112},"What is the main risk of hiring someone with bogus academic credentials?","Question",{"text":113,"@type":114},"Bogus credentials can compromise credibility, place an unqualified person in a position of responsibility, and expose the organization to liability. If the degrees are uncovered, the organization also faces embarrassment.","Answer",{"name":116,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":117},"What are out-of-sequence degrees and why are they a warning sign?",{"text":118,"@type":114},"Out-of-sequence degrees occur when an applicant claims advanced degrees without the expected earlier degrees (for example, a master’s or doctorate without a bachelor’s, or college without high school/GED). Federal officials treat this as a likely diploma mill indicator.",{"name":120,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":121},"How can businesses verify academic credentials?",{"text":122,"@type":114},"Businesses should contact the school to confirm attendance, graduation, degrees, and majors, and ask for certified transcripts when permitted. 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Some applicants may list credentials —like a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree, or a professional certification—that sound credible, but in fact, were not earned through a legitimate course of study at an accredited institution.  \nFederal officials caution that some people are buying phony credentials from “diploma mills” —companies that sell “degrees” or certificates on the Internet without requiring the buyer to do anything more than pay a fee. Most diploma mills charge a flat fee, require little course work, if any, and award a degree based solely on “work or life experience.”  \nAccording to officials from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Department of Education, and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) bogus credentials can compromise your credibility — and your organization’s. You could place an unqualified person in a position of responsibility, leaving your organization liable if the employee’s actions harm someone . You could hire a person who is dishonest in other ways, exposing your organization and colleagues to potential damage. And if the bogus degrees are brought to light, you risk embarrassment.  \nThe agencies have teamed up, putting new tools in place to help you weed out bogus academic credentials and insure the integrity of your hiring process.  \nI  \nFacts for Business  \nTELL-TALE SIGNS OF A BOGUS DEGREE  \nAlthough it’s not always easy to tell if academic credentials are from an accredited institution, the federal officials say there are clues to help you spot questionable credentials on a resume or application. Look for:  \nOut of Sequence Degrees. When you review education claims, you expect to see degrees earned in a traditional progression—highschool, followed by bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral or other advanced degrees. If an applicant claims a master’s or doctoral degree, but no bachelor’s degree — or if the applicant claims a college degree, but no high school diploma or General Educational Development (GED) diploma, consider it ared flag, and a likely sign of a diploma mill.  \nQuickie Degrees. It generally takes time to earn a college or advanced degree —three to four years for an undergraduate degree, one or two years for a master’s degree, and even longer to earn a doctorate. A degree earned in a very short time, or several degrees listed for the same year, are warning signs for the hiring official or the person doing the preliminary screening.  \nDegrees From Schools in Locations Different From the Applicant’s Job or Home . If the applicant worked full-time while attending school, check the locations of the job and the educational institution. If the applicant didn’t live where he went to school, check to see if the degree is from an accredited distance learning institution, using the steps described under ‘Checking Out Academic Credentials.’If the degree is not from a legitimate, accredited distance learning institution, it may be from a diploma mill.  \nSound-Alike Names . Some diploma mills use names that sound or look like those of well-known colleges or universities. If the institution has a name similar to a wellknown school, but is located in a different  \nstate, check on it. Should you come across a degree from an institution with a prestigioussounding foreign name, that calls for some homework, too. Researching the legitimacy of foreign schools can ","cbCaiuLCA0VAT9At","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiuLCA0VAT9At","pdf",77806,"English","# TELL-TALE SIGNS OF A BOGUS DEGREE\n## Out of Sequence Degrees\n## Quickie Degrees\n## Degrees From Schools in Mismatched Locations\n## Sound-Alike Names\n# CHECKING OUT ACADEMIC CREDENTIALS\n## Contact the School\n## Research Accreditation on the Internet\n## Use the U.S. Department of Education Database","[{\"question\":\"What is the main risk of hiring someone with bogus academic credentials?\",\"answer\":\"Bogus credentials can compromise credibility, place an unqualified person in a position of responsibility, and expose the organization to liability. If the degrees are uncovered, the organization also faces embarrassment.\"},{\"question\":\"What are out-of-sequence degrees and why are they a warning sign?\",\"answer\":\"Out-of-sequence degrees occur when an applicant claims advanced degrees without the expected earlier degrees (for example, a master’s or doctorate without a bachelor’s, or college without high school/GED). Federal officials treat this as a likely diploma mill indicator.\"},{\"question\":\"How can businesses verify academic credentials?\",\"answer\":\"Businesses should contact the school to confirm attendance, graduation, degrees, and majors, and ask for certified transcripts when permitted. They should also research whether the school is accredited by a recognized agency and use the U.S. Department of Education’s database of accredited institutions.\"}]","FTC Facts for Business - Avoid Fake-Degree Burns By Researching Academic Credentials | PDF",1789395697]