[reubens grandma]

How does one go about finding an accredited,reputable,accelerated online degree program that offers credit for life experience? I've heard terrible stories about "diploma mills". I'd like to get an Associate or Bachelor degree and I have 20+ years experience as an EA (15 of those years with manager responsibility). Additionally, I do have a few certificates of various supervisory and business focus topics. My goal is to get a degree in a shorter period than it would by taking years and years participating in a part time in-class college program. Thanks!

[Stuart Wingate]

I would recommend that you find a regionally accredited program. There are many fine distance or online schools out there that let you learn at your pace. These are ones that are NOT diploma mills -- they require course work, have accreditation and a reliable student base. You can actually search for schools on our site by clicking here. You can then request information be sent to you by a variety of schools. Once you have narrowed down your degree choices, Google them and find out what people are saying. You'll find a variety of choices and should select first by accreditation, then by degrees offered and finally by cost. If it is too cheap to be true, then don't count on it being good!

[Tess Price, PhD]

Hi,

Your questions are very important to consider. In fact I have written an article on this subject which should be posted sometime this month. In that article I explain the accreditation process and how you can research to avoid the dimploma mills.

As for credit for life expereince, very few legitimate schools will offer this. Life experience is difficult to quanitfy so as to grant the same type of credit to each student. Think of what you have learned in life. What type of courses could you imagine someone would have to take to earn your knowledge? If you are thinking that no class could replace your experience, you are exactly right! Likewise, it is not easy to say that your life expereince is equal to a specific number of credit hours. There is just no substitute for the for the "school of hard knocks" I'm sorry to say. :-)

You can write to me personally if you need specific information on finding a school suited to you.

[oliverhicks]

Yes. You do have to be careful about the ‘diploma mills.’ There are too many of them out there. Always check the accreditation of the institution offering the degree program you are interested in. For example, my college, Stevens-Henager, is an accredited college which is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). The ACCSCT accreditation body is listed as a nationally recognized accrediting agency by the United States Department of Education.