| Rochville University | |
|---|---|
| Website | http://www.rochvilleuniversity.org/ |
Rochville University is an unaccredited online university offering a "Life Experience Degree, and Certificate Program". It has been accused of being a diploma mill. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has indicated that Rochville, Belford University, and the agencies from which they claim accreditation, "appear to be operated by the same people".[1]The Oregon Office of Degree Authorization lists it as "fake".[2]
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Rochville has claimed to be accredited by various organizations but none are recognized higher education accreditors. These have included the International Accreditation Agency for Online Universities (IAAOU), the Universal Council for Online Education Accreditation (UCOEA), the Board of Online Universities Accreditation (BOUA), and the World Online Education Accrediting Commission (WOEAC). Because Rochville University is not accredited by any recognized accreditation bodies in the United States, its degrees and credits are unlikely to be acceptable to employers or other institutions.[3] Jurisdictions that have restricted or made illegal the use of credentials from unaccredited schools include Oregon,[2][4] Michigan,[5] Maine,[6] North Dakota,[4] New Jersey,[4] Washington,[2][7] Nevada,[2][8] Illinois,[2] Indiana,[2] and Texas.[3][9] Many other states are also considering restrictions on the use of degrees from unaccredited institutions.[10]
Claims have been made that Rochville University is a fraudulent diploma mill.[11][12][13]
According to GetEducated.com, an online learning consumer group, Rochville University operates under various aliases, including affordabledegrees.com.[14] An advertisement on affordabledegrees.com asks prospective students whether they "struggle in relationships, as 'she' thinks you don't have a promising future?" The advertisement then promises "an accredited degree on the basis of life experience you already have with no studies, no attendance, no waiting, and no examinations." The website claims that this degree can be obtained online "for as little as $399 and received in just 14 days!"[15]
In 2009, GetEducated.com reportedly managed to purchase an online MBA for its mascot, a dog named Chester Ludlow. The news release indicates that $499 and a resume were submitted to Rochville in May and a week later the degree with a packet of corresponding paperwork arrived from Dubai showing that the dog graduated with a 3.19 G.P.A. In addition to the MBA diploma and transcripts, Chester received a "certificate of distinction in finance and a certificate of membership in the student council".[16][17]
On 15 December 2005, CNN aired a report on diploma mills and terrorism.[18] As part of its coverage, the network purchased a master's degree in chemistry from Rochville in the name of Abu Salsabil Hassan Omar, presumably an identity of their own creation. Attempts to find a physical presence for Rochville failed. CNN reported that its website was operated from Sarasota, Florida. The diploma received by the network was mailed from the United Arab Emirates.
There have also been concerns that some prople may have used degrees obtained from Rochville and other online universities for fraudulent purposes. On 22 February 2007 Yorkshire police announced plans to re-investigate 700 court cases after the conviction of Gene Morrison, "a fraudster who conned the courts for three decades by posing as a forensic expert."[19] Morrison was convicted of 22 counts involving his claimed education, including four counts of obtaining money by deception, seven counts of attempting to obtain property by deception, eight counts of perverting the course of justice or intending to pervert the course of justice, and three counts of perjury.[19] The court ruled that his BSc degree in forensic science, a master's degree with excellence in forensic investigation and a doctorate in criminology from Rochville University in the United States were gained "not from years of study and learning, but from accessing a website, www.affordabledegrees.com, and paying a fee."[19]
The Sacramento Bee reported that firefighters who had purchased degrees from diploma mills to get raises were having their raises revoked. Rochville University was listed as one of the institutions that had provided degrees.[20] In Guam, a Rochville online degree was determined to be inadequate to meet the educational requirements for the position of chief of police.[21]