Web of ‘diploma mills’ preys on Arab students

Al-Fanar Media 27 February 2015

A global network of fraudulent online universities is using high-pressure sales tactics and phony scholarships to extract money from students who end up with worthless degrees, writes Benjamin Plackett for Al-Fanar Media.

Graduate schools and potential employers who check degrees would not accept qualifications from the institutions in this network, leaving any graduates from the institutions unable to move on in their professional or academic careers.

The universities in the network, which typically say they are based in the United States, actively encourage students from the Arab world to enrol by offering what appear to be generous scholarships after just a few minutes of exchanging instant messages online. But that financial aid comes with a hook – the students are supposed to pay the rest of the fees immediately.
Full report on the Al-Fanar site

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