BBB Tip of the Week: High School Diploma Scams

The Federal Trade Commission recently charged three operators of online “high schools” with deceptive and misleading practices for claiming that their diploma programs were legitimate. In all three cases, employers and colleges rejected the diplomas from these operators because they didn’t even come close to meeting education standards in any state.

Two of the operators used many different online names for their schools and charged anywhere from $135 to $349 per diploma. They used deceptive metatags on their websites, such as GED, to lure those looking for a high school equivalency program. They offered simple tests and credit for life experiences to help appear as if students were earning an actual high school diploma. Instead students got a worthless diploma from a diploma mill.

Stratford Career Institute, another online program, had students pay as much as $989 and required 18 course credits for its supposed “real” and “official” high school diploma. In reality all states require many more credits.

Better Business Bureau offers the following tips to help you spot and avoid a high school diploma scam:

An online program with no studying and no in-person testing is a scam. Legitimate equivalency programs require scheduled, in-person testing that is proctored and closed book, plus weeks or months of studying to pass.

When you are asked to pay for a diploma but classes and tests are free, it is a scam.

While some programs may offer a limited amount of credits for life experience, no legitimate high school equivalency program offers program completion for only life experience.

When the program claims to be associated with the federal government, it is a scam. Education is managed at the state level, including acceptable equivalency programs. At this time, none of the states accept a completely online equivalency program.

In Washington state, the GED is accepted as high school equivalency and is administered by the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges. You can learn more at http://bit.ly/1Ox85BR and http://bit.ly/1T9pqZC.

If you are unsure if an education program is accredited and can be trusted, you can gain more information from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction at www.k12.wa.us, the Washington Student Achievement Council at www.wsac.wa.gov and the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges at www.sbctc.edu.

To spot scams in the community, visit the BBB Scam Tracker at www.bbb.org/scamtracker or by call (509) 455-4200.