A Wolf With A Sheepskin?

Want some impressive credentials? It's easy.

Two FBI agents and a postal inspector recently found out just how easy when they purchased top credentials from a suspected "diploma mill." The postal inspector purchased a nuclear engineering degree from Rutgers along with a transcript showing a 3.18 GPA -- all for a mere $355. One FBI agent purchased an elementary education degree from the University of South Florida and an accompanying transcript showing a 3.17 GPA. His college credentials only cost $265.50. The other agent bought a phony electrical engineering degree from the University of Florida and a 3.0 GPA transcript for $320.

The operation first came to the attention of the FBI through an ad in a national supermarket tabloid. The agent responded to the ad and received a price list and specifications for ordering almost any kind of "novelty" degree except law and medicine. "Hamilton High School" or "Stanton University" degrees were offered for $79.50 or two for $99.00. Customized degrees from other schools cost more -- up to $270.00 for a doctorate. Specialized college seals were an extra $25.00. Transcripts cost $80.00 a page. Further FBI investigation showed that during a two year period more than $100,000 worth of "novelty" degrees had been sold by the company. Other investigations have revealed practicing physicians with phony degrees and even government administrators earning enhanced salaries based on fake degrees.