degree mill
1
9.5
- noun
- /dɪˈɡriː mɪl/
- Offensive
:
fábrica de títulos
- I'd guess the Minnesota law was intended to suppress fly-by-night degree mills and is now being used to protect state-run institutions of higher learning.
Examples
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Be on the lookout for unaccredited online distance education colleges, otherwise known as "degree mills."
Blog text (24) -
Many students unknowingly enroll in a degree mill, thinking they are pursuing genuine education.
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Obviously, this person has no idea what a degree mill, an accredited university, or a licensed university is!
Blog text (26) -
But that's how these degree mills work.
Blog text (27) -
I suggest all you "college and university graduates" who attended these kinds of flunky degree mill schools go ahead and try your skills out.
Blog text (3) -
And that's why Israel has laws that criminalize these degree mills and considers degree mill operators, like Mondrowitz, to be criminals.
Blog text (12) -
And that's why Israel has laws that criminalize these degree mills and considers degree mill operators, like Mondrowitz, to be criminals.
Blog text (12) -
Evidence of a series of Mondrowitz-owned and operated degree mills, non-existent universities that grant fake degrees—including PhDs—for a price.
Blog text (12) -
The government is taking action against degree mills that falsely claim to offer accredited degrees.
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Attending a degree mill can lead to poor job prospects due to the lack of legitimate education.
Synonyms
2
6.6
An organization that sells degrees with little or no real study
Antonyms
3
3.6
A university that many people admire for very good teaching and strong research
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound invites a straightforward metaphorical reading—'mill' as a place that mass-produces combined with 'degree' suggests a place that churns out academic qualifications—so learners can infer a basic sense. However, the negative connotation (fraudulent, low-quality, unaccredited institution) is a conventionalized, evaluative extension that a B1 learner might not fully predict from the parts alone.
Etymology
The term degree mill comes from the image of a factory: a mill that makes degrees quickly like cheap products. So it means a school that gives certificates after little or no study and is often 'fake' or not trusted.