Accreditation is an important part of the online university and college world because, to put it bluntly, there is no point in spending a lot of time and effort on a project, and that could include an online education, if you were to find out afterwards that it is useless.

Unfortunately, there are many fake online schools out there that will put you through the effort of working but ultimately only wants to take you money and run. I am sure that you have heard of the sites that you can actually buy a degree at, well universities that are not accredited are a bit like that but unfortunately do not have any morals.

They will ask you to submit work, complete tests and the like and so will give you a good dose of heartache at the same time.

It is important to check out a university's accredited status before you begin to think about applying, let alone actually apply, because you may have to send a fee or deposit with the application. Accredited status should be placed on the university homepage and the "about us" page that any university that operates online should have. It should be easily recognisable as a seal of accreditation. If it is not then you may have to search a little bit more on the website.

However, rule number one is that if there is no accreditation at all on the online college website then walk away. If none are displayed than the likelihood is that they do not have accredited status to begin with.

However, any seal of accreditation can be easily investigated to ensure that it is genuine. A simple Google search should reveal as to whether or not the company that have given an online university accreditation actually exists and indeed its own credentials. It is important that you trace it back to who has actually set it up, when it was established and whether or not it is affiliated with another academic body or not.

For example, the University of Phoenix, displays its accreditation for all to see. If you then researched the source, you would find that it is actually part of the Texas schooling system and the Texas educational system as well. This should give you peace of mind to know that all of your efforts will not be in vain if you do choose to attend this university instead of another one further down the line.

Accreditation should mean a lot to the average individual that does choose to take an online course because it could mean the difference between a bright future and a bitter one because you did not take the time to check it out in the first place and also the fact that a lot of you hard earned money has disappeared, leaving you with absolutely nothing to show for it.

The golden rule is to never ever choose a school that has a fake accreditation because employers could dig up that information and it could prevent you from getting the job that you have always wanted. This is by no means fair on you but unfortunately is the brutal truth. Accreditation is everything in the world of online education. Without it, all you are left with is a piece of paper.

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