The website of the University of Northern Virginia (UNVA), will tell you the university is accredited by the American University Accreditation Council (AUAC), an accrediting body.
But it will also tell you that AUAC is not recognised by the US Department of Education.
UNVA says that though it is one of the few graduate schools in the US which does not require a GRE or GMAT score for its master's students, it recommends the international applicants not already in the US, to take the GRE test as they would be viewed as a more "serious" student by the US visa officer when they apply for the visa."
These and many such suggestions dot the university's website which was raided by the US Department of Homeland Security on Thursday regarding an alleged visa fraud.
The university, with a total strength of 2,400 students, has around 90% of its students from the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.
While UNVA will be temporarily blocked from accepting new international students, overseas education consultants in Hyderabad say that students have already begun considering options other than the US for higher studies.
“It is their greed for dollar dreams that lands these students in such situation. In this age and time when they have information available on their fingertips, they fall prey to sham agents and such universities,” said Arun Jacob, managing director, Array Globe.com, an overseas education consultant based out of Hyderabad.
Jacob adds that many of these students fall for the work-while-you-study scheme offered by such universities and thus land in trouble.
Early this year, Tri-Valley University, another sham university was shut down after being raided by US' Immigration and Customs Enforcement due to a possible visa fraud. Majority of the students at the university again, were from Andhra Pradesh.
UNVA's enrollment practices and business model is said to be on the same lines as those of Tri-Valley University. It had enrolled students who work full-time in without being required to attend actual classes.
“Many students who were looking at US universities for their higher education have already sought clarification from us on their accreditation process so far. While it is good that students are doubly checking the status of the universities they wish to study at, it may also see student traffic getting diverted from US to other nations,” said the vice president of an overseas education consultancy which specialises in sending students to the US.
Consultants say Ahmedabad, Chandigarh and Hyderabad are the cities which have reported a spurt in sending students to such sham universities overseas.
Agents get anywhere between 15-20% commission from universities to send students to them.
“There are many agents in the market who have made sending students to such universities their business. These students too, without doing their due diligence, fall for the immigration racket. Credible registered agents in India is the need of the hour,” adds Jacob.
Agents also say that there is no single accreditation body in the US which accredits universities and colleges. It is largely state accreditation that universities bank on. While in the UK, the UK Border Agency maintains a list of accredited institutes, even Australia and New Zealand release list of accredited institutes in their country.
