diploma mill

noun

: a usually unregulated institution of higher education granting degrees with few or no academic requirements

Examples of diploma mill in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noreus was one of 13 defendants charged in the second phase of Operation Nightingale, a nationwide investigation to uncover fraudulent nursing diploma mills. James Cirrone, FOXNews.com, 19 June 2026 After two weeks of damning government evidence at trial, a former South Florida nursing school operator pleaded guilty on Monday to running a diploma mill for thousands of nurses rather than present a defense and let a jury decide her fate in Fort Lauderdale federal court. Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 16 June 2026 However, with the introduction of A.I., all of those programs have become diploma mills. Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 26 May 2026 Some of those nurses are still credentialed in Florida — and Martin found little evidence that the state looked into the skills and records of other graduates of those nursing-school diploma mills. South Florida Sun Sentinel, Sun Sentinel, 20 May 2026 Since the diploma mill allegations became public in January 2023, other states have scrambled to ensure people who bought nursing school diplomas, and therefore lacked proper training, weren’t working in their health care facilities. Annie Martin, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 May 2026 The goal is not to become a diploma mill, Linden said. Lily Altavena, Freep.com, 27 Aug. 2025 Canada's various student and temporary foreign worker programs have come under great scrutiny, with questionable diploma mills taking advantage of international students who often live together in fairly cramped conditions and are regularly exploited in horrific ways. Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 7 Jan. 2025 This led to the rise of diploma mills that sell guard certificates to people uninterested in or unable to dedicate a day or more of uncompensated time to training. Jasper Craven, Harper's Magazine, 23 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1914, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of diploma mill was in 1914

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Diploma mill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diploma%20mill. Accessed 26 Jun. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster