The Game of Higher Degrees - Rubin

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Moss GreeneBellaOnline's Nutrition EditorThe Game of Higher Degrees Jordan Rubin’s so called PhD must stand for “piled higher and deeper.†Letters after someone’s name (like PhD) are meant to indicate accredited professional and post graduate degrees. Rubin’s do not!The purpose of accredited academic titles is to assure you that the person has dedicated much of their life to the study of a particular discipline, gone through years of education and supposedly are knowledgeable about their subject. These letters can also give someone a very powerful marketing tool to exploit - IF they’re the type.So, maybe you shouldn’t be so trusting? Do you have any idea how easy it is to fake credentials? For example, let’s look at Rubin’s various degrees. First of all, he claims to be a Naturopathic Doctor – or at least tries to fool you into believing he is by adding an N.M.D. (Naturopathic Medical Doctor) after his name. He says he received his degree from the People’s University of the Americas located in Puerto Rico. But this so called “university†is not an accredited naturopathic medical school and never has been. As a matter of fact, even its website states that it’s not accredited. It has no campus, no physical buildings and offers no bona fide degrees in higher education. Its only recognition for anything was back in 1989 “to provide a course of study in the English language and in the history and government of the United States†for “aliens wishing to adjust from temporary to permanent status under Section 245A of the immigration and Nationality Act.â€1 Let’s set aside the fact that People’s University (P.U.) is NOT an accredited school. Any authentic medical degree (MD, ND, OD, DC, DDS, DVM, etc) includes a huge amount of clinical, hands on training. So, how could Rubin have done this at an unaccredited school that has NO campus, NO buildings and NO facilities? It’s impossible. The only reason Rubin has N.M.D. behind his name is because he put the initials there himself in order to mislead people. And, if he’s willing to lie and mislead you about this, then he’s willing to lie and mislead you about everything else he says too?What about his PhD? According to Rubin, his PhD comes from the Academy of Natural Therapies (ANT). ANT is another unaccredited correspondence course (beginning to see a pattern?). However, ANT was shut down by the state of Hawaii after a big lawsuit by the Office of Consumer Protection. The court found ANT’s founder, Byrnes*, was breaking numerous laws and conferring degrees to anyone willing to pay his fees.2 By the way, Byrnes could not produce any records or information about his students, their curriculum, their grades or the completion of their studies. “Pay a fee, buy a degree†was the only stipulation. In other words, Rubin just bought his unaccredited PhD as easily as you or I could have (if you or I wanted to).How about Rubin’s CNC (Certified Nutritional Consultant) credentials? This came from the American Association of Nutritional Consultants (AANC). And, once again, ANYONE can pay their fee (currently $60) and receive the title of C.N.C. The application asks for education, degrees, etc., but it’s not required information – it can actually be left blank and the applicant still receives the title. The only required information is a name and address. (For mailing the unaccredited degree.) The applicant supposedly has to pass an examination to receive full honors and the AANC conveniently sells all the books needed to pass. But this test is self-administered, which means applicants can look up all the answers or even have someone else do it for them. This organization is so ludicrous that people have actually paid for the C.N.C. distinction for their cats, dogs and goats.So, when it’s all said and done, what sort of credentials does Rubin have? NONE! And, if you’re willing to give him credit where he’s unaccredited, then you might as well also give him direct access to mess around with your checking account, your credit cards and the health of your body.Footnotes:1. Certificate of Attorney General Recognition, US Dept. of Justice displayed at the People’s University of the Americas website (www.pua.edu)2. State of Hawaii, The Circuit Court of the First Circuit, Civil no. 02-1-2001-08 (Complaint and Summons, 8/22/2002 and Stipulated Permanent Injunction, 3/19/2003)