Primrose Road

The envelope was what first tipped me off: a return address from an organization called "Colleges in New York" located in Little Falls, New Jersey, with a message reading "Ever dream of earning a million dollars? Check out your personalized website inside."

Enclosed is a questionnaire that informs me that "according to the US Department of Labor, those who have a bachelor's degree earn about one million dollars throughout their careers than those who only have their high school diplomas."

(Quick statement unpack: If you work from age 22-62 at $25,000/year, you earn one million dollars throughout your career. If you work the same 40 years at $50,000/year, you earned one million more dollars throughout your career.)

The "questionnaire" never identifies itself as what it is (most likely a request for information from an unaccredited college program). only asking questions like the following:

Are you satisfied with your employment?
- Totally satisfied with employment situation
- Currently considering a job change
- Need more income, greater challenge, etc.
- Other

They also invite me to fill out the questionnaire on the web via a "personallized website," which turns out to be just a form with my name and address filled out, asking for my phone number and the best time to call. At the top, they tell me that they "look forward to helping [me] identify educational programs that will improve your earning power and enhance your long-term employment skills." The website http://www.collegesofny4you.com (without the extra info for my "personalized site") produces a 404 error. Further, I can't determine what institution the site is affiliated with because I cannot get past the "personalized" page without submitting my phone number.

Neither the site nor the questionnaire offers any identifying information, which I am fairly sure is not permissible in most states. A WhoIs search offers little more because the domain name was registered by proxy. And the return address on the envelope happens to be exactly the same address (P.O. Box) as a school that closed in 1990; thus, a quick Google search might lead a person to believe that the questionnaire comes from a valid, operating school.

In any case, anyone brave enough to proffer his or her phone number in order to determine who these people are and what their game is (I have enough diploma mills calling me already, thank you) wins $5 in chips from the Atlantic City -- or Council Bluffs, Iowa -- casino of your choice. ;)