[1][2] Columbia State offered bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs in a variety of fields.
Its marketing targeted people who had not finished college or graduate school, advertising that they could qualify for a degree from Columbia State University in as little as 27 days based on their life, work, and academic experience.
[2] According to Senate testimony, at one time Columbia State's letterhead stationery listed Jonas Salk, inventor of the polio vaccine, as a recipient of an honorary Ph.D. degree from Columbia State, but Salk's name was removed after he protested to Ron Pellar.
[5] For that guilty plea he received a sentence of eight months in prison and was ordered to pay restitution of $45,835 and forfeit a $1.5 million yacht.
[1][2] In 2010, Massachusetts attorney and candidate for Congress Jeff Perry disclosed that he had paid Columbia State University "several thousand dollars," studied for alleged courses, and wrote papers under the impression that it was an accredited institution.