Outside of whatever association the rank is from, rank doesn’t really do much. I don’t get the attitude that it’s only worthwhile if it’s from an association, since anything it’s worth within an association is only because your in that association, and doesn’t reflect any real restrictions you’d experience if you weren’t in that association.And if that's the case, then I personally would want nothing to do with that place. Why are dan grades often referred to as "degrees"? Because they're credentials. And credentials are only as good as how widely recognized they are. But if you don't care about that, then more power to you.