Seacoast Career School Premier Education group Seacoast Admitting Reps purposely misrepresent actual Job placement & expected Salaries for grads , Internet

I appreciate your balanced view - you're right - anyone who's thinking clearly should know that even if an admission rep tells you that age discrimination by companies won't happen, simply because it's illegal, should know that the practice cannot be discounted. People who go through career schools and don't get hired - especially the ones with the great grades - don't get hired because they don't put into the process enough commitment and time to get themselves hired. Job hunting needs to be a full time job until one gets that offer letter.

I have attended a Seacoast / Premier Education Group affiliate in Branford, CT called Branford Hall Career Institute. I took the Microsoft Information Technology Management Program Certificate program.

For being out of high school for 30 years, it was a Great Program to take, since we did not have Computers in the classroom in the '80's. I wanted to be able to add to my resume, the ability to say I have a 1 Year Certificate Program thru an Accreditted Institution, thru The Dept. Of Higher Education. The need to complete this in shortest amount of time possible, would only occur at Branford Hall Career Institute, in Branford, CT. I utilized my United States Navy Submarine Force Benefits from the Montgomery GI Bill, thru the VRAP: Veterans Retraining & Assistance Program to achieve my goal.

Again, like I shared during first day of class, on August 26th. 2013, & I will say it again: "If you do not put anything into yourself, you will get nothing out." Furthering yourself in todays extremely difficult job market has become a labryinth. After being unemployed 5 months in 2013, I said let me utilize my time accordingly, & the school schedule still allows enough time to work full time, since it leaves balance of afternoons free & weekends to put in 40 hour work week & still time for job hunting measures.

For the older gentleman that feels that he is being prejudiced over his age, & how is he going to pay for tuition, The Loans all offer a forbearance feature while you are in that situation, until you are gainfully employed. The object is to pay off on the principal as best you can, to eliminate the debt taht your signed for.

I will say its A JUNGLE OUT THERE! but instead of trying to blame the teaching institution for your problems, perhaps you should revisit the Career Development, & or utilize the Instructors, & start networking, instead of using the old "I'm Over The Hill" scap goat way out of not being able to pay. Its really not that much money, to have to pay, for Invaluable Traning in The 21st. Century +, you apparently can adjust your Social Security Income, & reduce other expenses, since the debt is'nt just going to go away. Remember "You Signed Up"!

Nothing in This Life Is Perfect, "YOU, & ONLY YOU, CAN CHANGE IT!"

Sincerely,

Arthur P. Travaglini

Microsoft Information Technology Management Program -  Branford Hall Career Institute Branford, Connecticut

I graduated from Seacoast Career Schools in Manchester, NH in May 2006, after completing a full-time course schedule for their Health Claims program. To tell you a little about myself....at the time, I was 20 years old and my parents paid for my schooling there. I was a 4.0 student there, making "directors list" each mod, and also was one of only 3 students invited to sit on the school's advisory board at the time. I sat for the national medical coding certification exam (and passed on my first attempt) before I even began my externship. As for my externship, I did not rely on Seacoast to find it for me. I did my own searches. I went online and looked for local places that were hiring coders, told them I was a student needing experience, and asked if any would be willing to let me "work" with them. I ended up doing my internship at a local oncologist practice. I was there for only a week of my externship when they offered me a full time paying position. I was able to complete my externship AND start my career! I'm no longer with that same company, as a better job came along, but I have been in the health claims field since graduating.

Seacoast's programs are accelerated programs, as per their website and brochures. They do not hesitate to let people know, from the get go, that you'll get a lot of information in a short period of time. As with any type of schooling, be it highschool, college, or career focused vocational schooling, only a fraction of the actual "learning" is done within the classroom. Each student is responsible for their own learning and getting the most they can out of each course. If you don't feel prepared enough, you have your books and materials to prepare yourself. You also have the internet and instructors that could offer you extra help or extra work if you had asked for it. 

They offer "career assistance" at Seacoast. They don't "find you a job", but they offer courses in writing a proper resume, how to present yourself to potential employers during an interview, etc. I'd qualify that as "career assistance".  You can search job openings on the internet just as well as the instructors there can. Show some initiative! If you want something, you have to go after it and make it happen, not wait for it to happen. As far as feeling misled by them regarding what you might end up making hourly upon graduating...why would you not research salary averages in a specific field over the internet before going to school? I personally only made about $14/hr when I graduated, but another in my graduating class went imediately into auditing medical records and was making over $20. The number they gave you seems to be fairly accurate, as far as I know (based on those I graduated with and kept in touch with). Hourly wages also vary depending on where you're looking to work. A small office would likely be able to offer more than a large hospital. 

I had several people in my class that never did pass their certification exams (some never even tried to take them), some that did horrible while in school, some that missed classes or fooled around while in class, some that never did their homework and never studied....and they'd always complain that they weren't learning anything and complain about the school and the instructors and how they were "scammed".  I also had several in my class that excelled and gained all the knowledge they could from their instuctors and educational materials in the time they were there. I think the biggest scam is not taking responsibility for your own education and your own knowledge. 

While potential employers can't tell you they wouldn't hire you based on your age, it still could be a factor. They just can't TELL you that's why. Perhaps you interviewed poorly. Perhaps your computer skills aren't as fast as they would've liked them to be. Perhaps they would've liked you to be certified and you weren't or had taken the exam and failed. Perhaps they'd like to hire someone they'd have long-term and didn't feel you'd fit the bill. There are endless reasons you might not be able to find work. I don't think it's fair to blame an educational establishment for your lack of learning and inability to find yourself a job.