Argosy University Argosy University Los Angeles Not a professional University. Inexperienced professors, bad administration, and takes all your loan money then asks for more. Los Angeles, California

Hello,

Look up the Attorney General's Office of your state (California is involved in this case), and immediately file a claim with regarding to Argosy's practices.

I have done that in my home state, and also am in the midst of (hopefully, I have no money left after Argosy took all my student loan money) obtaining an attorney who is handling other cases of this nature. 

The United States Department of Justice is suing the Educational Management Corporation; i.e., Argosy University (and several other "universities") for fraud. 

I, too, was taken advantage of by Argosy and their recruiters and the department heads, all of whom make extra money by keeping me enrolled in the program...and stringing people along to make more money off them. When I was up to my limit, and they raised the tuition to over 3,000 per class is when I finally bailed. Four years I allowed them to keep stringing me along, saying they would help me, if only I took "this" class or "that" class or spoke with "this" professor. It was pathetic, and I am kicking myself for it.

They need to be out of business for good.....they take the dreams of their students and rip them to pieces unless you have the dollars in your hands.

Good luck! Get in touch with the State Attorney General!

Department of JusticeOffice of Public AffairsFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMonday, August 8, 2011U.S. Files Complaint Against Education Management Corp. Alleging False Claims Act Violations WASHINGTON The United States has intervened and filed a complaint in a whistleblower suit pending under the False Claims Act against Education Management Corp. (EDMC) and several affiliated entities, the Justice Department announced today.   In its complaint, the government alleges that EDMC falsely certified compliance with provisions of federal law that prohibit a university from paying incentive-based compensation to its admissions recruiters that is tied to the number of students they recruit.   Congress enacted the incentive compensation prohibition to curtail the practice of paying bonuses and commissions to recruiters, which resulted in the enrollment of unqualified students, high student loan default rates and the waste of program funds. Colleges should not misuse federal education funds by paying improper incentives to admissions recruiters, said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. Working with the Department of Education, we will protect both students and taxpayers from arrangements that emphasize profits over education. Federal tax dollars must be protected from abuse, said David J. Hickton, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania. This action against EDMC seeks to recover a portion of the $11 billion in federal student aid which EDMC allegedly obtained through false statements and which enriched the company, its shareholders and executives at the expense of innocent individuals seeking a quality education. The False Claims Act allows for private citizens to file whistleblower suits to provide the government information about wrongdoing.   The government then has a period of time to investigate and decide whether to take over the prosecution of the allegations or decline to pursue them and allow the whistleblower to proceed.   If the United States proves that a defendant has knowingly submitted false claims, it is entitled to recover three times the damage that resulted and a penalty of $5,500 to $11,000 per claim.   When the government intervenes, the whistleblower can collect a share of 15 to 25 percent of the United States recovery. The suit was originally filed by Lynntoya Washington, a former EDMC admissions recruiter, who later filed an amended complaint, jointly with Michael T. Mahoney, a former director of training for EDMCs Online Higher Education Division.   The states of California, Florida, Illinois and Indiana have also intervened as plaintiffs. The suit is United States ex rel. Washington et al. v. Education Management Corp. et al., Civil No. 07-461 (W.D. Pa.).   This matter was investigated by the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Departments Civil Division; the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania; and the Department of Education, Office of Inspector General.

You don't need an attorney to contact the accreditation bodies. Since I don't know which campus you attended, I can't tell you which regional body you should contact.  If you go to the Department of Education website and look them up it will tell you.  In addition, most of their campuses are accredited by the APA, and you could contact them as well. Guidelines for accreditation (both regional and specialized) are published on the internet, so you should try and be as specific as possible in your complaints, i.e., referencing specific areas in which they failed to meet the guidelines.