Katharine Gibbs, An ineffective Trade School charging College prices Melville New York

I went to this school for their advertised certificate program in Medical Billing. They claimed they were now an accredited college and only had one program in the health field: Health Care Management - Long Term Care. It would give me an associates degree. As I was in my late 40's and had never gone to college, I fell prey to vanity and signed up.

The classes were only 10-11 weeks each and regrettably inadequate when it came to actual health care courses. Most of the teachers were very good but were hampered by the shortened classes. Books (expensive!) were not always used, or used sparingly.

From the beginning, I felt like I was only getting a refresher course in things that I'd already learned from prior work experience but I kept on, thinking that eventually they'd get around to something new. Well, they did (once or twice) but how much can you learn in 10 weeks?

Also, it soon came to my attention that a regrettable number of the students were there because of social services or someone else paying for them to have additional time to learn how to read or stay off the streets. Maybe both.

I actually discussed this with some of the teachers. They knew about it but, as long as the money was being paid, the students were on the roster. You usually knew who they were; they showed up rarely, if at all, did not read or speak well and quite a few of them saw the school as a place to hang out with their friends.

Katharine Gibbs started as a trade school and despite the delusions of college grandeur, it still is. But a trade school ought to be teaching students a trade that will get them a job, not give them a basic outline.

I paid $40,000.00 (not including books) to learn how to do things that I have already done (over the course of more than twenty years) without a college degree.

The bottom line? It used to be that a high school diploma and Associates degree would get your foot in the door. Today you need a Bachelor's degree. If you want actual respect, better get that Master's. And make sure you get it from a "real" college.

Too trusting
Merrick, New York
U.S.A.