Another Instance Where Truth In Educating Might Have Helped

According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, a Portland judge is ready to approve a settlement in the case of a defunct computer trade school:

The deal provides $200,000 to students who have yet to file claims against Business Computer Training Institute, The Oregonian newspaper reported. The action also clears the way for a $3 million, out-of-court settlement that resolves five separate lawsuits filed against BCTI. The money, with attorney fees subtracted, will be divided by more than 300 former students who joined lawsuits.

The former students accused BCTI of fraud and unfair business practices, saying the school failed to deliver the education and job prospects it promised. BCTI closed its Beaverton and Salem campuses in 2005, shortly after Oregon regulators put the school on probation. In 2007, the school's insurers paid $13.25 million to settle claims by students in Washington state, where BCTI is based and operated five campuses.

The school recruited students outside welfare and unemployment offices while promising training and high-paying jobs in computer fields. Students say they received substandard training and got low-paying jobs at fast-food restaurants, retailers, convenience stores and telemarketing firm.

What if the students had a one-page disclosure statement that listed such factors as:

• Completion rate (what percentage complete each of the career program?)
• Placement rate (what percentage find a job within 3, 6, and 9 months?)
• Average wage upon completion
• Average indebtedness upon graduation
• Default rates after two, three and four years

Meanwhile, the new FAFSA is a step in the right direction by providing those who complete the FAFSA with information about graduation and retention rates:

"The new FASFA will also give the applicant potentially relevant information (e.g. retention and graduation rates) about the schools to which he is applying."

Of course that still leaves out the more important factors for career college students, which are placement and wage rates.  If the government won't require it and schools won't voluntarily disclose it, there is still one more opportunity for change:  Consumers should DEMAND IT.  Don't spend tens of thousands of dollars (often borrowed money) and hundreds of hours of your time until the school can provide you with audited student outcomes.  Your future depends on it!

--------------------------

Update:  Last week, Rep. Cummings (Dem-MD) called for hearings on "for-profit college malfeasance."

Comments

[Mike Flanagan]

Tim,

I challenge you to MANAGE a school and its students (who aren’t employees; they are clients) and adequately obtain voluntary disclosures from them for most of these stats that you clamor for. It is extremely difficult, nigh impossible, to CONSISTENTLY obtain this information (wage rates, debt load, repayment rates) from the students themselves or from third parties like Sallie Mae.

Even placement rates can be very difficult to determine accurately because of the woeful responsiveness (and responsibility) of students. If we didn’t almost literally “bribe” students we could not obtain enough placement data to be meaningful.

My school deals with relatively high-functioning members of society, yet we find many “communication-challenged” students in our midst. Even more so for the for-profit schools that deal with lower socio-economic students. Heck, my wife teaches doctoral students who amaze us with their dysfunctionality. Apparently you worked primarily with high-functioning, economically savvy people in the financial industry. Methinks that you have an idealistic assessment of peoples’ financial acumen, not to mention basic life skills.

The disclosure process costs real money, which of course increases the schools’ costs and must get reflected in higher tuition fees. I think you have legitimate points, but also think you unduly favor public schools over private. You rarely consider that the <2-year private schools typically deal with people who have higher loan default rates and lower economic status PRIOR to going to school (and taking out student loans), so it is no surprise that their after-school loan default rates are higher.

I challenge you to find placement and wage rates from even ONE public school, either 2-year or 4-year. Good luck if you accept the challenge.

Keep up the good work overall, though.

Merry Christmas,

Mike Flanagan
President
Video Symphony
TV & Film School
www.videosymphony.com