CALGARY –
Reece Soukoroff will soon be graduating from CDI College’s cybersecurity program in Calgary, but says the post-secondary institution failed to prepare him for work in the industry and incorrectly billed him for four Microsoft Server 2016 courses that have now been retired .
“I graduated without any certification in all of my Microsoft Windows Server courses and Windows is the greatest operating system in the whole universe,” he said.
“The school was well aware in advance that these classes were going to be withdrawn, so there is no excuse for payment still being made for them.”
According to Microsoft, the courses are being phased out because “technology and associated professional roles change more rapidly every year.”
The company notes on its website that various certification programs are being phased out as they are “no longer relevant”.
The college originally promised 12 certifications for its cybersecurity course. The four Microsoft Windows Server 2016 courses, each retired on January 31, are still offered and taught to students.
Soukoroff notes that Microsoft Server 2016 applies to his studies and future work in the cybersecurity industry, although he says the college promised him independent certification outside of the CDI for courses that didn’t. not been tracked.
“Yes, Microsoft Server knowledge is still applicable, but we are paying an additional amount for non-existent independent certifications,” he said.
Soukoroff requested a refund for the four courses, but was refused. The 23-year-old already has $ 30,000 in student loans and says these retired classes cost him an additional $ 500.
Finances were so tight on the student that he also had to ask the college to repay three of his certification vouchers that were valid just two weeks ago in order to make a payment of $ 1,500 for two textbooks. This time, CDI College refunded the three valid certifications.
“Now I’m actually only four out of 12 certifications, and I had to ask the CDI to get three valid certifications back so I don’t have to pay an extra $ 1,500 at the end of this course.” did he declare.
“So they will approve this refund, but they won’t approve the refund for the withdrawn course and that just doesn’t make sense. It’s basically stealing money from students at this point. “
THE CDI COLLEGE ANSWERS
In a statement to CTV Calgary, Tim Ogilvie, regional director of operations at CDI College, says all students were reimbursed for certificates upon retirement, although Soukoroff and several other program participants confirmed that they did not. not yet received any money.
“These tuition reductions are reflected in their second year tuition and have been broken down by course by their team of financial advisors,” Ogilvie’s statement said.
When asked why withdrawn courses that are “no longer relevant” are still being offered, Ogilvie noted that none of the course programs have expired.
“Windows Server 2016 still has a strong presence in the industry and will continue to be so. New software is introduced as educational material is made available by publishers and when the industry needs change, ”he said.
“Microsoft has phased out certifications for all Windows Server products. The fees associated with external certifications which are being phased out by Microsoft have been removed from tuition fees, but the courses themselves are still valid and approved by the ministry.
STUDENT SAYS COLLEGE OVERLOAD FOR TEXTBOOKS
Jacqueline Sitter, a cybersecurity student at CDI College, says she owes thousands of bills for textbooks she struggles to pay.
“The books are too expensive, about halfway through the program I finally had time to look at the actual price of the books and realized that I can get discounts on my own on other sites or rent them for less, ”she said.
“All the books are online with my email watermarks on all the pages, so I can’t even sell them. I am so in debt now that I am considering becoming homeless.
CDI College’s two-year Cyber Security Specialist Diploma Program costs a total of $ 27,132, but also an additional $ 6,906 for textbooks, supplies and other fees, according to Career Information, apprenticeship and employment published by the Government of Alberta.
Other students like Soukoroff were able to find the same textbooks available on Amazon, other online book sites, and direct from publishers at an extremely low price.
He managed to find the 18 course books for a price of $ 1,277, more than $ 5,600 less than what the college was charging students.
A list of textbooks found for less by Reece Soukoroff.
“Seriously, don’t waste your time with the CDI cybersecurity program, there are much better options to learn about this industry and this is not the place,” he said.
“We don’t have any lessons from any of the teachers, so it’s basically YouTube lessons that I could have gotten for free anyway and you pay for it all and none of it adds up, and now I am $ 30,000 in the loan hole.
Sitter adds that she now owes $ 40,000 in debt and defends students in her online classes who are afraid to come forward because English is their second language.
“Students I’ve spoken to who are new to Canada have told me that’s the kind of thing they’ve experienced in their own country, corruption, and they’re just used to it,” a- she declared.
“They don’t want to go in front of the camera because they told them it was totally normal, but this is the Canada where we are supposed to be honest and provide good service and good education, and yet we let’s hide the corruption. “