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  • Report:  #408077

Complaint Review: Ultimate Medical Academy - Tampa Florida

Reported By:
- Clearwater, Florida,
Submitted:
Updated:

Ultimate Medical Academy
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd Tampa, 33756 Florida, United States of America
Phone:
727-298-8685
Web:
N/A
Tell us has your experience with this business or person been good? What's this?

Ultimate Medical Academy promises a lot, but the promises are empty. When speaking to an advisor before attending classes, one is promised so much. Especially what is underscored is that one would be working in the medical field, where there are always jobs.

The classes were described to me as being six months long for an MCLA (Medical Clinical Lab Assistant). In fact, there are four mods which are about a month long each. So much work is crammed into that time to get students in and out of the school. It is almost like an assembly line. Into school, cram a lot of teaching into a short period, then out on externship.

After the four months of schooling one is given an externship site. For an MCLA, one must extern for 180 hours.

The complaint about the classes crammed together is because a student may have an issue with a medical clinical procedure, but is passed anyways. Other technical schools in the area ensure that all medical clinical procedures are done correctly at least fifteen times before the student may pass the class.

For the amount of money the school charges, the students deserve much better treatment. The faculty should care that the graduates reflect on how the school has trained them.

The cost of the program is expensive. If you are using Federal Student Loans, the school can only get about half of the cost from the government. The rest of the money is out of pocket, paid monthly.

Once one has finished externship the student is on their own. In this difficult economic atmosphere, MCLA jobs require experience and certification. For new graduates, if you are not hired from the externship site, jobs are difficult to find.

The rate of pay for this field, if one is lucky enough in this economic climate, to find a position is $9-$10 an hour.

To summarize, one is put through a factory like assembly line 4 month set of 4 courses. One is promised the moon before signing on the dotted line. One is ON THEIR OWN in this difficult economic climate after school and externship have been completed. The cost of attending this school is just too much money to throw away if one is not able to seek employment.

If being a medical assistant is what one really wants to do, research other schools, or try nursing.

Anonymous Clearwater, Florida

U.S.A.



9 Updates & Rebuttals

Anonymous

Clearwater,
Florida,
U.S.A.
To the employee at the school, I find your comments insulting

#2Author of original report

Fri, July 17, 2009

You are receiving a paycheck from the school. I have more college credits than you will see in your lifetime. Don't think you will bite the hand that feeds you, do you? We are in a recession. Yet UMA keeps pumping and pumping out students. Eventually, if the students cannot find jobs, it will reflect very badly on the school, and it will be closed down. People, go to a community college. It is way less expensive than this school. Don't go to private schools. They are ripoffs and shams.


Anonymous

Clearwater,
Florida,
U.S.A.
To the employee at the school, I find your comments insulting

#3Author of original report

Fri, July 17, 2009

You are receiving a paycheck from the school. I have more college credits than you will see in your lifetime. Don't think you will bite the hand that feeds you, do you? We are in a recession. Yet UMA keeps pumping and pumping out students. Eventually, if the students cannot find jobs, it will reflect very badly on the school, and it will be closed down. People, go to a community college. It is way less expensive than this school. Don't go to private schools. They are ripoffs and shams.


Anonymous

Clearwater,
Florida,
U.S.A.
To the employee at the school, I find your comments insulting

#4Author of original report

Fri, July 17, 2009

You are receiving a paycheck from the school. I have more college credits than you will see in your lifetime. Don't think you will bite the hand that feeds you, do you? We are in a recession. Yet UMA keeps pumping and pumping out students. Eventually, if the students cannot find jobs, it will reflect very badly on the school, and it will be closed down. People, go to a community college. It is way less expensive than this school. Don't go to private schools. They are ripoffs and shams.


Missa

Land O Lakes,
Florida,
U.S.A.
So tell me why

#5Consumer Comment

Mon, March 16, 2009

The PCT course is more than the MCLA course in Clearwater? And tell me why a course with the exact same content + a CNA class on the end cost less than one without? And tell me why all I wanted to do was be a CNA (not looking to become a nurse, not looking for riches) and I wasn't even given any information on the course? I was not expecting something for nothing, but I was completely ripped off in every possible way. So now I've got nothing for God only knows how much they're actually trying to charge me now. I did my externship with an X-ray tech from the Tampa campus and she told me what a nightmare it was. Should I scan some of the agreements and papers I was given quoting the prices on these courses? You try to tell me I'm incorrect when I have papers signed by the school on the prices of these courses? Nice try. I'll post them if necessary.


Alias

Tampa,
Florida,
U.S.A.
It's more than what you will get from any community college!

#6UPDATE Employee

Fri, March 13, 2009

First and foremost, let me clear the air w/ "Missa" on the PCT/MCLA programs. PCT is actually cheaper than the Medical Asst course - the Medical Asst course is $14,650 and the PCT course is $14,150. So the idea that you believe an admissions rep would try to "sell" you on the more expensive program is false. Secondly, if you were to come into any UMA school asking for nursing asst (b/c somehow you falsely believe that this is the golden paved road to the "nursing" field), I would tell you the course is only 5 weeks and there is no finanicial aid for this program (that's the gov't, not the school's doing) so start shelling out $1300 dollars and by the way, no one hires Nursing Assistants unless they're certified, so be prepared to take the $140 test afterwards and then once you are a CNA, you can look forward to working for NURSING HOMES for $9 an hour. Who wants that??? When yes, it takes more time and money to be a PCT than a Nursing Asst, but the students learn SO much more, earn more, and then can work for hospitals. And fyi - the gov't offers financial aid for PCT program. Now, for those naysayers who think UMA (which I work for the one in TAMPA, by the way) is just the worst school ever, let's look at what the admissions reps and student services employees deal with. Perhaps, then, you can understand that we do SO much more for our students than any public community college or most private trade schools. I come in contact with students who want the world - meaning, they want short programs, completely free, and they want us to then put them into a career and guarantee them that they will be successful. Yet these same students (most of them but they're are a few exceptions) couldn't handle the rigors of a traditional school with 2 years of math and English and foreign languages and sitting in a class for hours listening to a professor speak at a podium. Heck, most of these students can barely pass a GED test. These same students also don't work, have children, have FELONIES, and have a myriad of lame excuses that stop them from being successful in life (my car broke down, it's too hot outside, my baby's mama keyed my car, etc etc). And yet they want it ALL. Even students who are college educated and working FT jobs seem to believe that becuase we offer an inch of services, they should be able to stretch it into a mile. I wake up every day knowing that some of these students need a swift kick in the a*s to get going, tough love, if you will, and I am here to deliver it. In fact, I may be the only person in this student's life who cares enough to tell them that they are ridiculous if they want the Nursing Asst program to create a better life for them and their kids (b/c they wont - its pays too little) or that they better get it together and realize that college or higher education is NOT free and if you want a handout, you will never get far in life. And I don't care whose cousin/sister/auntie/neighbor told you that there is SO much help out there for single mothers who are not working - that doesnt mean schooling is going to be handed to you on a silver platter. UMA offers job placement, we can offer leaves of absence if needed, and we only have a 4 day school week, with class times that can fit into almost every schedule. We have smaller classes than most and our teachers care about their students' success. So please save all the whining b/c you cannot take the skills we gave you and turn yourself into a positive aspect of the comuunity. Please talk to the 100s of our graduates that have.


Missa

Land O Lakes,
Florida,
U.S.A.
So true.

#7Consumer Comment

Sat, February 14, 2009

I filed the other report on this place. I'm really happy someone else did. I wish I would have discovered this site while I still lived in FL so I could have gotten other classmates to file. The only good thing about this school was my teacher (Mr. Wally!) Everything else was pure lies. After so long of looking, I still haven't found a job in the field. The school claims to help you with job placement, but you're really on your own. I need to go update my report because they actually ripped me off really bad with my financial issues (trying to say I owe them over $20,000 when the MCLA program I was in was only about $11,000). Good luck in your job search. I had to seek employment elsewhere and am now working in a call center. So much of my time and money has been wasted :[


Missa

Land O Lakes,
Florida,
U.S.A.
So true.

#8Consumer Comment

Sat, February 14, 2009

I filed the other report on this place. I'm really happy someone else did. I wish I would have discovered this site while I still lived in FL so I could have gotten other classmates to file. The only good thing about this school was my teacher (Mr. Wally!) Everything else was pure lies. After so long of looking, I still haven't found a job in the field. The school claims to help you with job placement, but you're really on your own. I need to go update my report because they actually ripped me off really bad with my financial issues (trying to say I owe them over $20,000 when the MCLA program I was in was only about $11,000). Good luck in your job search. I had to seek employment elsewhere and am now working in a call center. So much of my time and money has been wasted :[


Missa

Land O Lakes,
Florida,
U.S.A.
So true.

#9Consumer Comment

Sat, February 14, 2009

I filed the other report on this place. I'm really happy someone else did. I wish I would have discovered this site while I still lived in FL so I could have gotten other classmates to file. The only good thing about this school was my teacher (Mr. Wally!) Everything else was pure lies. After so long of looking, I still haven't found a job in the field. The school claims to help you with job placement, but you're really on your own. I need to go update my report because they actually ripped me off really bad with my financial issues (trying to say I owe them over $20,000 when the MCLA program I was in was only about $11,000). Good luck in your job search. I had to seek employment elsewhere and am now working in a call center. So much of my time and money has been wasted :[


Missa

Land O Lakes,
Florida,
U.S.A.
So true.

#10Consumer Comment

Sat, February 14, 2009

I filed the other report on this place. I'm really happy someone else did. I wish I would have discovered this site while I still lived in FL so I could have gotten other classmates to file. The only good thing about this school was my teacher (Mr. Wally!) Everything else was pure lies. After so long of looking, I still haven't found a job in the field. The school claims to help you with job placement, but you're really on your own. I need to go update my report because they actually ripped me off really bad with my financial issues (trying to say I owe them over $20,000 when the MCLA program I was in was only about $11,000). Good luck in your job search. I had to seek employment elsewhere and am now working in a call center. So much of my time and money has been wasted :[

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