Complaint Review: New Horizons Computer Learning Center - Orlando Florida

This report is simply about this SCHOOL's unethical recruiting tactics. I'm putting school in capitals, because the basis of this report is that this company is posting false job ads on major job boards and misleading people into believing they are "interviewing" for a position, when they are actually being deceived into attending training classes they don't need and can't afford. This company is preying on desperate, out-of-work people who are pursuing IT jobs.

I applied to some postings on CareerBuilder for [what I thought were] IT positions.

I got a call from a guy who introduced himself as being from Microsoft's largest worldwide affiliate. He asked me some typical questions about my background, and I obliged. Then he said he'd like to have me come in and talk about how he can help me. I asked what his company was called, and he said New Horizons. I asked if it's an actual position he's offering me, and he responded that they offer placement and training. I was confused by this, but I said okay and got off the phone.

Then I looked up New Horizons online. After discovering what it was, I called back. I got voicemail and said that I had been under the impression it was some type of interview, and I'm not interested in paying for any training courses.

A few days later, I got another call from a different guy introducing himself with the same Microsoft blurb. This one was more aggressive from the start. He started asking me about my background, and I played along, not sure it was the same company. Then he started describing his company, how they place people in Fortune 500 companies, and started naming off some big name companies they work with. He said something about how some of their trainees qualify for government assistance that can reduce the costs of the program to zero. (From previous sales work, I know this is just a trick and probably highly misleading; there's probably some loophole that legally allows them to claim that, however I doubt anyone goes through their program without paying anything. From what I've read about this company, it usually ends up putting people tens of thousands in debt, sometimes without anything to show for it.)

Then I asked what his company is, and he said New Horizons. I told him a rep had previously called me about his SCHOOL, and I was not interested in going further into debt for their training courses. At this point, he became even more aggressive. He started trying to degrade my confidence, saying things like, "I gotta be honest, no one's gonna hire you," and, "How do you expect to break into IT?" At that point, I said, "Fine, I'll come see what you guys are about, but I want to be clear that I'm not interested in paying you guys for training." Then he turned downright rude and said, "What did I just say?! Did you hear what I said about government assistance?" So I said nevermind, no thanks and hung up.

Fortunately, that is the extent of my experience with New Horizons. I've read many other negative reports about them, and while I didn't fall for their scheme, I felt it was important to make other job seekers aware of this practice. To be fair, I have a friend who went through New Horizons and doesn't have anything bad to say about them. So, obviously some people have benefitted from their services, which is fine. IT certification training is a good thing, for those who desire it. However, the way New Horizons salespeople mislead job seekers into believing they are interviewing for a job and then attempt to manipulate them into attending their school is unethical.