Virginia College

If I didn't have four classes left I would stop and go somewhere else. Everything was fine the first few years, my Post GI was paying and for the most part the school was helpful in determining my next step in classes. Then my academic advisor changed about a year and a half ago and everything has been downhill since. My post gi was set to run out after this last summer semester so I called to sort out financial aid or student loans. My academic advisor was no help in who I needed to contact. Once I finally got that sorted out I was told that I had 5 classes remaining. Three in my current semester and two after that. I was told it was verified this was all I had. I received a phone call a month ago during the semester where I was taking 3 of my "last 5 classes". The academic advisor informed me that I actually needed 3 classes the semester after and not two. I asked her to please review as I took out student loans based on only needing two classes my last semester. She called me back two days later and informed me that I actually needed 4 MORE CLASSES. She stated a class I had taken when I first started "didn't count". When I asked why I would be told to take a class that didn't count she blew me off and said "it is what it is, and it will not change". I escalated this to the head of her department, who ignored my emails and phone calls for two weeks. She finally responded, and said it wasn't their problem as they did not work there when I was told to take the class that "didn't count" and when I asked how come this wasn't noticed until 3 years after I took the class, she had no answer. She also advised me that there was nothing the school can do to help me sort this out. I was just going to have to figure out how to pay for these additional classes or not get the Bachelors Degree I've been working towards. They are extremely rude, completely unhelpful and will throw the blame in everyone's direction but there own. I do not work at the school, and I trusted these people to guide me towards my degree. All they've done is give half assed answers and been zero help. I would not recommend this college to anyone

When i signed up for Virginia College(online) i was excited due to the act My oldest was also attending and we would graduate together.half way through the program i was lost and needed help with my work. i would call the online instructors they helped but not much. I had heard about the hybrid program which is you take classes online and on campus. when i inquired i was told that i was half way through for me to continue online....fast forward I graduated Virginia College July 2016 on the day of graduation i was told by the people on campus that they got their CPB(certified professional billing certificate). I was highly upset because why wasn't i given the same opportunity. job leads forget about it. My son graduated in January with an associates degree in Business Administration I in July with an Associates Degree for Applied science in Healthcare reimbursement neither one of us has a job working with the degree we received and now we are both 30,000 in debt.tried enrolling in another school for my Bachelors now i do not have enough financial aide to cover

I graduated in 2010 with a Culinary Arts Diploma from Culinard followed by an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts from Virginia College in 2011. I ended up with $25,000 in student loans. In the 5 years prior to my graduation I averaged $18,500 in annual earnings. In the 5 years since graduating I have averaged $31,200 in annual earnings. In the 5 years since graduating I have earned $63,200 more than I did in the preceding 5 and I'm able to do this with a student loan payment of $95 a month. Money very well spent. Culinard and Virginia College were the best investments I ave ever made. I am not and have not ever been involved with Culinard or its parent company Education Corporation of America other than as a Student. I can be reached at robertfager@chef.net if anyone would like verification of my claims

The reason I went back to school was because I hated my job, the pay, the lack of opportunity, etc. I finished my bachelor's and everything was well until time to pay loans. At $10 an hour, a $700 payment was out of the question. Oh well, I guess I'll get my Masters and put these payments off. By then, I should have a good enough job to make the payments. Yeah right. Fast forward a year after finishing this time, the only job offer I have received out of hundreds of applications is doing the same job I was when I started in the first place except this time for less pay and fewer hours. Did I mention that many of those applications were for jobs at the school? They won't even hire me.

Going to culinary institute of Virginia college is the best thing I have ever done. The instructors are really hands on and they push you to learn and I think that's important. They have an array of of partners that you can extern with which are major corporations in which u may be hired. This college is also nationally accredited so that in itself is a star. Don't let these other reviews fool u. Culinary institute of Virginia college is where u want to be if you have a passion for cooking

November 18, 2015 When you choose Virginia College, and this is the thing with what has been repeated over and over by other reviews-teachers,staff,and additionally student finance are the issue when dealing with the institution's careless actions AND behavior. To notify of the trouble you have a great possibility of dealing with the most DIFFICULT and the MOST RUDEST teachers and program directors. I wen't to them with a problem I was having with my teacher and there was a lot that took place in that one meeting that it made me want to turn around and go home early cause I was having a mental break down and take everything in after the meeting and during the meeting my heart was pounding and my anxiety levels were sky-rocketing because of the mental and physical stress they was putting on my mind and body. They literally put me on the spot light, surrounded by these 3 black women;The program director,my instructor, and surgical tech feeling like they were teamed up against me. I was being provoked,humiliated,insulted,and cut off when I tried to explain myself! I am pregnant with a 3 month old baby and nothing can be worse then being that much over-emotional and knowing how dangerous it is for you and your baby. I have ADD and was slow to responding to them because the teacher and the program director was talking rapidly and said so much that I couldn't process it all especially when they were wrong and I couldn't justify anything and all that came from these people is ignorance and lies! This inflicted me with Anxiety from the stress they kept building up on me too. After the meeting, I waited until I was ready to say what should have been said but didn't have the words to express it and went to a computer and decided to email the staff member I talked to cause at the time she was RANTING,SWEARING, and being controlling to not let me have the upper hand. I sent a sincere and a nice flowing letter explaining the misunderstandings and miscommunication. The next meeting went better than what I expected and they acted like they were being two-faced to where one day I was being yelled at and all to acting like they CARE! Cause my letter touched their hearts and so they, finally LISTENED. So there you have it. I THINK I WOULDN'T RECOMMEND THIS COLLEGE TO ANYONE THOUGH, EVER! Also my teacher is FAILING ME and she pulled me out of class for that meeting before an exam, told me I could take it 2 days after and she gave me a 0.00 for that and now my grade has dropped down to a 36.4 and was 58.6! :/ I know right?? I'm screwed and had one more semester before going on ex tern with that course.:/ There's still time that she'll put something over that zero before the end. The instructors do what their told but no one there really cares if you make it or not so make sure your well enough prepared financially and mentally and know what to expect cause you might not know what your getting yourself into. Would you risk trusting a college to get you through your courses and Externship and end up wasting your efforts and your time like I'm trying to prevent? Choose wisely! I wish I would have read the reviews before I started but now I'm another one who attended this college with the experience and information I can share with someone else so they know from me and the others which colleges to choose and it might depend on their location. Good luck to any one else who choose Virginia college. Your going to need it. Virginia College is not for everyone but you will come across some great people who want to help you but its very rare to find them but I've had the opportunity to meet some very honorable and generous people before they left the place.

When you choose Virginia College, and this is the thing with what has been repeated over and over by other reviews-teachers,staff,and additionally student finance are the issue when dealing with the institution's careless actions AND behavior. To notify of the trouble you have a greater possibility of dealing with the most DIFFICULT and the MOST RUDEST teachers and program directors. I wen't to them with a problem I was having with my teacher and there was a lot that took place in that one meeting that it made me want to turn around and go home early cause I was having a mental break down after the meeting and during the meeting my heart was pounding and my anxiety levels were sky-rocketing because of the mental and physical stress they was putting on my body and mind. They literally put me on the spot light, surrounded by these 3 black women:The program director,teacher, and surgical tech feeling like they were teamed up against me. I was being provoked,humiliated,insulted,and cut of when I tried to explain myself! I am pregnant with a 3 month old baby and nothing can be worse then being that much over-emotional and knowing how dangerous it is for you and your baby. I have ADD and was slow to responding to them because the teacher and the program director was talking rapidly and said so much that I couldn't process it all especially when they were wrong and I couldn't justify anything and all that came from these people is ignorance and lies! This inflicted me with Anxiety from the stress they kept building up on. After the meeting, I waited until I was ready to say what should have been said but didn't have the words to express it and went to a computer and decided to email the staff member I talked to cause at the time she was RANTING,SWEARING, and being controlling to not let me have the upper hand. I sent a sincere and a nice flowing letter explaining the misunderstandings and miscommunication. The next meeting went better than what I expected and they acted like they were being two-faced to where one day they were being yelled at and all to acting like they CARE! Cause my letter touched their hearts and finally LISTENED. So there you have it. I THINK I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS COLLEGE TO ANYONE THOUGH, EVER! Also my teacher is FAILING ME and she pulled me out of class for that meeting before an exam, told me I could take it 2 days after and she gave me a 0.00 for that and now my grade has dropped down to a 36.4 and was 58.6! :/ I know right?? I'm screwed and had one more semester before going on ex tern with that course.:( There's still time.

Sadly the good instructors leave or are forced to leave from all the chaos, confusion, and lies. The current program director is so rude, swears, disrupts classes to talk bad about the president, the dean, the instructors, other students in front of the class. Day students take night classes night students take day classes regardless of what you signed up for. Communication is awful. The school only cares about money no concern for the students. Waste of money and time. Worst place to go with the rudest people in administration ever. It's an old fashioned scam.

You get a few good instructors then obviously the best ones leave. The current program director is so rude, she lies, swears, rants, and disrupts classes to talk bad about other students and instructors in front of an entire class. Don't bother trying to work and go to school because she will screw up your schedule do badly that you will find yourself taking classes early in the morning with a two hour break between classes then late until 10 pm even though you signed up as a day student. The calls are worse than telemarketers this should be illegal. The communication between students, the program director, and instructor doesn't exist. The biggest problem as I see it is the lack of care and concern for the students and the lack of respect for the instructors. Waste of money and time. Even graduation is a joke.

This school is a rip off. I am not able to transfer to a more reputable university. I ask if I would before starting this college and was lie to stating the university I planned to attend would except all of these credits (LIE). Not only does this school not hire professional minded individuals it has a lack of concern. I attend both online and ground what a waist of two years and thousands of dollars with the expectation of having credentials worth bragging about now it's just an embarrassment. There has to be a way to began a class action law suit against this unethical institute. No I am not P-O'ed....I AM MAD!!

I graduated from Virginia College in 2009 with an Associates Degree in Business Administration but what I didn't know was that the school was not accredited to transfer to another college or university. I filed for my taxes and they were taken because of this damn fake ass school. I want every penny of my money back. I have never found a career or even a job in my field. I want this school to pay me for my pain and suffering and emotional distress and all of the other people that it may have effected in their lives as well.

I am currently enrolled in the Nursing program at Virginia College. I will just start off with what you will hear and then tell you the truth. When you come in, they will woo you. Lie #1: Yes! Our Nursing program is accredited. Truth #1: They are accredited with the same accreditation that most area HIGH SCHOOLS are accredited with. They are not an accredited nursing school. What does this mean? Okay so the credits you receive here CAN NOT be transferred anywhere else. You start this nursing program, you finish it, or start COMPLETELY over wherever you choose to go to. Now YES, upon finishing this program you CAN sit for your boards (NCLEX). Many have done it, so don't believe otherwise. Lie #2: Yes! We will take other colleges credits. Truth #2: I can't tell you how many people I am in classes with that have been told this, they wait until you are a quarter in ($5,595 later) and tell you oops we won't take that, EVEN IF IT WAS A HIGHER COURSE NUMBER! What a drag! :( By this time you are already way more in debt, that most people are getting the same degree at an ACCREDITED school. Who wants to leave with nothing? Lie #3: They offer tutoring. Truth #3: They DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT offer tutoring for the Nursing program. Lie #4 This program is tailored for working student/students with family. Truth #4: This program is no different than any other nursing program, except for CLASSES are in the afternoon/evening. This may sound great, but when you get into your core nursing classes, you have clinicals. THESE ARE DONE DURING THE DAY, LATE AT NIGHT, AND EVEN ON WEEKENDS. This school has ruined so many relationships with hospitals, etc. around the area that the clinical sites really STINK! Virginia College is a bottom feeder school that gets stuck with jokes for clinical hours. Lie #5: you will get your clinical schedule in a timely manner so that you can PLAN your life. Truth #5: I am in my 5th week of classes for this quarter and JUST, two days ago, got a finalized schedule. Try scheduling work and childcare around that when they start in 4 days! Lie #6: We have excellent labs to practice in! Truth #6: They have a lab, but NO supplies. They never order. Our instructors have to "borrow" stuff from their main job to help us learn. A lot of times it will be one of something so they can show us and we NEVER even get to touch it. It is horrible. I have still never done an IV on a live human and I graduate in 2 short quarters. We have had a different instructor for classes each quarter. The teacher turnover is HORRIBLE, which shows you what kind of program director this Nursing program has. It speaks VOLUMES. EVERY class that finishes this program at this school comes out with a different experience. This program has been around long enough that it should have established some kind of a flow and some stability....NOT. I am not just another one of those whiny students. I came into this program very excited and ready to learn, open mind and open heart. This school ruined me. I have taught myself! Literally. We have had instructors leave in the middle of a quarter. I will finish being almost $40,000 in debt, outrageous for what I have gotten at the school. I would have gladly paid that for what they ADVERTISE. I can't wait to finish teaching myself, sit for my boards, and move on to get my BSN SOMEWHERE ELSE, so that when I get asked, "Where did you get your degree?", I don't have to say Virginia College. Even that is going to come at a cost since most of my prerequisite classes are going to have to be retaken since those credits won't transfer. Please heed the warnings of these reviews. Think long and hard before you enroll, because after 2 quarters (which is 6 months and $10,990.00) if your like me your already way to in debt to leave and start over. This review is of the Nursing program offered at Virginia College of Montgomery. Thank You

I see a lot of the reviews below are negative, but they are also not recent. I enrolled with VCO (virginia college online) in the fall 2014 and so far its better than other schools I've been to. First of all, yes they are expensive. Overpriced? Not really. I haven't had any issues with my financial advisers, they have all been honest with me and given me the price upfront. To me the price is worth it simply because YOU NEVER HAVE TO GO ON THE CAMPUS. That is a big deal for me since I work a full time job and I am a single parent. The teachers/professors are all very friendly, approachable, and helpful. There is also quite a few torturing, group study sessions, and other resources to help you out. Some of the majors are not accredited with major fields, I have seen that. However, to my understanding by 2016 they will all be accredited so if you graduate past 2016 there should be no problem. Either way, if your doing school online for whatever reason this is the BEST I have found, that doesn't mean it's a perfect school, just that it's online program is the best and only one fully online that I have found.

I want my story to be heard. I am from a small town. I have Dyslexia and ADD. I was told daily, for 17 years, that I was stupid, retarded, and dumb. I am a 41, divorced mother of three. I worked as CNA for 7 years, when I say I worked that is an understatement. I worked 60-70 hours a week, just to pay my bills. I had a nephrologist take interest in me. He on several occasions asked me why I didn't become a nurse because I was bright. He was first person to ever tell me I wasn't stupid. I ended up going to work for him for 7 years. I was trained in dialysis. Within a year, I was a CCHT. I walked around with my Core curriculum, for the whole year, learning every single thing I could about dialysis. I became certified on working on the machines and my Nephrology CCHT. I also went to their acute team and ran the acute team for many years. I did the ordering of supplies, cleaned the machines, made the schedules, and was treated with respect. Life changed!! My husband at the time said I spent to much time at work and was the issue of our marriage. I quit my job, got a job closer to home where I didn't have call. I was told I couldn't use my title because the other girls didn't like it, Really. I was now miserable in my job and my marriage. I had no one when I was going through this. I was alone. I was suicidal. Divorced chapter wasn't looking to much better. I started dating a man that owned his own flooring company. I basically started to do all his office work and say just make sure bills get paid. Long story short, that lasted about 2 years and I started owning the company myself. I learned everything I could in 2 years about business and they all learned I was a better business owner than they were so let me be "owner". 3 years later we were belly up because of subcontracting world of corporate games. I am by no means perfect but we were wronged, very badly. We ended up losing EVERYTHING!!! I was selling my furniture to be able to feed my family. We lost EVERYTHING. Also destroyed my credit. I was again at a point of now what? After feeling sorry for myself for several months. I started looking back into dialysis. The pay, I would need to go back to school to redo all my education. I looked at what I loved about being in dialysis job, I had. It was I loved my job because I was doing acutes. I was treated like I had a brain. I had respect. Going to work in a dialysis unit was not an option, School was. I started looking into schools close by. I started reviewing schools close by. I found Virginia College to have what I wanted to be when I grow up. I read the reviews on this site and they made me very nervous. I want to say sorry to anyone who had a bad experience. I will from my experience with Virginia College, respectfully say they have made all the difference in the world to me. The staff at Knoxville, TN. campus are amazing. From admission, to financial aid, to the teaching style, to resources, and I can't say enough the staff!! I am a current student, I have not graduated yet, but I will. Why? I know I have the will in me and I have a team of people that will be there for me, supporting me the whole way. This school is what I needed in my life. The positive influence this team has put on me. The least I could do is log into this site and tell my story. I hope my story will help someone take the time to call them and see if they are right for you. They in my heart deserve many more of these reviews, than what I saw. I go to school with 500 others that seem to be just as happy as I am. Thank you for your time. Tina B. PROUD VIRGINIA COLLEGE STUDENT!!!!

I attended Virginia College for 15 months. In the beginning it was a great school. About 9months into the program i found out NONE of my credits would transfer. A total WASTE. My tuition was $21,000 which is crazy!!! My PD never sent my papers in after i graduated so i was told i had to pay $250 bc i wss considered a NONE RECENT GRADUTE. After months of going back and forth they finally paid. Please keep your hard earned money and go some where else!! I vote this school the worst in the country!!!!!!!!!!!

Prior to attending Virginia College in Birmingham, I was a day laborer making $9. an hour. I graduated from Culinard, the Culinary Arts Institute of Virgina College, in September of 2010 and was immediately hired on as a Kitchen Manager at a very well respected restaurant at a salary of $34,000 a year. I then went on to complete my Culinary Degree with Virginia College's online program. After graduating in December 2011 with an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts, I found no less than 3 major colleges which would accept my A.S degree from Virginia College Online towards a Bachelor's degree. In March of 2012, I applied and was accepted at Johnson & Wales University's online Bachelor of Science Degree program in Food Service Management. Johnson & Wales University accept both the credits from my Culinard Diploma as well as the credits from my Associate Degree from Virginia College online. I am now a Corporate Restaurant Manager making $36,000 a year salary. My student loan repayment for this education is $174.00 a month. Best money that I have ever spent. I have just been notified that the University of Alabama in Birmingham will accept both degrees in their entirety towards an MBA.

This has to be one of the worst school around. Everything about it screams scam from day 1. I should have realized it from the start. The enrollment "specialists" give vague information about everything. It is such a waste of money. You could get the same "degree's" from other places for 1/2 or even 1/4 of the price. Oh, and your credits will NOT transfer to any credible institution. This school is in business to make money, period. It is a private college. As long as you are paying they don't give a D@mn about anything else. RUN AWAY from this school and don't look back. It will be the best decision you ever made about furthering your education. RUN, RUN, RUN and when you quit running away RUN again. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON VIRGINIA COLLEGE!!!

I was in the last lpn class to graduate in the 12 month program. at first they refused to accept my credits from a very good university ;?only to have me retake those classes again. then they decided to accept them after all. so I wasted $6000 on classes that I had taken previously. thank god everyone in the nursing dept got fired after that .. I received my associate of science degree in practical nursing; only to find out no college will accept my credits .. it's so rediculous. I spent $30000 total for nothing..

I have begged and pleaded with people NOT to attend this money pit. They say they are accredited, but it is not a regional body. This means, in plain English, your credits will NOT tranfer. (ask my sister-in-law) The faculty are not qualified in many cases to teach college level, transferrable coursework. They will not tell you up front how much it costs to attend, because they do not want you to compare. Many people end up paying upwards of 30k for a "degree" that is available at a local community college for 10-12k. As for Nursing, they accept everyone. Come on folks, does that sound right to you? There is a reason why real colleges have an application process for RN/LPN and do NOT accept everyone who applies. VC takes those schools flunk outs as well. How is that for establishing credibility?

I have two more semesters to go before I graduate from Virginia College. I have been taking classes on campus and online. My experience in the beginning have not been bad at all. The teachers are great and very professional. By the work I receive I am able to learn alot. The only thing I didn't like was that the tuition went up twice since I have been there and I'm only receiving a certificate. Also the financial aid department needs to be more help to the students. Every time I go to asks for some help relating to receiving a check for school related expenses. I get some type of excuse every time. Overall, the instructors are great.

i can honestly say that i attended VC for 2 years and i had a great experience.. Every time i need with my Financial Aid i was able to call and get the best assistance from Ms. Grant.. She was so pleasant to speak with and even when it wasn't her issue she would get me to the right department. i Graduated working at a great company and i want to special thank you to VC for believing me even when my own family didn't

This school is awful! The classes do not transfer and will not go towards your CCAF. Because my math teacher doesn't have his master's degree, I have to re-take Math. This school is VERY expensive. Although TA will cover it, you can get a lot more elsewhere. I was ripped off numerous times by this school. I am a SSgt in the Air Force and highly DO NOT recommend! The school's departments do not talk to each other and everyone passes you off to someone else. The school is very unhelpful and disorganized. DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR MONEY!

I wish i would have done my due diligence before enrolling in this "institution " They are not honest with you from the get go. Remember this, the only colleges that blow up your phones and want you business are your private institutions, i.e. used car sales tactics of bait and switch. Everyone has touched the subject of the school, but no one said anything about the externship. Here it goes, when you go out on externship, you are lead to believe you will be getting exposure in your field. You have 11 weeks to shadow someone in your field and gain the knowledge of how what learned in school is applied in the work force. Then you go out to the sight and you are placed in departments that have nothing to do with your training. You expect to shadow a coder, but find yourself shadowing in a call center! So from start to finish all you have to show for your time and effort are debts and disappointments

This school is a Joke! Please research your schools before you sign any contract. Vc is about money and unorganized in any way you can think of. Please take my advice and research school first.

I finished in September of 2011 and was unable to walk until February 2012. So to all I was out of pocket for quite a dit as well, and very upset because none of my credits will transfer and now I'm stuck starting all over. But I have contact a lawyer about my tuition being refund. Don't waste your time with VC.

I attended the Jackson, MS campus, unfortunately, and I am very sorry that I did. I'm not stupid, foolish, or incompetant in any way. I was looking for a way to futher my education while trying to raise a small child and work full time. This was the only school that would work with my schedule while I was working full time. I asked many questions while I was there only to get the run around by the administration. Many of the people higher in the chain of command is not fully aware that VC is basically giving away useless certifications, or better yet charging people $20,000+ to get them. Please don't go there, I wish that someone could just sit in on a class and see that they don't teach or they give you work so easy you can't help but pass. PS they spoon feed you every question on the exams so that you memorize them. That's not teaching!

If you are looking for a decent college.. go elsewhere and do not spend any of your time like I did even talking to these people. Everything ends up being your fault and in the end you end up with nothing but a broke wallet and a big fat headache form all of the lies these people tell you the whole time you have been there form day one. I was told that most students had already gotten their certification and even a job a couple of months after they finished their program and there I was waiting to take the certification. It has now been a few months since I finished and several students have found a job and I have not. Employers definitely don't look to see that many of those people that got jobs so fast had been unemployed out of the workforce for 8 years or more, yet they were hired quickly with no steady jobs. I have only been out of the workforce for two years and of that two I was a full time student and yet I am told that nobody is going to hire me because of that. People at that school treat you like crap!!!!! I still wander if that school is prejudice due to the fact that i found out recently that two other white girls including myself are the ones that can't get jobs.

I will be graduating in June 2013 with my BA in Criminal Justice. I have enjoyed my time with Virginia College Online, its flexible schedule has allowed me to be a stay at home mom while I obtain my degree. The flexibility of the school was a key factor to me, as I care for a disabled daughter and diabetic mother in law. In addition, I feel that the instructors at this institute have challenged me beyond my expectations. The online learning experience was excellent; yes a little pricey, but remember you are paying for convenience.

This honestly is a scam. I went for two years for nothing. The program I was in was "dropped" and left me 20,000 in debt. After leaving class for a semester to work l tried to enroll back in and was turned down because there "testing out" the current student's. No school will accept credit's and thus all I have is a 20000 debt. Thanks VC, you all are changing lives by ruining them.

I attended virginia college of savannah for 15 mouths when it was time for externship, they told me I could not because of my criminal background check.I felt that I was scam for money because they should have done this at the beginning of my registration. not wait to the end for graduation to let me down. time and money has been wasted received no certificate or apology.Eventhough, my GPA was 3.50 with perfect attendence

Do not bother wasting your time with this school. I am in the last year of my degree and it has been a battle since day 1. Like every other review on here, they take your money and demand more, they make excuses when you demand answers, and nothing ever adds up. The other reviews on here say it all. Stay away from this school!!!

Virginia College seemed like an excellent idea when I enrolled until I realized that most of the information they give you is misleading. I have had nothing but a hard time with the financial aid department. The first time I applied for additional funding I was told that it "had to be school related." I needed money because I was taking one term off to have my Son, and I needed to buy a computer and be able to establish and pay for internet service, and have what was left over to pay for child care. The financial advisor I dealt with said that was not school related and I could only ask for the money "For a computer for school." She had a crummy attitude, by the way. I waited over 2 months and every time I called the school or walked down to see what was going on with my funding plan they told me "to just wait for the check." I finally called some 1 800 number only to find out that there was a problem and my plan wasn't accepted so I had to go back and talk to the financial aid department at school. (I was transfered to 5 different people by the way) They gave me some BS story about how they had a problem with the lenders and it was a computer issue but someone had FORGOTTEN TO ACCEPT MY PLAN. OOPS. It took me over 3 months to get my check. I just asked for additional funding last week and I can't wait to deal with this headache all over again. I have two more terms at this school and if it weren't for the fact that I love my kids and I want to be able to provide for them, I would have left this school a very long time ago. Also, I went into labor the day of finals. I took one, and then I came back a week later to take the last two. VC told me that I wouldn't have to re enroll since I was only taking off 3 months on account of having a child. Well, when I went up to the school to register for classes they made me re enroll as a NEW STUDENT. They charged me god only knows how much money. The only good thing I can say is that I have amazing teachers, but outside of that, this is school is terrible. I have to be at VC because I owe the local state college money and I am unable to pay out of pocket what I owe. Unless you have parents paying your bills and supporting you, I don't recommend going to this school.

For anyone who wants the real truth about this school..listen up! Virginia College is a complete scam. I've just spent the last 14 months of my life at this school, and had I known then what I know now, I would've done a lot differently. First of all, I would like to start with the things I did like about this school. I liked the fact that the classrooms were small, the teachers were nice,they offered lots of tutoring, and they seem to want you to succeed. On the other hand, that's not all it takes to be successful. For one thing,this school is ridiculously expensive. If you go to another Junior College like Jeff State or Lawson State it will blow your mind how cheap the tuition is compared to Virginia College. Secondly, all of your credits are useless at other school, and despite what some people may think, it's not a myth. I figured out Virginia College's game because they have you take out between 30,000 to 45,000 dollars worth of debt that way by the time you figure out the truth you are in too deep to go somewhere else, so you just stick with them so you will have something to show for it. I wasted a lot of money because of this, so I'm telling you they bank on the fact that you won't want to walk away with nothing. Third, if you are pursuing any type of degree or diploma in the medical field...forget it! I know what I am talking about because I was in two of their programs. I started out Healthcare Reimbursement and ended up Diagnostic Medical Sonography. None of the medical programs have been accredited by CAAHEP, so you can forget about being able to get registered, licensed, or certified for anything because it's not going to happen. A good friend of mine graduated Medical Billing & Coding and the certification she received was not what the billing companies look for because they want the CPC not the CBCS or whatever that crap is they have you take. Then, they will try to convince you that they are working on these accreditations...another lie! I really feel bad for the nursing students because they can forget being able to sit down for the boards because they are not accredited, so that degree is not worth the paper it's printed on. I couldn't even get registered in the field of Sonography through ARDMS until after I worked in the field for over a year, and good luck trying to find someoe to hire you unregistered, so a lot of people end up having to relocate just to find work. Trust me, I am trying to save everybody a lot of grief, money, and most importantly..time! You will not be able to get any of that time back. Thanks to Virginia College it's going to take me 3 and a half years to finish a 2 year Associate's degree. However, that being said they underestimated the kind of woman that I am. My mother used to always say that "some of the best sense in the world is bought sense, and I just bought myself 18,000 dollars worth of it." I got out late, but not too late to salvage some of my money. I am mostly mad about the wasted time because the money is one thing, but when you are an older student not fresh out of high school like me time is something you can't afford to waste. Pardon my language, but these people screwed me without grease,and I got no pleasure at all from it. I almost blew my chances at seeing another dime at any other Junior College because I have so much taken out with them. What they didn't expect me to do was cut my losses and walk away. You heard me right! I withrew and started over from scratch with nothing, and I'm glad I did because now I go to Jeff State where I had to start all the way from the beginning with taking classes I've already taken just to catch up. Thank God for miniterms because that really helps a lot too. Anyway, I started over and now my credits will follow me anywhere I go. I am happily in the RN Nursing Program where I can actually take the boards for my licensure once I'm done. Hope this helps!!

I love this school. All the reviews about financial aid being terrible and teachers being ignorant, I think is mostly based on which campus you attend. I attend the Augusta Georgia Campus and it is absolutely phenomenal. My program is fully certified and nationally accredited. Also, my financial aid process is alway a breeze. The only down side would be the expense of the school; However, you have to understand that everything is included in this price. (books, scrubs, lab coats, resume workshops, cap and gown, and certification exam fees) it may seem a bit steep but for what it's worth it is not a bad price. My PD and instructors all have worked or currently are woking in the field that they are teaching and lend a hand whenever and where ever it is needed. Again, I think it most definitely has to be a campus based issue. The Virginia College August Campus is a great to place to be. I could not ask for a better place to start my education and build my future.

THIS SCHOOL IS A RIP-OFF. COME TO FIND OUT THIS DEGREE WAS NOT EVEN OFFERED IN THE STATE OF NC. THEY GOT ME FOR ALMOST 40,000. I AM CURRENTLY TRYING TO DISPUTE THIS SEEING HOW I ACCIDENTALLY CAME ACROSS THIS INFORMATION FROM ANOTHER SITE THEY HAVE. THIS SCHOOL IS A JOKE AND THE BBB SHOULD DO A BETTER JOB WHEN INVESTIGATING BUSINESSES LIKE THIS PIECE OF CRAP SCHOOL.

This school is seriously lacking in communication and professionalism. The main focus is making sure they get paid. The quality of your education means nothing. Please do NOT waist your time and money on this institution.

I have been attending this college for about 37 months now and let me tell you it has been one hell of a ride. This college is full of nothing but smoke and mirrors. Every year they find something wrong with my financial aid or some other document that causes me to have to cough up 600-1500 dollars of money in order to continue my education. I've had two troublesome professors that have failed me due to differences in ideology. They outsource every aspect of the college so no one department is aware of what another department is doing or committing too. This gives them deniability across the board to continue their shady practice. I have requested arbitration in several incidents and have been given the run around until either forced into doing what they want or be kicked out of school with nothing but debt to show for it. If you talk to a lawyer then you are in breach of contract.

The worst possible excuse for a school; Virginia College turned out to be the biggest mistake I could have made with regard to my education.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I give this BS an big fat zero. The school STAFF is full malarkey. They catch an attitude when I ask about information pertaining my advance loan. I have been in school since April of this year and still no loan. What is the hold up with my money that I have to pay back. They act like it coming out of the pocket. Now they stating that I owe them, I don't recommend this MESS to anyone. They only care about tricking people to sign up and get paid. And the student portal is a bunch of JUNK. It doesn't show nothing unless you owe them. I have been getting the run around every since June. They don't return phone calls or emails. I could understand if I wasn't attending class properly and my grades wasn't good but, this is not the case with me at all. Really terrible. Can't wait until this NIGHTMARE is over. BEWARE: Stay away from Virginia College online.

I'm in the online program for a Bachelor of Science in Network Management (have been for 2 years now). I thought the program and classes were great at first, but now that I have seen a lot of the college, I'm no longer impressed. I am getting disappointed, frustrated, and ready to transfer to a different college (Capella, perhaps...) First off, I have about 15 years of experience in IT, but no degree. I decided to get a degree to help get a better job some day. With my working experience, I can tell you that the Network Management degree program is very solid in what they teach. The books they give you are very helpful. What they don't tell you is that with these computer classes, you have to download and install special software (LabSim), which has course of its own that you have to go through, as well as Virginia College's normal weekly material. This is good in that it *really* gives you a lot of information (I still learned a few new things), but the downside is that for someone new to computer networks, it can be information overload to a lot of people. It's also very time-consuming, so unless you are single and have a lot of time on your hands, it can be almost impossible to keep up. Since the LabSim software has to be installed on your computer, you are pretty much out of luck if you have to do your school from a library or somewhere you are using a computer that isn't yours. On the other hand, another bonus for the LabSim material is that it is related to CompTIA certifications. You are almost guaranteed to pass the certification exams after you are done with the LabSims, and you can access the LabSims for up to a year. Some instructors even say the college will reimburse you for the exam cost if you pass. I took (and passed) one certification exam, but that instructor never said anything about the reimbursement option. I didn't hear about it until a few semesters later. Speaking of instructors... since it is an online course, you need to be ready to be on your own. Most don't offer much for instruction, they just tell you to read from the book and do the online lessons. There are some who encourage interesting conversations in the discussion parts of the classes, but not all do. Most of the instructors are very professional and friendly, but lately I seem to have been getting instructors who don't seem to want much to do with the online class. Either they don't have much time (with a "regular" class to teach as well), or they just don't care. Communication with them has been severely lacking. I often wonder how some of them became instructors; they have bad (sometimes unintelligible) grammar, and many times their lesson plans don't match the syllabus. By many times, I mean over half the time. Most instructors blame it on the classes being set up by a mysterious "someone else" and that they "have no access to change certain information." It can be very confusing at times, when the week's announcement says "do this," the syllabus says "do that," and the instructor says "no, do this instead" for the week. As for the support: it's terrible. The site itself goes down very often with little to no warning (or explanation). My student advisor was great at first, then they disappeared with no warning, and I was not re-assigned a new one. I had to email the school and find out what was going on. Since then, I have had 3 other advisors and all have been pretty much useless. They don't listen to a thing I say when I request being put into certain classes. I know certain classes are only offered at certain times, but you would think they would tell you what your options are. They don't. They put you in any class they want, and by the time they tell you, you have only a few days to change classes before your books are shipped. I've had books arrive late for 3 semesters, even though I try to give at least a month of notice for which classes I want. It doesn't matter, they ignore my requests at first, then let me switch to what I wanted, but after it's almost too late, and I get my books late. If there are issues with the instructor, I have yet to find a way to go "above" them and get things straightened out. For example, I had an issue with an assignment that was somehow lost during submission so it showed I didn't submit anything. I let the instructor know, and it was ignored. I tried emailing the school but I got a message kicked back saying my email was not delivered. I tried the help desk, but they said there was nothing they could do. (Keep in mind the help desk company they use does not work directly for VC, and it takes quite a while to find their VC account when you call them). There are no other contact numbers I can find in the student portal, so good luck finding someone to help you out with anything. As for bills, I'm already up to around $35,000 for two years. I'm doing financial assistance (grants, etc.) so I'm not sure what the exact amount is that I will owe. Payments are deferred until I'm done - I just opt to pay interest for now. Financial assistance was through FAFSA and loan payments are through Direct Loan Servicing. I've been trying to get a better understanding of the financial situation, but can never find anyone that knows enough about it, as others have complained. I've asked for pricing breakdowns and have not gotten anything at all yet. It's all generic charging that I see, but it's adding up quick. Now for the learning, the most important aspect... Like I said, I have been learning new things in IT, so that has been great. I have also been pretty happy with the electives so far. Classes have had anywhere from 10 to 35 students in them, and I have consistently seen a lot of the same "faces" in many of them, so I am feeling like part of a group. Some people have dropped out/transferred, but most of those people have been the types who have not put any effort in, and I guess figured online schooling wasn't for them. They would do maybe one or two discussions for the whole semester, and still expect to pass the class with flying colors. That shouldn't happen, but people expect it - and complain when it's not that easy. They also complain when they get bad discussion grades for posting generic "I agree" responses all the time. It takes effort to get good grades, but it's not hard. Overall, I had been pretty happy until recently. I have a few weeks left in my current semester, then I'll be done here. I have mostly electives left for the degree, and I can get those anywhere. My opinion to others right now would be "look elsewhere for computer-related degrees online." My reason would be the total lack of support (and care) for its students.

I did not realize the classes didn't transfer to other colleges. I have tried for over a month to get my transcript so I can enroll in another college to obtain my degree and they now say I have ghost charges. I was enrolled online and I have one course that the teacher could not open my work for 3 attempts at this class. I was unable to reach a human to help me until I called coorporate and I am still currently waiting and missing out on yet another semester at another college.

I graduated from this hellhole of a school with an Associates but could not attend my graduation because of the incompetence of the financial aid department. The staff are bums and morons from the Dean on down and then they have the audacity to catch attitudes because you call asking about YOUR refund check that YOU are going to have to pay back. We, the students have to suffer because they switched over to a new system of dealing with your disbursements and refunds, BLAH, BLAH BLAH. All of these excuses are just a smokescreen to keep your money. They act as if they are doing you a favor by giving you YOUR money. When I called in to the financial aid office I always got a *sigh* and an attitude because these functioning retards do not want to do their job. The financial aid coordinator that I was assigned to never had any information about my loans. She just told me some crap to get me off the phone. Why was she even there? There was never an exact breakdown of what I was paying for. If you go on the student portal, which btw is a joke of a website that looks like it had been created by a intoxicated toddler, they only show your loan disbursements and your balance so that is not a true breakdown either. These people are shysters to the core. Let us not even get on the illiterates that they have for professors/instructors. They have the audacity to take off points if you make one typo but they can jack up a whole paragraph and think someone is supposed to take them seriously. One of these so-called “instructors” told me that I was SOL since my computer crashed and did not even try to help me with the situation. This was not the case for all of the instructors but the great majority seemed like they could have phoned in their so-called “instruction.” In addition, the process of securing an externship was a total fiasco. I was told at the very last minute that I could not use certain sites for an externship. The first externship coordinator that I had did next to nothing to help me. However, the second coordinator worked her butt off to help me secure a site. She actually gave a damn. However, when I did secure a site it was in the third week of the damn course teamed with the fact that the damn externship was 30 miles away round trip. Therefore, I am spending 80-100 bucks a week in gas and putting wear and tear on my car trying to get my externship hours. Again, I am coming out of money and no one is going to reimburse me for my gas but they have the gall and nerve to hold my refund check hostage and tell me that I am the bad person for inquiring about MY OWN money. Are you serious?? Oh and finally yet, importantly, they switched the graduation date of the ceremony by a week and did not have the decency or the tact to apologize or give an explanation as to why this was done. The e-mail, in a nutshell, went like this “we switched the date of your graduation ceremony can you still attend?” They did not give a thought that some students might be from out of town and have made plans and reservations to attend on the initial date. That crap was so unprofessional and inconsiderate. I have totally had it with this bootleg establishment posing as a college. I was enrolled in the bachelors program but after this last debacle with my refund check, I have since ditched this school for a more reputable one. Messing with MY money and making me miss an opportunity to walk across the stage was the last straw for me. Anyone considering this school, either online or otherwise, should avoid it as if it was an STD!!

I attended this school for a month. After my first month, I called to find out how much my tuition was so I could pay it. I got the run-around. I was sent through 3 different people and the guy who was suppose to know didnt even know how much I owe. Instead he asked how much I get from the VA for education. Whatever I got from them (according to him) is what I owe. I know this isn't true because I went to a different school prior and they set my payments up where I would pocket money and the same for the new school I am attending. I don't owe my entire VA check to the school. The guy also would not add in my student loans and pell grants to my tuition. I was also told I owe $400 for the last few days of February. After getting no straight answer as to how much I owe and getting no bill in the mail, I decided to drop Virginia College. Two months after I stop attending Virgina College, I still don't receive a bill. I receive a letter in the mail stating that I owe them $3,837.60. I cannot figure out how this is so when no one could tell me how much I owe, I only attended for a month, and that is triple what I got in VA payments that they decided my tuition was. This school is a joke and nothing more than a rip off. Make sure when choosing a school, you choose a legimate school.

When researching which school to go to I found that this school had a great price and books and materials were included in price and all shipping charges were also included.