Law Talk: How to get the most from private career colleges
Private career colleges offer a wide range
of training programs and the ability to gain
credentials quickly in today's demanding,
competitive work market. While most deliver
what they promise, some private career
colleges use poorly trained instructors, offer
courses not recognized by regulatory governing
bodies, charge high tuition fees and
have dismal learning facilities. These problems
have been on the decline since the passage
of the Private Career Colleges Act,
2005 (PCCA), but there are still steps you
should take to protect yourself if you are
considering enrolling in a private career college.
Private career colleges are privately
owned and operated businesses and should
not be confused with Ontario's 24 publicly
supported colleges of arts and technology.
Do Your Homework
You should research the private career college you want to attend in order to avoid problems. The website for Ontario's Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (www.tcu.gov.on.ca) has a search function to determine if a college or an offered course is provincially licensed. If the college or course is licensed, then you can be assured that the protective regulations of the PCCA will apply. The Ministry website also lists colleges that have been fined for violating the Act. If you enroll in a college that is not licensed, the PCCA will not protect you, but you can still file a complaint with the Ministry, which will conduct an investigation that can help to protect future students from similar problems.
Protection After the Fact
Even if you've already signed up for a course with a private career college, there may be remedies available to you if you encounter problems. Before beginning a course or program with a private career college, the college must have you sign a written contract called an "enrollment agreement." The PCCA requires specific provisions in the contract. For example, the contract must contain the start and expected completion date of a vocational program, the language of instruction and the admission requirements for the program. If these or other required provisions are not included in the contract, then it is not binding.
Moreover, you have the right to cancel an enrollment agreement within two days of receiving a copy of it. To do so, you must immediately notify the college in writing of your intention to cancel, and deliver your notice to the address stated on the contract. If you wish to cancel your contract within the two-day period, you must give back any items given to you by the college and the college must return any funds you paid to them.
Furthermore, the PCCA prohibits private career college operators from making misleading statements or advertisements to induce an individual to sign up for a course or program with them. This means that if you believe that you were induced to sign up with a career college through misleading statements, your contract with the college may be void, and you may not be required to pay the college operator.
Finally, minimum standards of education and experience are required of the instructors teaching at career colleges. Generally, an instructor is required to have had four years of experience working in the vocation he or she is teaching, or a diploma, degree or apprenticeship certification supplemented by two years of work experience. The only exception to these standards is if the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities approves the employment of an instructor deficient in meeting them.
Filing a Complaint
The PCCA requires that each college have a student complaint procedure. If you have concerns about a college you have signed up with, you can complain directly to the college to seek a remedy. You can also file a complaint with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities if the college is unable to address your complaint to your satisfaction.
For more information, we encourage you to contact the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities at www.tcu.gov.on.ca or toll-free at 1-800-387-5514. In addition, you can find more information about consumer protection topics at any time in a series of Community Law School webinars archived online at tinyurl.com/lawwebinars-2012. Be empowered and stay tuned.
This column is brought to you by Community Law School (Sarnia-Lambton) Inc., and Community Legal Services and Pro Bono Students Canada at Western University, with funding support from the Law Foundation of Ontario. It provides legal information only. The information is accurate as of the date of publication. Laws change frequently so we caution readers from relying on this information if some time has passed since publication. If you need specific legal advice please contact a lawyer, your community legal clinic, Justice Net at 1-866-919-3219, or the Law Society Referral Service at 1-800-268-8326.
Do Your Homework
You should research the private career college you want to attend in order to avoid problems. The website for Ontario's Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (www.tcu.gov.on.ca) has a search function to determine if a college or an offered course is provincially licensed. If the college or course is licensed, then you can be assured that the protective regulations of the PCCA will apply. The Ministry website also lists colleges that have been fined for violating the Act. If you enroll in a college that is not licensed, the PCCA will not protect you, but you can still file a complaint with the Ministry, which will conduct an investigation that can help to protect future students from similar problems.
Protection After the Fact
Even if you've already signed up for a course with a private career college, there may be remedies available to you if you encounter problems. Before beginning a course or program with a private career college, the college must have you sign a written contract called an "enrollment agreement." The PCCA requires specific provisions in the contract. For example, the contract must contain the start and expected completion date of a vocational program, the language of instruction and the admission requirements for the program. If these or other required provisions are not included in the contract, then it is not binding.
Moreover, you have the right to cancel an enrollment agreement within two days of receiving a copy of it. To do so, you must immediately notify the college in writing of your intention to cancel, and deliver your notice to the address stated on the contract. If you wish to cancel your contract within the two-day period, you must give back any items given to you by the college and the college must return any funds you paid to them.
Furthermore, the PCCA prohibits private career college operators from making misleading statements or advertisements to induce an individual to sign up for a course or program with them. This means that if you believe that you were induced to sign up with a career college through misleading statements, your contract with the college may be void, and you may not be required to pay the college operator.
Finally, minimum standards of education and experience are required of the instructors teaching at career colleges. Generally, an instructor is required to have had four years of experience working in the vocation he or she is teaching, or a diploma, degree or apprenticeship certification supplemented by two years of work experience. The only exception to these standards is if the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities approves the employment of an instructor deficient in meeting them.
Filing a Complaint
The PCCA requires that each college have a student complaint procedure. If you have concerns about a college you have signed up with, you can complain directly to the college to seek a remedy. You can also file a complaint with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities if the college is unable to address your complaint to your satisfaction.
For more information, we encourage you to contact the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities at www.tcu.gov.on.ca or toll-free at 1-800-387-5514. In addition, you can find more information about consumer protection topics at any time in a series of Community Law School webinars archived online at tinyurl.com/lawwebinars-2012. Be empowered and stay tuned.
This column is brought to you by Community Law School (Sarnia-Lambton) Inc., and Community Legal Services and Pro Bono Students Canada at Western University, with funding support from the Law Foundation of Ontario. It provides legal information only. The information is accurate as of the date of publication. Laws change frequently so we caution readers from relying on this information if some time has passed since publication. If you need specific legal advice please contact a lawyer, your community legal clinic, Justice Net at 1-866-919-3219, or the Law Society Referral Service at 1-800-268-8326.
