Spent $500 on a 'career accelerator' course that was just recycled YouTube videos

Last year I bought this online program promising to teach advanced data analysis skills. It cost me $500 and all I got were links to free YouTube playlists I could have found myself, plus a generic certificate nobody cares about. The 'mentor' calls were just group Q&A sessions with 50 other people. Has anyone else fallen for one of these expensive online courses that turned out to be a total scam? What should I look for to avoid getting burned again?

3 comments

3 Comments

olivias884d ago

Max makes a good point, but selling a $500 dream with free videos is pretty scammy behavior.

the_cora4d ago

Yeah olivias88, the real scam is how they sell community but deliver a crowded Zoom link.

max8084d ago

Ugh that's brutal, but I gotta push back on one thing. Calling it a total scam might be a bit strong. A lot of these courses are just super low effort and overpriced, not technically illegal. The real problem is they sell a dream of a quick fix. You have to check if they show real student work, not just promises. A real teacher should give you personal feedback, not just host a huge call. It's more about being lazy and greedy than running a scam.