I am sure many of you have come across offers to study with no fees and a free iPad or such incentives. Many people think that they are getting the course for free and sign up without giving it much thought. You should be aware that no upfront fees does not mean it is free. It means that you are doing the course through a Fee help scheme where your course fees are paid to the provider by the scheme and you will be in debt for the amount loaned. You will have to start paying off this loan as soon as your income reaches $52 K. While this is great for a course which you definitely want to do and have successfully completed, It is not so good when you have signed up just because it does not cost anything and do not successfully complete it. It is not free, You are just going into debt and also paying at least 50% or more for a course than what its actually price is. Even if you don’t complete the course you are still in debt and you will have to repay once you start earning.

Let’s Look at some pros and cons of training under the Fee help schemes

Pros:

  • Great option if you don’t have the money but are 100% sure that this course is definitely for you to put you on the career path you want.

Cons:

  • You are paying at least 50% or more for a course than what it is worth. A course which normally costs $5000 will be sold for $15000 under the Fee help scheme. This is still payable by you once you start earning.
  • It is further more of a concern if you enrolled in it just because you think there are no upfront fees even though you are unsure if it is right for you or you discontinue it midway. Be aware that you still will be in debt and have to pay the amount once your start earning. When you are repaying a debt of $15000 or more on something which was useless to you it really is not cool.
  • Lot of marketing companies use this as a trump card to enrol students and can become a money making scheme for them leaving you in debt. They throw in a free IPad as an incentive, when you are paying a fee which is thousands of dollars more enrolling for a free IPad is not worth it.

If you are able to afford doing a course via a fee for service you would be paying the price for what the course is worth and not the extra thousands which go into the pockets of the marketing companies. Most colleges offer payment plans for as little as $50 a week which would be a great option to take.

Don’t get tricked into enrolling in a course which advertises as nothing to pay as that is not true, It might land you in debt for much more than you are prepared for. Feel free to comment or email us on admin@healthcourses.com.au if you need any further advice.