Working at EDMC Education Management Corporation — Reviews by Employees

I'm new to EDMC, just started in Sept. I'm in the training POD and see both sides of the reviews posted here. Yes, the ARs/ADAs spend almost all day (9-6pm, with a 1 hr lunch and 2 15min breaks) making calls. Yes, we're trying to get people into school. Maybe some of those people aren't ready for school... but aren't THEY the ones that should make that decision? As for my personal experience, the first student I helped into school was a PERFECT fit for one of our online programs. She was fresh out of a year of community college and was rather asocial. She was looking for an online arts program that she could work around her work schedule and was nearly in tears (of happiness) by the time I was off the phone with her. It was enough for me to feel GREAT amount of professional satisfaction. Is this job like sales... yes. Is there pressure... yes. Do I personally feel that I can succeed and move up... yes. Hopefully my mindset won't change much over the next year +. If it does, I'll post another review.

Here is some important information so that others can fully understand a faculty member and a student’s relationship with Argosy University and EDMC.

Please insert this link in your browser: http://www.highereducationissues.net/

When you are at the website please click on
FACULTY LAWSUIT: POSLUNS V EDMC ET AL under the heading Faculty Lawsuits.

I truly hope the information is helpful.

Ronald J. Posluns, MBA, Ph.D.
Investigative Journalist, Author, Educator
Chairman,
Institute for Financial Justice, Inc.
http://www.instituteforfinancialjustice.org

I currently work for this company in an Academic Advising position. I think the majority of the postings on here are from people who work(ed) in Admissions. There is a ton of pressure put on the ADAs but I've seen things dramatically improve with time.

I've been with the company for over five years and this makes me VERY veteran. Everyone whines and complains how shady and under handed the Admissions people are but rarely do people mention that ALL students are given Academic Advisors.

My pay is not comission based, nor is it on a metric system. I take my students educational experience seriously. In the past I have told students that clearly do not belong in our school that I don't think that our degree programs are going to be a good fit for them--be it for finacial reasons or because they failed the most fundamental english course so many times.

I do feel my coworkers--even those in admissions--do respect me, and I feel that the management does a fairly decent job.

Again, I'm not in sales, but EDMC is NOT the evil company people think it is!

The comments here make me sick. THe job isn't just fine - it's a good job. You can be unethical, yes, but it is not built to be unethical, in fact upper management is constantly trying to make us be admissions advisors as well as salesmen. In fact, the VP of the company sat us lowly salesmen (ADAs) down and asked us candid questions about our job, ensuring that we are not only comfortable, but moral. Are there managers that make you use pressure sales tactics? Yes, but those managers got fire on their ass because upper management does not function like that. My manager, for example, lets me be as moral as I want and NEVER forces me into an immoral decision. I've turned away students because I FELT they don't understand how student loans work. NO other private school will do that. We are moral as all hell. My students love me long after they've started school because I don't lie and they know what to expect. Will you get world-class education online? Yes. Yes, you will. bottom line. I don't work for HR or anything, I'm an ADA. In fact, I'm not even that good and I make 35K with all the benfits I can eat and I don't worry about job security. You have to be a moron to get fired from here because everyone is laid back.

Here's the bottom line - if you can't handle a laid back sales atmosphere with upbeat, educated colleagues, then... well, you can. This is NOT pressure sales. NO car salesmen. NONE. If you're a car salesman, shame on you. you can pressure and lie, yes, but if compliance catches you - you're out on your ass. Now, can you use some tricky wording to "essentially" lie to people? Yeah, if you're an asshole. but that's up to YOU. I am a 100% moral and NONE of my students are surprised. Have I had pissed off students? yes. Have I had students be pissed off because they've been lied to? No. Do some students say they've been lied to? Well, not mine. I make damn sure you know that you're getting yourself into debt. in fact EVERY single student at EDMC sees the EXACT and TOTAL cost of their education year by year. No surprises. Now, if you see a number saying $10,000 student loans for year one, and then at the end of year one, you're like "Why do I have $10,000 in student loans?" that's entirely your fault. We try to make sure every single last student knows EXACTLY what's going on. No bullshit. Not at EDMC. Are there car salesmen in the cubicles? yeah. But those immoral people would be doing the same shit regardless of the company. Does EDMC encourage car salesmen? HELL NO.

Management is much nicer than any company i've worked for. Pay is competitive, there's TONS of room for growth (almost unlimited - from sales to management, you just gotta work your ass of, as it should be) and our students ACTUALLY LEARN. STUDENTS THANK ME for opening their eyes to the art institute, and it actually feels good to go home and know I've changed someone's life for the better, not duped them into a $50,000 debt. Do students walk away with $50,000 debt? Sometimes. Do they know that? Yes. Is it worth it? Hell yeah. Our students have worked in pixar, on games like guitar hero, for massive fashion chains... so all you negative motherf-ckers need to stop giving this fine educational company a bad name. Just because you're too dumb to hang in here, or somehow didn't know this was BOTH sales and counseling, doesn't mean you should come in here and post all kinds of lies in capital letters.

Enough said.

Why don't you come to our corporate building and see just who we are? I've made tons of friends from work and find EDMC to be one of the most pleasant work environments I've ever belonged to.

oh, and that sueai . com website is bullshit - we are fully accredited by msche.org (you can't make that up, we're there) we got a 46% graduation rate according to FAFSA (that number's a little bent, but EVERY single school does that) and our job placement rates are INSANE (87% - again, a little bent, more like 75%, but that's still much better than the high-ranking state university I graduated from myself).

We change lives here, and we do it for the better. If you think otherwise, maybe you were a corrupt, immoral ass, and I'm glad you didn't stay at your job. I take my work seriously, i care about my students, and they love me in return. Oh, and I slack off a lot because I'm young and don't care to make 70+K, but I could if I wanted to double down, so this job is amazing because it offers great flexibility.

Long live Ai!
Long live EDMC!

I like working here. It is not as shady as everyone says. If people choose to be shady about the things they do, that is their decision. I've been successful here without doing any of the things the aforementioned people have mentioned and rather enjoy talking to the students we enroll. Just as any for profit school- you pay an arm and a leg for the convenience of doing your homework from home. I do the online program we have and really like it. And they pay for it.
Pay is good. Potential to make money is good as well.
Respect is okay as well. The job is just glorified telemarketing. If you do your job, you have the respect you deserve. If you don't care and are terrible at it, you get the respect you deserve. People like to joke around and have a good time to make the day go by faster. There are some disrespectful people but a lot of what goes on is joking and good natured.
Benefits here are good. Health, dental and vision are all pretty decent. 12 paid holidays a year. And they pay for you to go to school.
Job Security- it isn't as bad as everyone on here says it is. There are people on my team who haven't hit multiple starts in a row and are still here, collecting paychecks. Eventually if you suck bad enough, you won't have a job... just like how it is for any job, and that is only after you've been written up and aware of your production- or lack thereof.
Work Life balance.. not bad. It sucks when you have to work Saturdays around start week all the time but aside from that, you work your standard work day. Evenings free- and weekends. There is no forced overtime either, in fact just the opposite. Overtime is restricted to 5 hours a week unless you have approval to work additional.
Career Potential- if you are what they are looking for and are successful as an ADA, you get promoted. If not, you don't.
Location- decent. Next to a bunch of other for profit organizations as Phoenix is a huge hub for them. Easy freeway access. Nice business center located in a semi-ghetto area but actual Cotton Center is nice. Centrally located for nearby convenient places to take your lunch.
Coworker competency- I work with a lot of idiots but also a lot of really nice, smart people. I've made some very good friends in my year plus experience here. There are a lot of really competent people who work here as well. For the most part, I like everyone here minus those who are all high and mighty and think they are better than everyone else.
Work Environment- it's a cube setting. As I said before, it is glorified telemarketing so if you don't mind working in close proximity, then it isn't a bad thing. I have a good time with the people on my team. They are all pretty funny and make the day go by much quicker.

This is a decent job that pays pretty well. The people are all pretty nice. Just as with any large corporation, of course there are going to be scandals amongst coworkers. It is inevitable with a corporation as large as it is has people get involved. As for the people who decide to be shady, I hope they get escorted out. It is a poor reflection of us who actually do our job morally and respectfully as admissions should be. I like it here and plan to stay.

I have worked at 2 other organizations that compete with EDMC. I have learned a lot at each one of them and have a lot of respect for what each of them do. It is my personal opionion that EDMC offers the great opportunity for career growth and true professional development. I will say that admissions/enrollment is not for everyone and most of the bitter reviews written are from those that could not or decided not to perform at the highest level. This is true in any position with any company. You are not going to get a good review from somebody who was either let go because of performance or quit because they felt they deserved to be paid more. I have never felt that EDMC has done any unethical. Each person decides on their own what they will or will not do. There is just no place for forcing unethical behavior. If someone feels that way, again they are in a position that is not cut out for them. Although every company can improve in areas, EDMC being no exception, it is a great company to work for and I would invite anyone who is looking for a rewarding place to have a career to look into a position with the company.

The campus leadership and work environment is balancing out since the numero uno dictator Glenn and his DOA puppet Joe left town!

I'm so sick of reading how many people hate this place have you ever noticed that the negative always outweighs the positive? So, that being said I doubt many people will take this post seriously however, I feel obligated to say a few things.
Ive been at EDMC for about 1.5 years now, and while I will agree with some of the negative things I LOVE working there.
I work for AIPO and I love going to work, my co-workers (yes the ones many of you out there were calling uneducated, incompetent, criminals) are what make that place. Everyone on my team gets along, and while I will agree there is favoritism and shadiness, its all what YOU as the employee make it out to be most of it is minor and if you sit there and bitch about everything YES YOU WILL BE TARGETED.

If you suck at your job and cant hold a conversation with a person and dont try, yes you'll be fired, but not as easily as people are saying. When I first started in Summer 08 it was bad and it was like a revolving door, however that has changed.

The pay is good for what we do, if you dont like it you dont have to accept the job. There is also the ability to DOUBLE or EVEN TRIPLE your salary every 6 months based on your productions.

Enough rambling however.

Overall, I love my job and yes I am still an ADA so I havent moved up, but the opportunity is there. You just have to quit bitching and take it.

I'd recommend this place to ANYONE! well, anyone that was actually qualified and not in reality a moron who cant handle the work load.

I worked in admissions and many of my co-workers were good people. Many were not.

It was a bad experience; not the worst, but bad.

Directors treated potential students like crap.

The department of education will eventually bust this company for breaking federal law.

My pay isn't bad - they gave me what I asked for
I feel respected for my time
I love the health and vacation benefits - very nice and better than my old job
Job security isn't good if you don't work hard...and that's at any job
I do work some overtime, but it helps me excel and make more money. there was one time I wanted off work and wasn't awarded, but oh well, I survived and worked
this place is growing so I'm sure there will be growth for me
location isn't too bad. don't like to pay for parking, but it is closer to home for me
all my co-workers are really competent and most have Master's degrees
I don't mind the work environment, it is different and not a bad experience