Skills Train www.skillstrainuk.com

I paid £3500.00 for CCNP, Ilost the money and i got nothing out it ,Failed to complete my degree B.Sc hons software engineering from Notingham Trent university because This Indian guy brainwashed me and not to do my final year and he convinced me, will get paid more money on cisco and convinced me to sign contract on CDF.Very disappointing and depressed with these sick people. i refused refund .....sorry guys and i could not explain my full story........its too bigggggggg

I did one of their coarse a few years ago and even it being a 5 year coarse it will be out of date not even 2 years into it and no one will employ you after you have completed it not to mention it is way over priced and low standard quality of education, it would be cheaper just to go study at a local college like I am.

I'm studying the A+, N+ and CCNA course with SkillsTrain, and have been on the course for a while. I disagree with some of the reviews I've seen so far.

SkillsTrain promised that I could learn at my own pace and they have allowed me to do that. They have been very flexible. I originally started the course in 2006 and wasn't able to complete it because I had started University, I called them up and they allowed me to re-enroll course for free as I had been keeping up with payments.

I used the materials they provided and uploaded my TMA's to the Student World website, I usually got a response back within two working days with results and feedback on questions I got wrong. In the cyber classroom section there were some interactive videos that were very helpful, but I really would like to have seen some more of them.

Six months ago I completed my A+ Exams at Leeds, and this month I finally completed the N+ Exam using the materials they provided. I initially had to pay for the exam, and I provided a receipt after I completed the exam and they refunded me for the exam as agreed (when I first started the course).

Having studied at University I am already familiar with studying in my own time and performing necessary research on topics. Whenever I had a question about a particular topic I sent a message to the tutor team and I usually got a response back the same day.

The content of the course was up to date and covered Windows 7 and Windows Vista, I received all of the material quite quickly. One very useful tool they provided was the CertBlaster N+ Exam Simulator, it helped me practice all the Networking questions.

I've now received the CCNA books and i'm ready to do my next TMA.

Points of Improvement

The student-world website could be updated to be more interactive and some more videos will be good too.

Pricing could be lower but I still found it cheaper than my first year of Uni!

Overall, SkillsTrain have been very good, they gave me the support I needed when I needed it. I'm now starting on my CCNA TMA's and I plan to take my ICND1 exam in 3 months! wish me luck!.

Skills Train will not give you enough support, I think anyone is better off studying themselves and using the monthly payments to make better investments for your career I am almost completed my CCNA /A +/ N+ and if i had known better 3 years ago i wouldnt have signed a 36 month contract with them, be VERY CAREFUL!!!!

The CIW course is terrible. Some of what you learn is 5-10 years out of date. £3K to learn about Microsoft Server 2000?!?! MS Server 2003 would be bad, but a technology that is ten years old!

Also, they promised me the Adobe Creative suite. They haven't given it to me, so I'm taking them to court. I have it in writing, I've spent ages on the phone with them and they keep saying they'll sort it out. Months later... it's time to go to the small claims courts, where I will asking for all my money back, because the course is:

Not fit for purpose (of getting an IT job)

Not of satisfactory quality (5-10 years old)

Not as described

All these things are covered by the Sale Of Goods Act 1979.

Please please please, just read the forums online, watch the episode where SkillsTrain appeared on Watch Dog, and stay far away.

Skills Train Distance Learning courses are a poor way to learn a new trade. The booklets that they provide are poor quality and there so called expert help and online learning material is none existent. The online learning classes do not work in vista. They also say they are accredited with the top companies but I doubt it.

do research on the internet and many thousands are feeling the same as me with no way out. If i knew what i know now about the company i would never have signed the contract.

I would not recommend skillstrain to anyone I am currently enrolled with them doing four IT courses from A+ to CCNP and there materials has been in my oppinion severely lacking. After searching the internet for similar peoples experiences i then found that in there promo dvd they claim accreditation and approval from very well known establishments relating to my course such as cisco.

It would seem that skillstrain are lying about there accreditation with these establishments.

I wanted to try a course that would help me find a career in computers. I decided on skills train as I didnt get much response from my original choice. I felt a bit pressured into agreeing to sign by the salesman they sent round. When I received the material I felt it was rather old, but wanted to get that certificate. Once I neared the end of my first part, they offered new material. I thought, ok 2nd part will be more up to date! They sent the first part again and I had to redo it all. I was sickened about having to do alot of the same work again, but did eventually finish it first part. I then began the second stage.

by that time I felt the material was again out of date by a good year or two. I was also reading the TMA's returned and the answers didnt seem too indepth, rather more from a text book.

Well I was getting slower and slower as I was getting more disappointed, then the news came! BBC Watchdog were onto them for a second time. I felt sickened and conned! especially since I have found out this course costs at least double any other course!

I cancelled my course and stopped payment. It did not stop there. Apparently a credit company pays them the full amount and you have to pay this credit company, so I am now getting chased for the rest of the money, and with no reply from skills train. I have not received all the course material. I am in a debt management situation and should not have been given any sort of credit like this!

I am now being threatened with court action against me. I have paid about 4/5ths of the money.

I didn't feel the course material I received from Skills Train was not uptodate, and I was not happy to continue learning, as I had just taken on a more demanding job, in which I ended up learning more uptodate things than was being supplied by Skills Train. I felt they were a fastmoving, hard selling company, and offered me a 'repayment scheme' which I feel is costing me an arm and a leg. i am now happy in my current job, and with the current climate, I don't think completing this course will find me a better paid job doing something I no longer want to do. The only matter is having to complete payment for the course, even though I am no longer studying. It's a wrench, and I'd like to think that they could offer a way to cancel payments for people who no longer want to continue, as they no longer need to send any material out to me.

I have no criticism about the course itself from skillstrainuk.com, the material seemed very up to date and appropriate for my subject. The new materials would show up after about 4-5 days of submitting my old work. Detailed feedback is given for TMAs (tutor marked assignments). Sometimes it didn't seem to be too detailed, seemed to lack in personality somewhat.