An educational institute in Sharjah is deceiving some of its students, according to a disgruntled group that lost money after paying for an accountancy course that was cancelled shortly after it began.
Gupesh Sharma, an accountant, wanted to earn more qualifications in his field and enrolled with the European Educational Institute in Sharjah in July. He was asked to pay a Dh1,000 registration fee for a certified management accountancy course (CMA) that would eventually cost Dh9,800. The institute has said the registration fee was non-refundable.
Sharma attended five classes in a month and was assured that classes would continue. He was then told the course was being cancelled because there were not enough students and the teacher would not be available.
"I was appalled at this breach of faith as I decided not to look into any other institutes because of the assurances I was given. I was told that study material, discs and CDs would be provided and that I would be registered with the International Institute of Management Accountancy in the US," Sharma said.
"I have also been told that the institute will not refund the Dh1,000 registration fee. I am an accountant. The five classes I attended only taught basic accounting, which I already know. They should have known how many students would attend before the classes began. It's not only that they are not returning the registration fees, but they have cost me valuable time. I could have registered in another institute and finished my studies before the exam in December.
"I am not backing out. I want to do the course. I am willing to pay the entire course fee, not just in instalments. I wasted four months trying to get a response from them."
Dr Tariq Rashid, director of the institute, denied any wrongdoing on the part of the institute and blamed students for non-payment of dues.
"The whole programme costs about Dh9,500. We are giving classes for this course, and yes, we did take Dh1,000 as a non-refundable registration fee. We discontinued the course as the two students who had joined were not clearing their dues. We bought books, got the teacher and had been paying the teacher Dh3,000 a month. At the time of registration, the students were told to pay registration fees and half the course fee. They have not done this so far. How long should we wait?"
Another student, who did not want to be named, signed up for the course. He said payment terms were described as "very flexible" during the admission process.
"I paid Dh1,000 as a registration fee and would have paid another Dh1,000 next month as part of the instalment, but I was never asked for the next instalment. I was just told that the course was discontinued. After repeatedly trying to get a response from the institute, I got fed up and went to Sharjah police to lodge a complaint, but I sat there for 45 minutes waiting to see someone.
"Everyone there just said: 'It's not my issue, go to the education ministry.' I don't know where else to turn."
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