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To avoid drowning in debt from worthless degrees or certificates, choose only regionally accredited colleges in the U.S. Steer clear of those with national accreditation or, worse, those without any accreditation at all.
Unless a school's reputation is flawless, like an Ivy League institution, it's often wiser (and more financially sound) to opt for a state university or college. Borrowing from U.S. government loan programs is significantly safer than taking loans from private lenders.
The unfortunate stories of the victims attending the ten most outrageous for-profit U.S. schools on this list offer valuable lessons. Thankfully for these students, many were able to find financial relief, courtesy of taxpayers.
10. The Brown Mackie College
In a press release dated November 16, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice praised its involvement in securing a $95.5 million settlement with Education Management Corporation (EMC). This settlement was the outcome of resolving four distinct False Claims Act allegations filed in federal courts located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Nashville, Tennessee. One of the claims involved recruiters who worked in a 'high-pressure boiler room' environment and were paid based solely on the number of students they enrolled.
One of the many schools owned by EMC, Brown Mackie College (BMC) offered a range of programs, including bachelor’s degrees, associate degrees, and certificates. The original branch was accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, which later lost its accreditation powers, and was licensed by the Kansas Board of Regents to offer associate degrees. Despite its widespread presence across the country, BMC faced a dramatic decline in enrollment and had to close many of its campuses.
9. International Academy of Design and Technology
Amanda Luciano highlighted the severe impact on students of the for-profit International Academy of Design and Technology. After borrowing $51,000 and repaying $40,000, she found herself still owing $81,000. How could this be the case?
Following advice from a recruiter, Luciano took out a loan from a private lender instead of opting for federal student loans, as Meredith Kolodner reported. Despite repaying a significant portion, her balance kept increasing, with her $500 monthly payments only covering the interest on the loan. The loan’s interest rate was not fixed, leading it to fluctuate over time. She now realizes that the school was part of a predatory scheme.
In a case involving 150 for-profit colleges, a federal judge ruled that the students attending these institutions were entitled to have their government-backed loans automatically forgiven due to the schools’ unethical practices. However, since Luciano’s loan was privately funded, she was not included in the settlement and remained responsible for a loan she said she would 'never be rid of.'
8. ITT Technical Institute
By December 2015, ITT Educational Services had 138 campuses across 39 states. Despite this widespread presence, the company faced massive financial losses, including a total of $12.9 million in settlements, legal, and administrative costs. A report by local Milwaukee television station TMJ4 revealed a case where a student, answering a question in a computer forensics assignment, received full marks for listing pros and cons of an issue.
The instructor’s feedback praised the student, saying, 'Excellent job. You were able to generate the required number of points and counterpoints for each issue.' However, the student had written, 'Ingredients: 1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour, one pinch salt, two eggs beaten.' As TMJ4 reporter Aaron Diamant confirmed, this was not an assignment response, but 'a noodle recipe.'
ITT Technical Institute was also forced to forgive the loans of 200,000 of its students as part of a massive $6 billion settlement related to 'substantial misconduct.' This settlement was finalized after the U.S. Supreme Court chose not to block the cancellation of the students' debts.
7. Brightwood College
Brightwood College, formerly known as Kaplan College, operated under the Education Corporation of America and offered programs in health, criminal justice, and various trade fields. According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, all 15 of the schools involved in its undercover investigation, including Kaplan, made 'deceptive or otherwise questionable' statements to applicants. The college's admissions representatives were caught on tape during these operations.
The loans of Brightwood College students were forgiven, just like those of students from other institutions that were found to have defrauded or likely defrauded their students through unethical practices.
6. Corinthian Colleges, Inc.
At its height, Corinthian Colleges, Inc. operated over 100 campuses across the United States and Canada, offering educational programs in fields such as health care, business, criminal justice, transportation technology and maintenance, construction trades, and information technology.
Investigations conducted both in Canada and the U.S. led to Ontario revoking Corinthian Colleges' Everest College's operating license, resulting in the closure of its 14 Canadian campuses. The company ultimately declared bankruptcy after shutting down its U.S. locations.
A Washington Post article reported that allegations claiming Corinthian misrepresented the success of its programs and trapped students with predatory loans triggered multiple government lawsuits and the loss of its access to federal funding.
The U.S. Department of Education forgave $5.8 billion in federal student loans for 560,000 students who attended institutions connected to Corinthian Colleges.
5. Le Cordon Bleu
As highlighted by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Career Education Corporation's Le Cordon Bleu, another for-profit institution, faced a negative outcome from a five-year investigation. Prosecutors accused the corporation of pressuring employees to enroll students and engaging in fraudulent and deceptive practices—charges that CEC denied. The Le Cordon Bleu program shut down in 2016, and depending on the timing of their attendance, students may have been eligible for debt relief.
Students could potentially receive relief through six programs, provided they met specific conditions. However, the terms were intricate and, in some instances, quite confusing due to the number of criteria involved. For instance, the Borrower Defense to Repayment program permitted complete or partial loan forgiveness for graduates who could demonstrate that Le Cordon Bleu had misrepresented job placement rates, accreditation, or other critical details of their education.
4. DeVry University
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) determined that DeVry University's claims about their graduates being more likely to quickly find employment and earn higher salaries than those from other institutions were misleading. Consequently, the FTC sent payments to students harmed by these false claims. The first checks were mailed in July 2017, and ultimately, the total returned amounted to a staggering $49 million. Some recipients didn't cash their initial payments, prompting the FTC to issue an additional 5,942 checks.
The checks represented students' portion of the settlement between the FTC and DeVry University. However, receiving these payments did not prevent students from pursuing further relief through other federal or state avenues, should additional options be available.
3. Trump University
David Whitman found a striking resemblance between the controversy surrounding The Famous Writers School and the "trials of Trump University."
Donald Trump promised to reveal the secrets of his real estate success to those who enrolled in his Trump University. The enrollment process had two steps: Step 1 involved signing up for a $1,500 three-day seminar following a free three-hour introduction. Step 2 was agreeing to a $35,000 mentorship program during the three-day seminar. While over 80,000 attended the free seminar, only 6,698 opted to participate in the full seminar or the mentorship program.
At the three-day seminars, attendees were told they would join a "family" with access to a dedicated hotline for advice. They were promised connections to lenders who would fund them with "investment money" to buy and flip homes. It was suggested they could recover their investment in as little as two months, with one woman being told this directly. They were also encouraged to request credit line increases from their credit card companies to help finance their house purchases.
While most survey responses from students were positive, some expressed disappointment, expecting continued mentorship from Trump after the seminar ended or feeling that the seminar was too expensive. According to the New York Attorney General, Trump made $5 million from the venture.
An article from the New York Daily News reported that Trump eventually agreed to settle fraud cases in New York and California for $25 million. Of this, $21 million went to reimburse individuals involved in "two California class action suits," $3 million compensated people not covered by those suits, and $1 million served as a penalty for violating New York education law by operating an unlicensed university.
Trump agreed to the settlement but denied any wrongdoing, with a Trump Organization spokesperson stating that "Trump University would have prevailed at trial." However, as the president-elect at the time, he was "keenly interested in addressing the nation's issues and moving forward," and the settlement was seen as "part of that."
2. The Famous Writers School
Fraudulent and deceptive practices in for-profit educational institutions are not new. In her sharp 1970 exposé of The Famous Writers School, investigative journalist Jessica Mitford revealed that the school took tuition money from students but provided little, if any, real value in return for their investment.
Abigail Deutsch recalled for the Columbia Journalism Review how Mitford approached interviews—starting with simple, non-confrontational questions that gradually became more direct and forceful, leading her subjects to unintentionally incriminate themselves through their own words.
The Famous Writers School's correspondence course promised students "access to renowned authors," as Deutsch noted, but Mitford uncovered the reality when publisher Bennett Cerf admitted he was too busy to review the aptitude tests submitted by prospective students. Poet Phyllis McGinley admitted she was merely a figurehead who couldn't determine if any student was qualified, having never seen "any of the applications or the lessons."
In fact, to her dismay, Mitford discovered that, following the release of her exposé, the school was even more dubious than she had initially realized: Its instructors were sending students what could only be described as "carefully disguised form letters."
1. The Art Institutes
The Art Institutes, which had campuses scattered across the United States, shut down its final location in 2023 amidst fraud allegations. The U.S. Department of Education stated that the schools enticed students with "widespread falsehoods." U.S. President Joe Biden remarked that "this institution fabricated data, deliberately misled students, and coerced borrowers into taking on significant debt, only to leave them without promising career outcomes upon graduation."
The Department of Education took action by forgiving loans for 317,000 individuals who attended the school between January 1, 2004, and October 16, 2017, at a total cost nearing $160 billion, which included $28.7 billion in student loans that had already been canceled.
Part of this compensation was funded by the $95.5 million settlement reached between the Art Institutes and the Department of Justice in 2015. However, the origin of the remaining funds, which were used to cover these loans and other loans for students at various for-profit schools found guilty of harmful practices, has not been disclosed.
