International Education Research Foundation Inc Reviews
Feb 28, 2015
I live with regret wishing I had looked up all the reviews for IERF before acquiring their services. After my negative experience with them, I can wholeheartedly sympathize and agree with the earlier reviewers.
INCOMPETENT (UNBELIEVABLY SO)
Right from the onset, their preferred means of communication is via an anonymous email address with the warning, "Please do not reply to this message." That in itself would not have been an issue if they at least personally signed off on their emails with their contact information. Whatever information contained therein is a generic telephone number which, if you have the misfortune of calling, will end up with you being on hold for at least 30 minutes. It's like their whole telephone system is rigged so that you'd have no choice but to hang up and correspond with their anonymous email address instead.
The evaluator had issues with the documents I submitted. One example was the claim that my transcript from a very reputable Spanish university is not acceptable because of the use of English words in course titles. For it to fit to their "country-specific requirements", an acceptable transcript from Spain has to be in the Spanish language and only the English translation can contain English words. Now, how about if you enclose a program syllabus in your application package that clearly outlines the Master's program being conducted entirely in the English language? Was I out of place to think that even if I went back to the registrar to ask for another transcript, their office could not have changed the course titles to suit IERF's country-specific requirement? All the evaluator needed was an extra five minutes to read through the course syllabus and perhaps another ten minutes to Google said university and program. But did she do that? Highly doubt it.
Going through previous reviews and Better Business Bureau (BBB) complaints, it becomes apparent that their evaluators rely on antiquated standards and methods for credential evaluation. While their website and management team rely on their claim to an excellent track record and an impressive team of evaluators, a glimpse of my assigned evaluator's Linkedin profile easily reveals the inadequacy of her prior work and education background to be competent in tackling the diversity and constantly-changing higher education standards worldwide.
FRAUDULENT
To top all that incompetency, non-communicativeness and non-transparency, you will receive the worst customer service yet when you decide to cancel your application and ask for a refund. In what I now see is a standard letter they send out to customers who want a cancellation, IERF will claim to have spent "much time and effort" to "review and research documents". And without any qualms whatsoever, they will refer to the Terms and Conditions of the application package where "no refunds are provided once an application is submitted." Does that stipulation hold up when they clearly did not deliver their reciprocal obligation arising from the contract?
The Terms and Conditions set out on their website appear to me to be very discriminatory against us, the consumer. Most items appear to have been constructed to minimize their liability and maximize their profit. As an entity claiming to be a non-profit, public-benefit agency, it makes me wonder who has jurisdiction over them to investigate their business practices. I see a legitimate number of really disgusted and affronted customers, and if truly there has been a systematic attempt to defraud customers, what are our available options?
One can always sue them through Small Claims Court in Culver City. Besides that, here are some avenues to file complaints against IERF.
1- Better Business Bureau (bbb.org/losangelessiliconvalley/).
2- California Department of Consumer Affairs (dca.ca.gov/webapps/cru/gencomplaint.php)
3- Federal Trade Commission (ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#crnt&panel1-1)
4- Office of the Attorney General CA (oag.ca.gov/contact/consumer-complaint-against-business-or-company)
The more letters (or online forms) they receive about the same company with similar complaints, the higher the likelihood of someone finally investigating them. Spread the word around!
International Education Research Foundation Inc Reviews
I live with regret wishing I had looked up all the reviews for IERF before acquiring their services. After my negative experience with them, I can wholeheartedly sympathize and agree with the earlier reviewers.
INCOMPETENT (UNBELIEVABLY SO)
Right from the onset, their preferred means of communication is via an anonymous email address with the warning, "Please do not reply to this message." That in itself would not have been an issue if they at least personally signed off on their emails with their contact information. Whatever information contained therein is a generic telephone number which, if you have the misfortune of calling, will end up with you being on hold for at least 30 minutes. It's like their whole telephone system is rigged so that you'd have no choice but to hang up and correspond with their anonymous email address instead.
The evaluator had issues with the documents I submitted. One example was the claim that my transcript from a very reputable Spanish university is not acceptable because of the use of English words in course titles. For it to fit to their "country-specific requirements", an acceptable transcript from Spain has to be in the Spanish language and only the English translation can contain English words. Now, how about if you enclose a program syllabus in your application package that clearly outlines the Master's program being conducted entirely in the English language? Was I out of place to think that even if I went back to the registrar to ask for another transcript, their office could not have changed the course titles to suit IERF's country-specific requirement? All the evaluator needed was an extra five minutes to read through the course syllabus and perhaps another ten minutes to Google said university and program. But did she do that? Highly doubt it.
Going through previous reviews and Better Business Bureau (BBB) complaints, it becomes apparent that their evaluators rely on antiquated standards and methods for credential evaluation. While their website and management team rely on their claim to an excellent track record and an impressive team of evaluators, a glimpse of my assigned evaluator's Linkedin profile easily reveals the inadequacy of her prior work and education background to be competent in tackling the diversity and constantly-changing higher education standards worldwide.
FRAUDULENT
To top all that incompetency, non-communicativeness and non-transparency, you will receive the worst customer service yet when you decide to cancel your application and ask for a refund. In what I now see is a standard letter they send out to customers who want a cancellation, IERF will claim to have spent "much time and effort" to "review and research documents". And without any qualms whatsoever, they will refer to the Terms and Conditions of the application package where "no refunds are provided once an application is submitted." Does that stipulation hold up when they clearly did not deliver their reciprocal obligation arising from the contract?
The Terms and Conditions set out on their website appear to me to be very discriminatory against us, the consumer. Most items appear to have been constructed to minimize their liability and maximize their profit. As an entity claiming to be a non-profit, public-benefit agency, it makes me wonder who has jurisdiction over them to investigate their business practices. I see a legitimate number of really disgusted and affronted customers, and if truly there has been a systematic attempt to defraud customers, what are our available options?
One can always sue them through Small Claims Court in Culver City. Besides that, here are some avenues to file complaints against IERF.
1- Better Business Bureau (bbb.org/losangelessiliconvalley/).
2- California Department of Consumer Affairs (dca.ca.gov/webapps/cru/gencomplaint.php)
3- Federal Trade Commission (ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#crnt&panel1-1)
4- Office of the Attorney General CA (oag.ca.gov/contact/consumer-complaint-against-business-or-company)
The more letters (or online forms) they receive about the same company with similar complaints, the higher the likelihood of someone finally investigating them. Spread the word around!