Woodpecker education is accused of being an intermediary for studying abroad, but it is not qualified.
Woodpecker Education, once rated as "the top ten study abroad agencies in China", has been engaged in study abroad agency for many years, but is accused of not having the "qualification certificate of self-funded study abroad agency" issued by the Ministry of Education. The reporter's investigation found that woodpeckers are currently engaged in the intermediary business of studying abroad in the name of study abroad consultation, because they are not qualified.
According to insiders, for consumers, this kind of "scratching the ball" behavior is risky, and the government should strengthen supervision.
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Study abroad consultation found false intermediary.
Lin Qing (pseudonym) graduated from university for 3 years and worked as an accountant in a foreign company. She has been dissatisfied with her current job and salary. In order to seek a better position, Lin Qing, who has little savings, decided to go abroad for further study and study finance, and preferred American universities.
After consulting experienced friends and colleagues, Lin Qing chose several study abroad agents for consultation.
In a company called Woodpecker Education, Lin Qing learned from the consultant that the service fee for entering the top 50 schools in the United States is about 70,000 yuan.
"How so expensive? Are they qualified? There are many black intermediaries studying abroad now, so don't be cheated. " A word from my best friend made Lin Qing discover a big secret: "A company as big as a woodpecker is not qualified as a study agent."
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According to the clue provided by Lin Qing, the reporter logged into the Education Foreign Supervision Information Network under the Ministry of Education and found that there was no woodpecker education or woodpecker study abroad in the list of qualified self-funded study abroad agencies.
Subsequently, the reporter visited the company's Beijing headquarters in Zhongguancun as an overseas study consultant.
A 100 square meter space is divided into small rooms, and the consultant's photos and basic information are posted on the wall. At noon 1 point, the company was a little deserted, but some students were consulting in some carriages. From the open door of the office, you can hear the telephone ringing. The staff led the reporter to a cubicle and told him that the consultant was busy answering the phone and needed to wait for a while, because it was the peak season for studying abroad.
Unqualified?
10 minutes later, the consultant appointed by the reporter rushed in.
She said that woodpeckers mainly do high-end applications from famous American schools and high-end training for SAT/TOEFL/AP exams, and 100% of customers finally entered the former 130 schools in the United States. However, it needs a down payment of 30,000 yuan, plus other factors, such as a graduate student in finance at new york University, which is about 60,000 yuan. If the customer's application is unsuccessful, the fee will be refunded in full according to the terms of the contract.
When the reporter asked them if they had the Qualification Certificate of Self-funded Study Abroad Agency issued by the Ministry of Education, the study abroad consultants seemed to be well prepared. They admitted that they did not have the qualification issued by the Ministry of Education. "I want to emphasize that we are not an intermediary, but a consulting company."
Is it beyond the business scope?
"You apply for studying abroad for students, but you are not qualified. Is it beyond the scope of operation? " The consultant didn't answer the reporter's question directly, but said, "The state definitely allows it. If it is impossible, we (the company) will not do so much. "
In her further explanation, she hinted that although they are all applicants, the qualified study abroad agencies are not as good as them. "Those intermediaries can represent some unknown schools, whether the school is recognized by the state or not, just to send you abroad."
When the reporter wanted to see the specific contents of the company's business license, the consultant said that the reporter would naturally see it when the contract was finally signed.
Study abroad agent plays the edge ball
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According to public information, Woodpecker International Education Consulting (Beijing) Co., Ltd. was formally established in 2006. At present, in addition to helping students apply for American universities, they also provide SAT/ TOEFL training.
It is reported that the intermediary service for studying abroad at one's own expense belongs to the franchise service industry. Institutions applying for intermediary service should apply to the local education authorities, and report to the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Public Security for qualification identification after approval.
Previously, when the reporter consulted the International Cooperation and Exchange Department of Beijing Municipal Education Commission, which was in charge of filing, the staff clearly replied that if you want to engage in intermediary study abroad services, you must have the Qualification Certificate of Self-funded Study Abroad Agency issued by the Ministry of Education.
When obtaining the qualification, the study agent needs to pay a reserve fund of not less than 500,000 yuan to protect the legitimate rights and interests of students when their economic interests are damaged, and make compensation according to the agreement.
An industry insider who did not want to be named said that it is very difficult to supervise those institutions that study abroad in the name of educational consultation.
Some intermediaries in Beijing are not registered with the Beijing Municipal Education Commission, some go directly to the Ministry of Education, and some simply register with the Industrial and Commercial Bureau. Although they know that there are loopholes, they can only turn a blind eye because they are not within their jurisdiction and have no law enforcement authority.
Service content is difficult to define.
Sang, president of Beijing Association for Studying Abroad, said that although the terms used in intermediary service for studying abroad, consulting service for studying abroad and consulting service for education are different, the service content is difficult to define.
The self-funded study abroad intermediary service belongs to the franchise industry, which shows that the self-funded study abroad intermediary service organization belongs to the specialized service organization. Franchising is a "special license" in law and needs administrative examination and approval. Therefore, foreign language training, education consulting and other institutions are not allowed to provide franchise services such as study abroad intermediary.
President Sang said that it is risky for consumers to choose these agencies that do intermediary business in the name of consulting.
First of all, the fees charged by these institutions are unreasonable. Compared with the regular army with market reference price, the charge is more than twice as high, even more than 100 thousand yuan. Take applying for an American university as an example. Qualified intermediaries charge around 30,000 yuan, while consulting agencies that play the edge ball ask for at least twice as much.
Secondly, once they fail to apply for an ideal university, it will be more difficult for these institutions to refund their fees.
Finally, these institutions often exaggerate when introducing and promoting, so that consumers can't clearly position themselves. Take the woodpecker interviewed by the reporter as an example. It publicly claims that more than 90% of its clients will eventually enter the top 50 universities in the United States, but it is actually very unlikely. Because the number of students enrolled in the top 50 universities in the United States is very limited every year, Harvard only recruits about 10 students from China every year, excluding students who have already attended high schools in the United States, and the proportion that can be admitted in China is very small.
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According to industry insiders, according to the latest list published by Education Foreign-related Supervision Information Network, at present, only 7 1 study abroad agencies in Beijing have passed the verification, but there are far more agencies actually engaged in intermediary services, "at least there must be more than 500."
The reporter learned that in addition to the agencies engaged in intermediary business in the name of consulting, there are four kinds of informal study abroad intermediaries: (1) conducting study abroad intermediary services through so-called "cooperation" or affiliation. (2) institutions that conduct language or exam training, do IELTS and TOEFL, and they will go abroad by the way. (3) The name of cooperative education is the most deceptive. Well-known universities in China cooperate with some foreign schools to send unplanned students abroad to avoid government supervision. (4) representative offices of foreign countries or universities in China.
According to industry insiders, some unqualified institutions often set "traps" when providing services. Deliberately using some vague concepts in the contract, taking studying in the United States as an example, it shows that students can apply for 8-9 universities, which is subject to the notice from foreign universities. However, there are many kinds of notices from foreign universities, and this weakness is rarely clarified in the agreements provided by intermediaries.
Related statement
Sang, president of the Beijing Association for Studying Abroad, said that the lack of government supervision is the main reason for the chaos in the industry. When consumers encounter disputes, government departments often shirk their responsibilities on the pretext that they are not within their jurisdiction, and the focus of supervision and law enforcement are not enough.
President Sang suggested that the market should be regulated by market means, industry standards should be formulated, and employees should be certified. Some overseas institutions themselves can't tell whether the study agent is formal. Introducing foreign resources through trade associations and distributing them to legal institutions can further reduce the number of illegal intermediaries and protect the rights and interests of consumers.