10 Private (For Profit) Schools
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Table of Contents
Public Vs For-Profit Programs
In addition to a robust network of public (state supported) training programs are private (for profit) programs. These programs differ significantly from public training programs and students should fully understand those differences before making a commitment to either program.
Also note that some private schools operate as, not-for-profit, and operate more like a public school than a private, for-profit school. This lesson only covers private, for-profit, training programs.
Private (For Profit) Programs Costs
Note that the actual program cost for Private-For Profit schools are rarely shown on the website, or on any promotional material. These schools prefer to first obtain some personal information from website visitors with an online form so a member of their sales team can discuss the cost with you.
The table below provides important information for the more popular private (for-profit) automotive programs. This list is provided for reference only and should not be considered a recommendation from DLP Publishing LLC or Gearhead School.
The data provided in this table was pulled from the National Center for Education Statistics database in early 2023. Due to the complexity of the NCES database and the always changing rates, the contents of this table may not be fully accurate.
| School | Location | CH5 | ATC6 | SFR7 | Cost 18 | Cost 29 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LTI1 | Columbia, MD | 49 | 13 | 17:1 | $52,436 | $76,031 |
| LTI1 | Whitestone, NY | 60 | 13 | 15:1 | $51,535 | $84,893 |
| LTI1 | East Windsor, CT | 60 | 17 | 23:1 | $61,841 | $89,772 |
| LTI1 | Philadelphia, PA | 50 | 13 | 17:1 | $51,048 | $73,265 |
| LTI1 | Denver, CO | 60 | 14 | 35:1 | $57,556 | $84,506 |
| LTI1 | Indianapolis, IN | 55 | 14 | 32:1 | $56,502 | $74,856 |
| LTI1 | Nashville, TN | 60 | 14 | 23:1 | $58,791 | $80,281 |
| NTI2 | Mooresville, NC | 64 | 12 | 53:1 | $49,289 | $60,137 |
| UTI3 | Houston, TX | 100 | 19 | 42:1 | $63,703 | $80,653 |
| UTI3 | Exton, PA | 88 | 17 | 37:1 | $61,798 | $76,714 |
| UTI3 | Bloomfield, NJ | 61 | 13 | 41:1 | $49,541 | $61,067 |
| UTI3 | Lisle, IL | 68 | 13 | 44:1 | $50,291 | $61,817 |
| UTI3 | Avondale, AZ | 61 | 13 | 50:1 | $50,491 | $62,017 |
| UTI3 | Miramar, FL | 61 | 13 | NA | $50,141 | $61,667 |
| UTI3 | Dallas / Ft Worth TX | 61 | 13 | 50:1 | $50,541 | $62,067 |
| UTI3 | Austin, TX | 61 | 13 | NA | $49,491 | $61,017 |
| UTI3 | Sacramento, CA | 61 | 13 | 47:1 | $50,741 | $62,267 |
| UTI3 | Rancho Cucamonga, CA | 61 | 13 | 57:1 | $51,141 | $62,667 |
| UTI3 | Long Beach, CA | 61 | 13 | 37:1 | $51,141 | $62,667 |
| WT4 | Laramie, Wyoming | 60 | 9 | 18:1 | NA | NA |
| Average of All Programs | 63 | 14 | 36:1 | $53,580 | $70,894 |
National Center for Education Statistics NCES database in June 2023.
Table Legend
- LTI = Lincoln Technical Institute
- NTI = NASCAR Technical Institute
- Universal Technical Institute
- WT – WyoTech (Cost numbers not available on June 2023)
- CH = Credit Hours
- ATC = Average Time to Completion (Months)
- SFR – Student to Faculty Ratio
- Cost 1 = Total cost if living off campus “with family”
- Cost 2 = Total cost if living off campus “not with family”
Credit Transfer
Credits from private, for-profit, programs are not accepted by most public school systems. Therefore, a student could attend a private for-profit automotive program and at the end of the 10-12 months and $52,000 – $68,000 in tuition find out that none of it would count towards a higher degree such as an A.A.S in. Automotive Technology.
Lincoln Tech – Credit Transfer Statement
The listing of credit hours (in the Lincoln Tech catalog) is not meant to imply that credits can be transferred into college or other private career school programs. Transfer credits are at the sole discretion of the receiving school.
UTI Tech – Credit Transfer Statement
The following quote was copied from UTI’s 2023 – 2024 Course Catalog
Credits earned do not automatically transfer to another school unless that school is willing to accept them from a transferring student. UTI does not ensure the transferability of any credits to any other institution. In most cases, the credits earned at UTI will not transfer to another postsecondary institution. An institution’s accreditation does not guarantee credits earned at that institution would be accepted for transfer by any other institution. Students must contact the registrar of the receiving institution to determine what, if any, credits that institution will accept.
WyoTech – Credit Transfer Statement
WyoTech does not guarantee credit into or out of the school. Transferability is always at the discretion of the receiving school. The diploma and degree programs of the school are terminal in nature and are designed for the graduate’s employment upon graduation. Upon request, the School will provide students with transcripts and course outlines for credit evaluation. It is the student’s responsibility to confirm whether credits will be accepted by another institution of the student’s choice.
Financial Aid
Financial aid seems to be cooked into the business model at most private, for-profit, automotive schools. This is why you can’t easily find the cost ($50,000 – $60,000) to attend the schools on their websites. They want website visitors to fill out a form to see if they “qualify” for loans and/or scholarships first. A highly trained salesperson will then contact you about attending the school.
Note that virtually everyone gets a token “scholarship”
Most private, for profit, schools push their internal loans which are some of the highest rates, and some of the highest loan default rates, in the industry. Many government studies have documented this practice and have even labeled the practice at some private for-profit schools as “predatory lending”.
For example, from July 2011 to July 2014, Corinthian Colleges (the owner of WyoTech during this period) loaned students money from it’s in-house “Geneses Program”. At the same time (2011) the loan default rate for three of its campuses are listed below:
- 16.8% – Blairsville, PA
- 17.2% – Laramie, WY
- 36.6% – Long Beach, CA
Tool Discounts
All the major tool manufacturers, such as Snap-On, MAC Tools, GearWrench, and SP Tools have education programs that offer deep discounts to students in both private and public automotive programs.
Job Placement
Private schools typically provide job placement help through postings and information pushed to the students.
However, the instructors at public school systems are extremely connected to the automotive shops in their area. They can often make a recommendation and get a student hired.
Actually, the best way to secure employment is to enroll in a manufacturer’s cooperative (Co-Op) education program, such as the: GM ASEP, Ford ASSET, Toyota T-TEN, Honda PACT, Mopar CAP or, Subaru-U programs. With these programs, a student gets paid and earns about 50% of their course credits while working on the job. Plus, upon graduation over 90% of the students participating in a co-op program accept a full-time position with their sponsoring dealer.