Every now and then, an internet ad will catch your eye. Facebook is notorious for selling the ad space. “Enter your email address, and receive instant access to my free webinar. I’ll show you how to make $100,000 in just six days.”
Well, a lot of you have been asking for an Online Trading Academy review. The ads look too good to be true. Attend a free half-day seminar in a city local to you, and receive all the education you’ll ever need to quit your desk job and become a day trader. But wait! If you act now, they’ll throw in a Wall Street Insider trading kit, at absolutely no cost to you!
Well, you know what they say about something that looks too good to be true. First, let’s take a look at some quick answers to your most common questions, then we’ll tackle the full review.
Is Online Trading Academy any good?
The jury’s still out on that one. We’ll go into a little more detail later, but the general consensus is that the courses will teach you just about everything you can learn through an online stock trading game.
Is Online Trading Academy tax deductible?
If, by some twist of fate, you’re actually able to quit your job and become a day trader, then yes, it might be. But because it doesn’t qualify as a degree program in the United States, no, it’s not usually tax deductible. Be sure to check with your tax accountant.
Is Online Trading Academy accredited?
Nope, it’s not accredited, either. “Credits” taken via the Online Trading Academy will not transfer to any university, nor will they count toward any certification.
So What is Online Trading Academy?
Online Trading Academy is a little different than the name implies. The “Academy” begins with a half day seminar, usually held at an airport hotel or a convention center. You and about 200 other would-be investors will sit in the conference room in fold out chairs, and await the first speaker. There will be one or two “instructors”, but they all teach the same lesson: We became successful investors, and you can too! The intent is to build a feeling of excitement in their audience, making them (you) feel as if you’re going to be groomed for success, as well.
Throughout the seminar, you’ll learn about stocks. About trading, supply and demand and risk management. You’ll hear an emotional story or two. And you’ll learn just enough information to make you want to hear more.
And you do hear more. You hear that today, and today only, you can get the next course in the series for a discounted cost of just $250. It’s called Market Timing, and it is, indeed, all about timing. If you wait until tomorrow, the course will cost the full $500.
Online Trading Academy Cost
That $250 is only the beginning of the cost of the Online Trading Academy. It’s one of many courses offered by the school, and don’t think they won’t try to sell them all to you.
The instructors are commission based, and after all is said and done, the Online Trading Academy cost can range from $12,000 to $60,000. Yes, friends, $60,000. That’s 20 grand more than a year’s tuition at Harvard University. If you can’t afford that, no problem. They’ll happily finance your education at 17% interest.
Online Trading Academy UK
Now, we’ve gotten quite a few questions from you about Online Trading Academy in the UK and other places around our globe. To answer those questions, yes. The Online Trading Academy offers “seminars” in London, as well as Jakarta, Singapore, Vancouver and Mumbai. Live in Dubai? There’s a seminar for you. Saudi Arabians can learn to trade, as well.
But the premise behind the global extensions of the Online Trading Academy remains the same as it does in the United States. Attend a seminar in the hopes of learning about investing, and receive a sales pitch selling more courses.
Online Trading Academy Review: The Good
You know, we try to look at programs like Online Trading Academy objectively. But the fact of the matter is that we may have a bit of success with trading now and then, but we’ve all been where you are now. You wish you could analyze the markets and know what Apple will do next. You wish you’d gotten in on the SNAP IPO. We do too. But we created this site to help you learn. We have very little patience for those who choose, instead, to take advantage of beginning investors.
If we were forced to report one positive aspect of Online Trading Academy, it’s this: if you choose to go to a seminar in your area, you’ll likely meet many like minded individuals who share a desire to learn about investing and the stock market. So, we suggest that you do attend, and make a few connections. Nothing bad could come of that.
Online Trading Academy Review: The Bad
As far as we are concerned, Online Trading Academy is a scam. We’ll look at reviews in a little bit, but we’ve heard from former employees of the company, and they’ve confirmed that the company exists to take advantage of and take money from would-be investors.
You may learn something, but as we stated, it’s not more than you’d be able to learn by taking a course at your community college or by experimenting with a free stock trading application.
Online Trading Academy Review: Our Opinion
Our advice to you is simple. If you’d like to learn more about investing, first read through the resources available to you on this site. If you feel it necessary, visit other sites and learn the basics. Play with a stock trading program or set up a trading game with friends. But we can see absolutely no reason that you should ever pay Online Trading Academy to teach you about investing.
For the cost of an Online Trading Academy “education,” you could graduate with a Bachelors in Finance from an accredited 4 year state university. Our opinion is that you should do that instead.
Online Trading Academy Reviews
We don’t always do this, but as we mentioned it before, we’d like to point out something about Online Trading Academy reviews from across the web. We would like to make it absolutely clear to you that students of Online Trading Academy are offered prizes while taking the courses. How do they earn those prizes? By offering 5 star reviews of Online Trading Academy.
We took some time to sort through the reviews posted on various websites, and as it turns out, most employees and individuals who were not receiving compensation rated the Online Trading Academy between one and two stars.
Online Trading Academy Complaints
For every five star review placed by a student, you’ll find a one star review placed by former employees, or those who have attended the courses. A search of “Online Trading Academy Reviews” will return results from investigative reporters, incidents with the Better Business Bureau and others who have nothing good to say about the company.
Our advice to you is to stay away from the Online Trading Academy. There are educational opportunities which exist for beginning investors which weren’t created to exploit the ignorance of beginning investors. Join a club. Take a course. Read this site. But we urge you to steer clear of Online Trading Academy.