Former Everest College students remain in limbo after school closure

An offer to purchase Everest College has fallen through and the school’s registration has been revoked, according to the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.

Former students from the private career college in Sudbury said they are in limbo as they are still waiting for information from the province they need in order to seek other options.

In February, all 14 locations of Everest College in Ontario closed after the province pulled its license to operate. The company declared bankruptcy the next day.

Jacqueline Cyr had only a few weeks of classroom time left and a practicum to become a medical office administrator, but her education ended when the college in Sudbury closed.

Now that the closure is permanent, Cyr said she has to decide what to do next.

Cyr said she’s been waiting for a package of forms from the province so she can either apply for a tuition refund or finish her course at another college, but added she and other students have having a hard time getting answers when they call a number provided by the ministry.

“Sometimes they get really rude with people. They’ve hung up on students,” she said.

“They actually told one student to mind his own business.”

Paperwork in the mail

The province said so far, almost 900 packages have been sent out to students.

In total, 2,400 students across the province were affected by the school closure, and the province said if a student has not received the forms yet, they should soon.

In a statement to the CBC, the ministry said staff have been assessing students’ needs and exploring what other institutions offer to determine the best options available to students so they can complete their training.

It added once options have been identified, and the information about refunds has been provided to students, theythen have 14 days to decide on a course of action.