Fit College

Very disappointed with our experience at Fit College. My daughter enrolled in a face-to-face course and quickly realised the classroom experience was very different from what she expected coming from Year 12 studies. Classes felt disorganised and the teaching support did not meet our expectations. The teacher appeared inexperienced and the overall learning environment lacked structure.

After contacting head office to discuss our concerns, we were advised the options were to either continue the course online or lose over $6,000 already paid, as there were no refunds available. Because of this, she switched to the online option.

Unfortunately, the online experience wasn't much better. Support while studying remotely was minimal despite multiple requests for assistance. At one stage, even a teacher appeared unable to properly explain or clarify one of the online assessments, which was frustrating and concerning.

Communication with head office was also difficult. Attempts to call often failed and getting through for support became a challenge.

Overall, this was a very disappointing experience and not what we expected from a training provider. Based on our experience, I would encourage people to thoroughly explore other study options before committing.

During my time studying Certificate III and IV in Fitness through FitCollege at the Joondalup campus in Western Australia, I experienced a number of serious issues that ultimately led me — and many of my peers — to consider or pursue alternative education providers. While I initially enrolled with high hopes, the course experience was undermined by inconsistent assessment practices, poor communication, and a management structure that failed to support its students. Several students in our intake chose to withdraw entirely from the course, unable or unwilling to endure the environment that had been created by the actions of [Name Removed] (the lead assessor) and the ongoing inaction of FitCollege management.

Within the first few weeks, it became clear that [Name Removed] — who was responsible for marking assessments — was not aligned with the content or expectations being taught by our lecturers. On a near-daily basis, students were instructed to follow a specific structure for assignments, only to be told upon submission that our work was incorrect or incomplete. This constant contradiction created confusion, stress, and frustration among the group.

Despite repeatedly raising these issues with our lecturers — and being told they had passed our concerns on to the area manager — nothing was done. When [Name Removed] later conducted feedback sessions about the course, many students felt deeply uncomfortable voicing honest feedback, as the very person they had complaints about was also the one receiving and reviewing those complaints. This created an unsafe and anxiety-provoking environment for students.

I personally reached out to the area manager, [Name Removed], and outlined my concerns. Rather than taking them seriously, I was told that “it’s just a personality clash between you and [Name Removed],” and that nothing could be done. I later learned from previous students that they had raised the same complaints — and [Name Removed] had been removed from marking their work. This confirmed that:

The issue had been ongoing for at least a year,

Management was fully aware, and

I had been misled and dismissed.

Many students across both my intake and the previous one reported that [Name Removed] had clearly lost interest in his role, and his disengagement negatively impacted the course delivery. When students booked 1-on-1 time with him to clarify feedback, he never referred to any marking rubric or consistent criteria. Instead, his feedback was vague, contradictory, and unconstructive — often limited to statements like “this is wrong” or “you’re missing something,” without further explanation.

On top of these issues, FitCollege regularly invited guest speakers to promote their businesses to students. One such speaker, a former FitCollege employee who ran a personal training mentoring business, presented himself as someone we could trust for industry advice. When I told him I was considering leaving FitCollege due to the poor student experience, he referred me to a new education provider — disclosing that he would receive a $500 referral fee if I enrolled. I appreciated the honesty, but I was not made aware — nor was it explained — that FitCollege had a lock-in enrolment contract, and that I would not be able to withdraw after a short cooling-off period.

Given his experience working with FitCollege, it’s reasonable to expect that he knew this — yet he failed to properly advise me or provide any follow-up support once I realised I was locked into two overlapping enrolments. As a result, I’m now stuck paying thousands of dollars more to complete my Certificate IV through the new provider while still financially bound to FitCollege — all because I trusted the guidance of someone promoted to us as a mentor.

That said, I want to be clear in recognising that the lecturers themselves were exceptional. They were easily the highlight of the entire educational experience across both Certificate III and Certificate IV. Their professionalism, dedication, and deep knowledge of the fitness industry made a genuine difference. Without their support, I doubt many of us would have successfully completed the course. They are the only reason many students made it through.

Unfortunately, that dedication was not matched by the systems or support structures behind the scenes. I now find myself in a frustrating and costly position — all stemming from a lack of transparency, mismanagement, and failure to protect students from internal dysfunction and conflicting commercial interests. I hope this complaint highlights the need for greater accountability within FitCollege and stronger safeguards for students who trust providers with their time, money, and future.