Complaint Review: NHE Certification

On careerbuilder.com NSE has an ad for a "Personal Trainer Exam Processor" paying $35.00 to $100.00 an hour.  I sent over the info and got an email back saying they are interested in me, BUT I need to pass one of their certifications at no cost to me.  The more tests I took the better. 

Here's where I am leary-it costs quite a penny for the study materials.  So I invest a vast amount in the study guides etc. and am not guaranteed employment.  Is this just a ploy to get the massses to buy the study materials?  If it is it is absolutely brilliant. 

Here is the email:

Dear Employment Candidate,

We recently received your online resume and I wish to thank you for your interest in our company. Before I discuss in detail, the Examination Processor position, I would like to first take a moment to express my excitement for the fitness certification industry and how its growth has fueled the expansion of our company. As you are surely aware, the current economic downturn has been absolutely dreadful for many industries. According to the latest major economic indicators however, the only two industries that have added jobs during the current economic recession are the healthcare and education industries. We are fortunate to be a part of both. Due to an aggressive Internet advertisement campaign, we have experienced a 300% growth of our personal trainer certification programs alone. The success of our sales and program development teams has enabled us to also expand into more traditional entities as well, particularly within the college community. Collegiate affiliation has proven to be a major step in the right direction for us, in terms of expanding the recognition of our certification programs, while receiving peer acclamation for both their educational value and relevance. We proudly serve 7 institutions and are currently working on academic programs for 5 other colleges.

During recent months we have seen a sharp upturn in student enrollments, as people seem to be pursuing alternative employment opportunities. Many others are simply trying to enhance or improve their qualifications, so that they may branch out into other areas of the fitness industry. Statistically, the possession of an additional credential helps increase ones earning potential. For us, the hiring of additional examination processors will enable us to handle this new growth and will dramatically improve exam processing times for all students. Last year, we had 52 exam processors handling a combined total of 800 exams per week. Currently, we have 70 processors trying to manage 4500 exams per week, including CPR and fitness nutrition. Needless to say, the strain has pushed our turnaround time to unacceptable levels.

With the expansion of additional exam processors, our primary goal is to improve the turnaround time by processing more exams within a shorter time period. Ultimately, the desired result is to process more exams, print more certificates, and get them in the hands of those who have earned them within 10 business days. Accomplishing this goal will establish a new industry standard for online certification programs.

The examination processor position, for which you have applied, is not limited to one specific location. It is a very flexible position, due to the unique fact that processors acquire, process and submit their work online. This means, processors can choose the hours they wish to work, the location (providing a computer with Internet access is available) and their actual workload amount. With an authorization ID code, processors can access their "workstations" directly from our website. In their workstation, they will find that particular week's workload (student exams). The size of the workload (number of exams), within a processor's workstation will reflect the agreed upon workload commitment (i.e. part-time or full-time). Workstations are uploaded every Sunday (excluding Holidays), by our exam department and processors may accept or reject any exam designated to them. Exam Processors are responsible for grading each exam they have chosen to accept, and submit their results to our exam department. As each processor submits graded exams, the system automatically tallies and verifies them. Processors are compensated a particular fee, dependent on the type of each exam. Paychecks are processed and mailed bi-weekly. Unlike similar positions, NHE Examination Processors are considered employees, not independent contractors.

As far as your interest in being employed with our company, you must first decide which certification program best suits your interest and expertise. If you possess expertise in more than one area, relative to our certification programs, I encourage you to consider pursuing an examination processor position for each. Naturally, your professional and educational backgrounds are important factors, but versatility is the one attribute that often separates one candidate from others who share similar qualifications. If you wish to be considered for more than one particular exam processor position, and believe you have the knowledge, you may register for as many different exams as you'd like. Every exam taken, for the purpose of employment, is free of charge. 

As stated, all applicants for this particular position must either possess a correlating NHE certification, or be registered to take a correlating NHE certification prior to employment consideration. If you are not currently NHE certified, you may register to take any NHE exam, free of charge. Carefully select the program(s) you wish to enroll in, because if you pass the certification exam, that particular program will be the one you are considered for. Keep in mind, passing the exam does not guarantee you a position with NHE. In the event you are not hired on during this first round of recruitment, I encourage you to stay in close contact with me. Our nationwide expansion program has commenced and will continue into the year 2012. Throughout this time, there will be a continuous addition of new jobs. Our expansion efforts will focus on the development of several dozen satellite certification offices across the country, that will employ hundreds of fitness instructors, proctors, program developers and regional managers, amongst many other rewarding career opportunities.

Also, rest assured that any NHE certificate you earn during the recruitment process will remain rightfully yours, at no cost. This remains true regardless of whether or not you are eventually hired by NHE. More importantly, you should also understand that simply registering to take the exam is not the extent of our requirement. A NHE examination processor position can only be offered to a NHE member, and all NHE certificate holders are considered NHE members. If during the process of your effort to acquire a NHE certification, you receive an interview and are hired as a result, you will not be authorized to start work until you receive a passing score on your exam.

Again, we are only interested in those of you who can pass our certification exam(s), because passing the exam will prove you share our fitness and health philosophies. This, needless to say, is a minimum requirement for those who will be grading our certification exams. For example, if you wish to be considered for a NHE Fitness Nutrition Examination Processor position, you must first pass the NHE Fitness Nutrition certification exam. If you are unable to pass a NHE certification exam, you will not be offered an exam processor position with NHE. As stated previously, job applicants are not required to pay for any NHE certification exam considered a job requirement, regardless of whether or not an eventual position is offered.

If you would like to register for a NHE certification exam, please visit the website and within the Instructor Members section (located on the home page), click on the "Exam Processor" link. The password is xxxxx.

Cathy Morikawa
Director of Academic Development
NHE Certification
1-800-519-0392 ext. 130


Anybody out there have any experience positive or negative with this company?