Complaint Review: Varsity Tutors

I worked for Varsity Tutors as a sales representative.  My mission was to call people across the country and try to get them to spend thousands of dollars for tutoring services by following their self-proclaimed foolproof "steps for success."  So far, it seemed like a typical sales job--deceive and inveigle others into giving them your credit card number. 

It doesn't matter that the services are not commensurate with the ludicrously expensive prices nor should we have been concerned with exploiting people in need.  Well, certain events transpired that led to me getting let go for no legitimate reason; from then on, I sought out the truth about this unethical, unprofessional, and shady company.

When you're offered a position, you're told that you must go through a 6-week probation period.  Survive that, somehow, and you'll be awarded a contract and promised "stable employment" afterwards.  In the first week of probation, you have to endure 9-hour training sessions from Monday to Friday in which you're mostly lectured at and struggle to stay awake. 

The manager, Maria, organized all of them, and kept track of our participation.  That's right: don't speak up enough and you're toast.  To make matters worse, Maria talked at us like we were four year olds with half of our brains missing: you have listen to 10-minute lectures about why it's important to be polite to customers, among other nonsense. 

 Then, she asks you the most banal, basic questions possible, such as, "Why should we respect customers?"  Gee, I wonder why.  All you get is one 30-minute break and two 15-minute breaks that occur at random times, so be prepared to sit for hours on end before finally being able to stretch.

On the last day of training, Maria informed us that we would be expected to complete phone calls with clients in no more than 11:50--this exact number.  If our phone calls took longer, we would be scrutinized by supervisors and HR and eventually be laid off if we didn't get up to speed (even if we were closing the sale). 

This is hilarious because she also had who she described as a "senior representative" (he had been there for a less than a year, which IS a long time to last at a job where you can be fired at any time) introduce himself and then have us listen in to one of his calls. 

It lasted between 15-20 minutes and he didn't even come close to closing the sale--yet we're told that we shouldn't be on the phone more than 11:50.  Something wasn't adding up here; well, turns out someone "in the know" reached out to me after I got fired and told me the main reason they hire 30-40 people every week is so they can answer voicemails during probation and subsequently let them go after the 6th week.  Meanwhile, the lucky few who make it onboard and become a part of the "family" handle phone calls.  

Anyways, on the last day, you're given an assessment by a random manager, which is a mock call (manager is the client, you are the sales rep).  Fail that and you don't move on.  The timing of the assessment highlighted how disorganized and arbitrary this company truly is, as your assessment takes place AFTER you start taking calls. 

Why even bother assessing me when I've already been on the phone for an hour?  Imagine if, instead of taking your road test first, your examiner tells you, "OK, go drive on the highway for a few hours, then make a trip out of state, and then I'll give you the road test."  The assessment itself was a joke too; it was an entitled mother who had her hair wrapped up in a towel and goes, "Let's make this quick, I've got a few things to do." 

LOL, really enjoying the remote lifestyle, I see.  After the assessment is over, all she tells me is, "You're doing great, but just make sure you say the child's name more often.  Parents love it when you say their child's name all the time."  Um, yeah, right.  Real helpful and insightful feedback there.  

So I had passed my assessment and now, in week 2, got to take calls.  I was invited into a company group on Slack (an app that lets you exchange messages with others).  My group was called "Solution Squad" and was obnoxious from day 1.  I was informed immediately by the head of my group and supervisor, Ashley, that we were in competition with other groups and that she would do everything in her power to make sure we won (talk about ridiculous). 

Ashley introduces herself to me and goes, "Hello, Lionel, How Are You?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!" I'm not joking--she actually wrote it exactly like this.  Then she told me she was a teacher; in my head I go, "lol, no way a teacher could be that superficial."  It was also a major red flag to hear a former teacher tell me how much she enjoys working for an education provider because she likes to help people, yet all we're doing is trying to manipulate them into wasting thousands of dollars. 

She was a duplicitious, condescending, unabashed sociopath.  She made it overly apparent on day 1 that the ONLY thing that matters is closing the sale.  It doesn't matter how much you have to lie to do so.

The senior group members put a lot of pressure on the newcomers.  They constantly boasted about their sales--all in CAPS, too.  For example, I encountered messages like, "JUST CLOSED A SALE FOR 16 HOURS OF TUTORING YEAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!"  Other group members would respond with emojis and obnoxious GIFs such as a WWE wrestler dancing like an idiot or that guy from The Office saying something. 

What made it pathetic was that you realized they were celebrating not because they felt as if they had helped somebody better their lives, but rather because it kept management and HR off their backs for a couple of weeks as termination is always around the corner.  Needless to say, this put a lot of pressure on the greenhorns such as myself.

What makes you set up for failure is that, this job, for most part, is voicemail hell.  You leave voicemails at least 90% of the time, and d**n did it get tiring to constantly say, "Hi, this is Lionel from Varsity Tutors.  I'm calling about a request you made recently for educational support.  Give me a call back at (randomly generated number with the same area code as the client's).  Thanks a lot and have a great day." 

The other 5% of the time you get people who are confused if not afraid as to how you managed to get their number, and then the other 5% you actually get to have a conversation and discuss tutoring services.  If you're EXTREMELY LUCKY and get somebody who is either fabulously well-to-do or fabulously naive, you will get their credit card number. 

I was never that lucky, although I did come close once: a client said everything sounded good, gave me her name, address, email, and zip code.  However, when I asked for the credit card number, she said, "Imma have to call ya'll back: my credit card's in my car."  I said I could hold on and there was no rush, which caused her to instantly hang up.  I believe the few brain cells she had left finally activated and asked her what the hell she was doing.

This company is a scam.  Charging upwards of 3,000 dollars for 8 weeks of tutoring to people who are trying to better their lives is a darker joke than a comedy about cancer.  I was a teacher for 10 years (and will be going back to teaching) before I took this job, and am appalled as I am disgusted by having worked for an education provider that justifies charging such ludicrously expensive prices for tutoring services.  Know what's even funnier?

When employees are blamed and fired for not reaching such ridiculous quotas.  Yeah, real shocking that I can't get people to spend 1200 for 8 hours of introductory Spanish when Duolingo exists and is 100% free.  Also, what do you expect me to do when I'm stuck in voicemail hell at least 90% of the time?  I was actually told to "just work after hours."  LOL, no thanks.

I had a woman who wanted tutoring for the MCAT.  I kid you not--it came out to 4,368 dollars.  Meanwhile, the tutor (tutors are grossly underpaid when you learn how much these programs cost for the tutee) who would help her wouldn't get more than maybe 20 per hour.  Yeah, OK.  It was never about helping people.  It sucks because if the prices were fair it'd be a cool thing, but 98 an hour for GRE tutoring is a joke. 

One call in particular made me feel guilty about what I was doing; it was with a 65-year-old retiree who wanted to learn Italian because he had Italian heritage and it was something he always wanted to do.  Here's this person who worked hard his whole life and now wants to do something enjoyable, and I have to be the one to tell him it's going to cost 1,000 dollars for 9 hours of tutoring.  LOL, give me a f*cking break.

Anyways, back to my story.  At the end of week 2, Ashley Two-Face, my supervisor, gave me feedback on a recent call I had with someone who was looking for help with reading comprehenshion for her son.  All Ashley told me was this: "You're doing an awesome job, but we're gonna need you to close about 5% of sales starting next week.  But you're doing great: you're friendly, engaged, and sound like you know a lot about our company."  That's it.

In the middle of week 3, I had written "lol" in the "Solution Squad" group chat in response to something a client said during my call.  During the call itself I was, of course, polite and professional, and wrote "lol" out of frustration because the pressure was on.  I was getting a little annoyed over the clients' reasons as to why they didn't want or couldn't purchase our services. 

Ashley sent me a private message, telling me that what I had written was "incredibly inappropriate."  Initially I didn't even have any clue as to what she was alluding to because "lol" in itself is such a vague, innocuous thing to write.  So, I just ignored it and continued my shift.  Well, a couple of hours later, however, I received an invite to a meeting on Google Meets with Ashley and one of her minions from HR.  

I thought she was just going to provide feedback on another call, as was the case last Friday--oh, how wrong I was.  Ashley, with a beaming, cheerful smile on her face, tells me, "Lionel, it's been great working with you.  You've been doing a great job and I respect your educational background, but we've decided to terminate you effective immediately due to repeated inappropriate comments you've made in our group chat in spite of numerous warnings not to write such things." 

Then, HR chimed in with a smile just as exuberant and says, "Yes, so now we'd like to know if you have any questions."  Man, to blatantly lie like that--and do so with such infectious smiles!  What a pair of damaged, unabashed sociopaths these must be to behave in such a manner.  

We went at it for a while.  I demanded to know what I said that was inappropriate, and copy/pasted every single message I ever sent in the group chat because we were clearly reading them differently.  Most of the time I wrote something it was to ask for help, like how to transfer a client or how to process transactions for group classes.  Then, the HR goon had the nerve to lie again and claim that Ashley specificially told me I had been rude to clients on the phone--which was total bullshit (all she said was that I was doing an "awesome job"). 

I always maintained a high level of professionalism with clients--even when they were rude to me.  Never did I say anything offensive or inappropriate to anybody, and, boy, was I pissed.  As I said, I was a teacher for 10 years and thought I was working for a legitimate and reputable company that treated its employees like adults and with respect.  What a joke.

I took out my phone and started recording the meeting, much to their umbrage.  "Put that phone down!" barked the HR goon.  I laughed hysterically and went, "You just fired me--I can do whatever the hell I want."  Besides, I was protected by Idaho state law anyway, which allows employees (fired or not) to record whatever they wish.  I laughed some more, told them off, and left the meeting.  Shortly after, I received a cold message from HR demanding me to return the company Macbook as soon as possible.  "lol."  Uh oh, gonna get fired a second time!

Sure, the HR goon was equally culpable and insufferable, but I found Ashley especially repulsive because I knew she had three kids.  To have children and behave like an unabashed sociopath made what transpired even more sickening and heinous to me.  You would think a parent would strive to be a positive role model and set an example--especially in the education sector.  Pathetic.

I sent a mass email to everyone in my cohort, included all of the managers, and actually received an influx of support.  Other people shared their stories about how shady and unethical this company is.  One told me she got fired for telling HR the laptop that was sent to her wasn't working.  Another said she quit after three days because she couldn't bear to work for an organization that had no moral scruples whatsoever.  I gave out my number and had some interesting phone calls where we divulged our experiences and had a good laugh.  

It's safe to say that Varsity Tutors is the worst employer I ever worked for, if only because of the way they fired me.  I actually worked jobs that I hated more than this one, but at least I was treated with respect when I quit/got let go.  To be lied to like that--by an education provider, nonetheless--was shocking and appalling.  I have zero respect for everybody in that company as both human beings and professionals, and wish there was more I could do besides share my experiences on social media.  All I can do is move on to better jobs.

Even if I wasn't fired in the middle of week 3, there was less than a 1% chance that I would have been offered a contract anyway.  I was informed that Varsity Tutors fires most of its incoming sales reps after 6 weeks because they're cheaper labor who can serve as monkey drones to answer the thousands of voicemails that they receive every day.  And, should you somehow make it past the 6th week, employment is NEVER stable despite the lies that they told me on the phone and via email. 

HR told me this: "If we offer you a contract, we will assess your performance every month; however, should we feel your performance is not up to par, we will give you an evaluation 1-2 weeks later and determine an appropriate course of action."  Here we have a job market that's been in an unstable precarious state ever since Covid, and we have a company that promises stable employment after probation--when it's anything but. 

Moreover, in practically every job I ever worked, I was never at risk for being terminated after passing probation.  What's the point of extolling the benefits of a remote job if you still fire people at all and at any given time?  Imagine surviving probation, then renting an apartment somewhere only to get fired for accidentally shaving off a piece of your eyebrow and portraying yourself as unprofessional?  Yeah, I WAS thinking about renting in a bigger city, so it was definitely a blessing in disguise to get laid off earlier rather than later.  Now I can move on to better--and more stable--things.

One more thing: Maria, who trained us, magically disappeared as soon as it was over.  It was impossible to tag her on Slack, too.  How fishy is that?  Fishier than freshly caught Salmon, I'd say.

Avoid this company like the plague.  Managers and HR couldn't be trusted if their tongues were notarized, it's unethical and relies heavily on exploitation of both employees and clients, and you can be fired at any time.