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Decision Tools

Program Red Flag Checklist: 12 Things to Verify Before You Pay

Twelve things to verify before you hand a school your money — or sign anything that assumes you will.

Verify a program Before you enroll
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Best for

Anyone with a specific program in mind and an enrollment deadline in front of them.

Not best for

Anyone still deciding between broad routes. Compare routes first, then bring the finalist back here.

When to use it

After a program has your attention but before any deposit, application fee, or loan paperwork.

When not to use it

Don't use it as a scoring system. A program that fails one item may still be right; a program that passes all twelve can still be wrong for you.

How it fits the route system

This sits under the Real Cost and Risk filters of the route test. It doesn't tell you which route to take — it tells you whether a specific program on that route deserves your money.

Common mistake

Treating the admissions conversation as research. Admissions staff are paid to enroll you. Their answers are a starting point, not proof — every claim on this list should be verifiable somewhere other than their own marketing.

Do not pay for any program until you can check most of these. Not all twelve — but most, honestly, with evidence you found rather than evidence you were handed.

The full cost and the fine print

  • ☐ I know the full cost: tuition, fees, tools, exams, and the income I’ll lose while enrolled.
  • ☐ I know the refund and cancellation policy, in writing.
  • ☐ I know the weekly schedule.
  • ☐ I know whether I can work during the program.

The job on the other side

  • ☐ I can name the first realistic job title this leads to.
  • ☐ I found actual local job posts for that title.
  • ☐ I know what local employers require for it.

The proof, not their marketing

  • ☐ I asked about completion rates.
  • ☐ I asked about job placement rates.
  • ☐ I asked how those outcomes are verified.
  • ☐ I found proof outside the program’s own marketing.
  • ☐ I compared at least one alternative.

Your decision

If you can’t check most of these, you’re not ready to pay. That isn’t a verdict on the program — it’s a verdict on how much you currently know about it. Verify first.

Working through this list raises a second question: how do you actually ask, and how do you tell a real answer from a rehearsed one? That’s what the Guided Route System covers — including how to read a placement rate that’s technically true and still misleading.

Start Here