A former University of Phoenix psychology student in California sued the college on Friday, alleging that it engaged in fraudulent business practices when it sold her a “pipe dream” of transferable credits and a guaranteed job after graduation.
Ashley Parades, a 22-year-old mother of three, is seeking class-action status for students who enrolled at the university, borrowed tens of thousands of dollars in federal loans and yet found themselves unemployed with allegedly worthless college credits.
Parades enrolled at the University of Phoenix after she was promised her associate degree would allow her to continue on to earn her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and work as a licensed counselor.
The lawsuit alleges the recruiters for University of Phoenix promised prospective students that the credits earned at the school would transfer to comparable programs at schools such as California State University.
In the complaint, Parades alleges the university's admissions specialists used aggressive, deceptive, misleading and fraudulent tactics in order to persuade students to enroll. Many students were unable to finish their studies, and many more who graduated still could not find jobs, the suit alleges. But regardless of which outcome, the students were still stuck with large amounts of debt.
Representing the plaintiff is attorney Michael T. Carr.
United States District Court for the Central District of California case number 5:14-cv-02554.