Dear Ms [redacted] of the Revdex.com of Central Texas, I am writing to address a complaint (# [redacted] that was filed against International Studies Abroad (ISA) Mrs [redacted] notified ISA of her complaint to the Revdex.com regarding her daughter [redacted] 's program and we welcome the opportunity to explain our policies and how we reached our decision of no reimbursementWe understand that Mrs [redacted] did not see eye to eye on this with us, and this was the precipitant to her filing a complaintHowever, we are confident in our decisionWe state throughout our catalogs, website and orientations that prices, dates and course offerings are subject to changeWe reserve this right because we work with international universities that can change anything at a moment's notice, sometimes without any grace period for us to help our students make appropriate arrangementsIn this instance, we notified our students more than days in advance of their scheduled departure and [redacted] did not express having any concerns Originally, Mrs [redacted] asked us for a pro rata reimbursement for the shortened programWe explained to her that the price billed from the university and housing was unchanged because the program was priced for the actual program dates (by course credit and semester, not by number of weeks), so a pro rata reimbursement is not applicableTherefore, the services provided were not inferior in value to what had been promised It is important to note that ISA did not benefit financially from this change The complaint to the Revdex.com alleges that ISA did not notify [redacted] of the date change until April However, ISA successfully reached out to [redacted] on November 12, through both phone and e-mail to confirm that she understood this date change; a full days prior to departureHad [redacted] reported that she would need to change her flight when we notified her of the program date change in November 2013, we would have been more than happy to assist her in doing thatHowever, in her response, [redacted] told us that she had no issues with this date changeIt is important to note that there is no distinction made between a shortening of the educational portion of the program and housing lease termsProgram dates reflect the beginning and ending of housing lease terms, and encompass the educational portion of the programThis provides time for orientation prior to courses beginning, housing during the program, and a day or two to pack and leave ISA housing [redacted] confirmed her understanding of this After reviewing [redacted] 's file extensively, we did find record of a phone call and an email from the end of April and the beginning of May between her mother and the ISA Site Specialist, which was the the first time we had received word of an issue with the date changeWe responded citing our previous conversations with [redacted] , in which she confirmed that she would still remain in Paris until June 3rd, regardlessNeither Mrs [redacted] nor [redacted] contacted ISA again until July, seeking reimbursementIf the delay to notify us was due to [redacted] failing to inform her mother about this change when we contacted her in November 2013, ISA cannot be held responsibleThough Mrs [redacted] was the primary financial sponsor of her daughter's program, ISA follows FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974) and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) regulations; our students are legal adults, the program participants and therefore are the appropriate party to be informed of grades, changes, and any other issues that might arise throughout the application process and the program From our direct communications with Mrs [redacted] it appears as though [redacted] did not inform her mother of the program date change until well into her semester abroad, and we certainly understand why Mrs [redacted] might feel that this information came as a surprise to her in the middle of her daughter's experience in ParisIt is never our intention to cause undue stress or lack transparency, which is why we made it a priority to notify students immediately of the program date change We hope this clarifies the matter and welcome a response from both Mrs [redacted] and the Revdex.comShould you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us at ###-###-#### Kind regards, [redacted] University Relations and Marketing International Studies Abroad (ISA)
Please see attached document.Kind regards,*** ** *** Attn: Revdex.com of Central, Coastal, Southwest Texas and
the Permian BasinRe: ISA Response to Complaint #***; Complainant Jim ***Dear Ms***Please accept this email in response to the
complaint filed against our
company with the Revdex.com on March 10th, and the accompanying documentation
provided by Mr*** purporting to show advertising by ISARegrettably,
Mr***’s complaint contains many factual inaccuracies, bordering on libel
ISA respectfully requests that its response accompany any request or inquiry
made into the complaint. ISA does not falsely advertise the safety of its
Costa Rica programWhile it's not possible to guarantee a risk-free
environment anywhere, all efforts are made to best ensure the safety and
well-being of our students throughout the duration of their international
learning experienceMr*** claims that ISA employs “bait & switch”
techniques to generate a purchase of services, falsely advertising safety,
cultural immersion, and safety policies and procedures established by ISAMr
*** also claims that ISA summarily ignores the advice and warnings of various
governmental agencies relating to the safety and security of its San Jose,
Costa Rica program locationThis is patently and would be wholly unsupportive
of our organization’s greater success and mission. Travel advice provided by agencies such as the
U.SDepartment of State is meant to be informative for American citizens
traveling overseasISA references the Department of State as a resource in
several places on its website, and even requires students to sign up for the
Department of State’s Safe Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) for the duration
of their program abroadWhile not the sole determining factor, ISA places much
weight on information provided by the Department of State in relation to its
program site selectionsISA uses this advice not only in selecting program
locations, but also developing and presenting pre-departure and on-site
orientations for its program participantsThese orientations include advice
and information for ISA program participants regarding crime and other risks to
avoid in their host cities. Contrary to Mr***’s claims, ISA program
participants (and their parents) do not have to wait until they are on-site to
access information relating to safety or ISA’s practices relating thereto
Students are given access to a pre-departure orientation that includes
information on in-country health and safetyISA devotes a page on its website
to resources for parents as well, and this is accessible with its references to
the Department of State, well before final payment is dueISA also has
full-time staff available to answer any questions that a program participant or
their parents may have about a program locationMr***’s son did not review
his on-line orientation prior to going abroad, and neither he nor Mr*** ever
contacted ISA to discuss any concerns or ask any questions relating to their
selected program site. Once on-site, ISA provides students with a full
orientation, and ISA makes them aware of the resources available so that they
can enjoy their program location to its fullestCultural immersion and local
attractions are tantamount to a successful study abroad experience, and ISA
provides resources and safety tips so students may benefit safely from these
In San Jose, students are advised to utilize reliable transportation at night
It is true that ISA students have access to a shuttle which transports them
from their housing to their university; and it is important to note that the
on-site orientations presented by ISA staff which Mr***’s son attended, ISA
strongly encouraged all students to use the shuttleWhen the shuttle is not
running, they are encouraged to use taxisBoth the shuttle and taxis were
available to Mr***’s son on the date in question. It is never our desire that our student’s
experience crime or other negative incidents while abroad, however, ISA is
prepared to respond to anything that may occur. ISA provides support to its
program participants at all times and does not abandon program participants
when a crime has been reportedAny claims that Mr*** has made regarding ISA
abandoning his son or any program participant are untrue and unsubstantiated
To the contrary, ISA has 24/in-country emergency support to respond to any
student incident that occurs abroadThe ISA resident staff is supported by
24/assistance from ISA’s U.Soffices, including ISA’s Director of Health,
Safety and SecurityISA has protocol in place for responding to any student
emergency abroadIn the present case, these services were employed, including
assisting Mr***’s son with filing a police report for the alleged assault,
helping his son report the incident to the U.SConsulate Office, offering
in-county counseling, and providing the use of the ISA office to make
arrangements to return to the U.Swhen his son elected to do soMr***’s
son was in fact taken to the airport on his day of departure by his ISA host
familyISA maintained daily and consistent communication with Mr***’s son
from the date of the incident until the day of his departure, and any
suggestion of abandonment is plainly fabricated. ISA’s obligation to make students aware of the
potential consequences of departing an academic program early is also
misrepresented by Mr***The purpose of ISA’s Withdraw While on Program
form, which Mr*** inaccurately refers to as an indemnification document, is
not used as a means of threatening studentsRather, it asserts that the
decision to leave a program is the student's, and explains the potential
academic and financial repercussions that may be associated with a withdrawal
One such academic repercussion is that the program costs are forfeited, as is
consistent with ISA’s published Cancellation Policy on its websiteStudents
are asked to release ISA from liability for any consequences stemming from
their voluntary withdrawal, which is another reason for ISA disclosing the
sameAt no point, however, are students coerced into signing the document, and
in the present case, when Mr***’s son asked for time to review the document
with his parents, ISA agreed and continued to provide him with the support
noted above.Finally, ISA is responsive to customer
complaints and fully investigates any claims for refundsIn asserting that ISA
failed to respond to his concerns, Mr*** neglected to note several
communications between himself and ISA’s Director of Health, Safety and
Security throughout his son’s incident abroadAlso absent from his complaint
is the fact that his son is an adult, over the age of majority, and the initial
notification to his parents was in his son’s discretionWhen Mr*** became
aware of the incident, ISA’s Director of Health, Safety and Security spoke with
him four times over the phone to discuss safety measures in place and the
available in-country supportWhen Mr*** advised that he wished to withdraw
his son from the program, he was made aware of the Cancellation Policy and the
protocol for requesting a refundWhile ISA was not at fault for the incident
that occurred, at no point was blame placed on Mr***’s son. Recognizing Mr***’s dissatisfaction as a
paying customer, and to help ease the financial burden on his son and family
that resulted from their decision to voluntary withdrawal Mr***’s son from
the program, he was offered a partial refund of $4,600,
almost half of what he paidMoreover, to the extent that Mr*** wished to
discuss his remaining safety concerns about the program site and his
suggestions for improvement, he was invited to have a call with ISAMr***
never responded to the refund offer and the invitation to discuss his safety
concerns furtherRather, Mr*** subsequently filed the present complaint with
the Revdex.com. The health and safety of ISA program
participants is of the utmost concern to our organizationISA takes every
parent's concerns about the safety and welfare of their children very
seriously, we welcome and foster an open dialogue with parents, university
advisors, and students on safety mattersISA's mission is to provide high
quality education abroad opportunities to college students from around the
world, and we remain committed to upholding that mission for every
student. Sincerely,*** ** ***ISA
Executive Vice President of University Relations and Marketing
From: [redacted]mailto:[redacted]@**.com] Sent: Thursday, March 26, 2015 11:45 PM To: info Cc: [redacted] Subject: RE: Revdex.com - You have a New Message from Revdex.com Regarding Complaint #[redacted] Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for your message sent on 3/24/15, (copied below), which tells us we have 6 days from that date to respond to the business response to our Complaint #[redacted]. I am pleased and encouraged to report that Mr. [redacted] from ISA has returned my calls and we at long last had an encouraging beginning conversation which we agreed to continue later this week. Please make sure to NOT publish my complaint on you website pending Mr. [redacted] and I having an opportunity to speak further. We discussed continuing our conversation on Friday, 3/27/15. We should certainly have a status update to report to you prior to the 3/30/15 / 6-Day response period closure. Thanks for your assistance so far in creating a forum for discussion that we simply did not have previously. I will update you with our response prior to the 6-Day period expiry, and we are very encouraged. Best Regards, [redacted]
Dear Ms. [redacted] of the Revdex.com of Central Texas,
I am writing to address a complaint (#[redacted] that was filed against International Studies Abroad (ISA).
Mrs. [redacted] notified ISA of her complaint to the Revdex.com regarding her daughter [redacted]'s program and we welcome the...
opportunity to explain our policies and how we reached our decision of no reimbursement. We understand that Mrs. [redacted] did not see eye to eye on this with us, and this was the precipitant to her filing a complaint. However, we are confident in our decision. We state throughout our catalogs, website and orientations that prices, dates and course offerings are subject to change. We reserve this right
because we work with international universities that can change anything at a moment's notice, sometimes without any grace period for us to help our students
make appropriate arrangements. In this instance, we notified our students more than 89 days in advance of their scheduled departure and [redacted] did not express having any concerns. Originally, Mrs. [redacted] asked us for a pro rata reimbursement for the shortened program. We explained to her that the price billed from the university and housing was
unchanged because the program was priced for the actual program dates (by course credit and semester, not by number of weeks), so a pro rata reimbursement
is not applicable. Therefore, the services provided were not inferior in value to what had been promised. It is important to note that ISA did not benefit financially from this change.
The complaint to the Revdex.com alleges that ISA did not notify [redacted] of the date change until April 2014. However, ISA successfully reached out to [redacted] on November 12, 2013 through both phone and e-mail to confirm that she understood this date change; a full 89 days prior to departure. Had [redacted] reported that she would need to change her flight when we notified her of the program date change in November 2013, we would have been more than happy to assist her in doing that. However, in her response, [redacted] told us that she had no issues with this date change. It is important to note that there is no distinction made between a shortening of the educational portion of the program and housing lease terms. Program dates reflect the beginning and ending of housing lease terms, and encompass the educational portion of the program. This provides time for orientation prior to courses beginning, housing during the program, and a day or two to pack and leave ISA housing. [redacted] confirmed her understanding of this.
After reviewing [redacted]'s file extensively, we did find record of a phone call and an email from the end of April and the beginning of May between her mother and the ISA Site Specialist, which was the the first time we had received word of an issue with the date change. We responded citing our previous conversations with [redacted], in which she confirmed that she would still remain in Paris until June 3rd, regardless. Neither Mrs. [redacted] nor [redacted] contacted ISA again until July, seeking reimbursement. If the delay to
notify us was due to [redacted] failing to inform her mother about this change when we contacted her in November 2013, ISA cannot be held responsible. Though Mrs. [redacted] was the primary financial sponsor of her daughter's program, ISA follows FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974) and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) regulations; our students are legal adults, the program participants and therefore are the appropriate party to be informed of grades, changes, and any other issues that might arise throughout the application process and the program.
From our direct communications with Mrs. [redacted] it appears as though [redacted] did not inform her mother of the program date change until well into her semester abroad, and we certainly understand why Mrs. [redacted] might feel that this information came as a surprise to her in the middle of her daughter's experience in Paris. It is never our intention to cause undue stress or lack transparency, which is why we made it a priority to notify students immediately of the program date change.
We hope this clarifies the matter and welcome a response from both Mrs. [redacted] and the Revdex.com. Should you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us at ###-###-####.
Kind regards,
[redacted]
University Relations and Marketing
International Studies Abroad (ISA)
Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: although we have no issue with the dates and course offerings being changed, we paid for housing through May 31, 2014. We are not requesting any refund for the shortened semester. Moreover, we did communicate with our daughter about the shortened semester but at no time was she or we told that her apartment lease would be shortened as well and nowhere in the materials were we advised that that could change. We believe we paid for and therefore, [redacted] was entitled to a place to live through May 31st.
Regards,
[redacted] [redacted]
Dear Ms [redacted] of the Revdex.com of Central Texas, I am writing to address a complaint (# [redacted] that was filed against International Studies Abroad (ISA) Mrs [redacted] notified ISA of her complaint to the Revdex.com regarding her daughter [redacted] 's program and we welcome the opportunity to explain our policies and how we reached our decision of no reimbursementWe understand that Mrs [redacted] did not see eye to eye on this with us, and this was the precipitant to her filing a complaintHowever, we are confident in our decisionWe state throughout our catalogs, website and orientations that prices, dates and course offerings are subject to changeWe reserve this right because we work with international universities that can change anything at a moment's notice, sometimes without any grace period for us to help our students make appropriate arrangementsIn this instance, we notified our students more than days in advance of their scheduled departure and [redacted] did not express having any concerns Originally, Mrs [redacted] asked us for a pro rata reimbursement for the shortened programWe explained to her that the price billed from the university and housing was unchanged because the program was priced for the actual program dates (by course credit and semester, not by number of weeks), so a pro rata reimbursement is not applicableTherefore, the services provided were not inferior in value to what had been promised It is important to note that ISA did not benefit financially from this change The complaint to the Revdex.com alleges that ISA did not notify [redacted] of the date change until April However, ISA successfully reached out to [redacted] on November 12, through both phone and e-mail to confirm that she understood this date change; a full days prior to departureHad [redacted] reported that she would need to change her flight when we notified her of the program date change in November 2013, we would have been more than happy to assist her in doing thatHowever, in her response, [redacted] told us that she had no issues with this date changeIt is important to note that there is no distinction made between a shortening of the educational portion of the program and housing lease termsProgram dates reflect the beginning and ending of housing lease terms, and encompass the educational portion of the programThis provides time for orientation prior to courses beginning, housing during the program, and a day or two to pack and leave ISA housing [redacted] confirmed her understanding of this After reviewing [redacted] 's file extensively, we did find record of a phone call and an email from the end of April and the beginning of May between her mother and the ISA Site Specialist, which was the the first time we had received word of an issue with the date changeWe responded citing our previous conversations with [redacted] , in which she confirmed that she would still remain in Paris until June 3rd, regardlessNeither Mrs [redacted] nor [redacted] contacted ISA again until July, seeking reimbursementIf the delay to notify us was due to [redacted] failing to inform her mother about this change when we contacted her in November 2013, ISA cannot be held responsibleThough Mrs [redacted] was the primary financial sponsor of her daughter's program, ISA follows FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974) and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) regulations; our students are legal adults, the program participants and therefore are the appropriate party to be informed of grades, changes, and any other issues that might arise throughout the application process and the program From our direct communications with Mrs [redacted] it appears as though [redacted] did not inform her mother of the program date change until well into her semester abroad, and we certainly understand why Mrs [redacted] might feel that this information came as a surprise to her in the middle of her daughter's experience in ParisIt is never our intention to cause undue stress or lack transparency, which is why we made it a priority to notify students immediately of the program date change We hope this clarifies the matter and welcome a response from both Mrs [redacted] and the Revdex.comShould you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us at ###-###-#### Kind regards, [redacted] University Relations and Marketing International Studies Abroad (ISA)
Please see attached document.Kind regards,*** ** *** Attn: Revdex.com of Central, Coastal, Southwest Texas and
the Permian BasinRe: ISA Response to Complaint #***; Complainant Jim ***Dear Ms***Please accept this email in response to the
complaint filed against our
company with the Revdex.com on March 10th, and the accompanying documentation
provided by Mr*** purporting to show advertising by ISARegrettably,
Mr***’s complaint contains many factual inaccuracies, bordering on libel
ISA respectfully requests that its response accompany any request or inquiry
made into the complaint. ISA does not falsely advertise the safety of its
Costa Rica programWhile it's not possible to guarantee a risk-free
environment anywhere, all efforts are made to best ensure the safety and
well-being of our students throughout the duration of their international
learning experienceMr*** claims that ISA employs “bait & switch”
techniques to generate a purchase of services, falsely advertising safety,
cultural immersion, and safety policies and procedures established by ISAMr
*** also claims that ISA summarily ignores the advice and warnings of various
governmental agencies relating to the safety and security of its San Jose,
Costa Rica program locationThis is patently and would be wholly unsupportive
of our organization’s greater success and mission. Travel advice provided by agencies such as the
U.SDepartment of State is meant to be informative for American citizens
traveling overseasISA references the Department of State as a resource in
several places on its website, and even requires students to sign up for the
Department of State’s Safe Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) for the duration
of their program abroadWhile not the sole determining factor, ISA places much
weight on information provided by the Department of State in relation to its
program site selectionsISA uses this advice not only in selecting program
locations, but also developing and presenting pre-departure and on-site
orientations for its program participantsThese orientations include advice
and information for ISA program participants regarding crime and other risks to
avoid in their host cities. Contrary to Mr***’s claims, ISA program
participants (and their parents) do not have to wait until they are on-site to
access information relating to safety or ISA’s practices relating thereto
Students are given access to a pre-departure orientation that includes
information on in-country health and safetyISA devotes a page on its website
to resources for parents as well, and this is accessible with its references to
the Department of State, well before final payment is dueISA also has
full-time staff available to answer any questions that a program participant or
their parents may have about a program locationMr***’s son did not review
his on-line orientation prior to going abroad, and neither he nor Mr*** ever
contacted ISA to discuss any concerns or ask any questions relating to their
selected program site. Once on-site, ISA provides students with a full
orientation, and ISA makes them aware of the resources available so that they
can enjoy their program location to its fullestCultural immersion and local
attractions are tantamount to a successful study abroad experience, and ISA
provides resources and safety tips so students may benefit safely from these
In San Jose, students are advised to utilize reliable transportation at night
It is true that ISA students have access to a shuttle which transports them
from their housing to their university; and it is important to note that the
on-site orientations presented by ISA staff which Mr***’s son attended, ISA
strongly encouraged all students to use the shuttleWhen the shuttle is not
running, they are encouraged to use taxisBoth the shuttle and taxis were
available to Mr***’s son on the date in question. It is never our desire that our student’s
experience crime or other negative incidents while abroad, however, ISA is
prepared to respond to anything that may occur. ISA provides support to its
program participants at all times and does not abandon program participants
when a crime has been reportedAny claims that Mr*** has made regarding ISA
abandoning his son or any program participant are untrue and unsubstantiated
To the contrary, ISA has 24/in-country emergency support to respond to any
student incident that occurs abroadThe ISA resident staff is supported by
24/assistance from ISA’s U.Soffices, including ISA’s Director of Health,
Safety and SecurityISA has protocol in place for responding to any student
emergency abroadIn the present case, these services were employed, including
assisting Mr***’s son with filing a police report for the alleged assault,
helping his son report the incident to the U.SConsulate Office, offering
in-county counseling, and providing the use of the ISA office to make
arrangements to return to the U.Swhen his son elected to do soMr***’s
son was in fact taken to the airport on his day of departure by his ISA host
familyISA maintained daily and consistent communication with Mr***’s son
from the date of the incident until the day of his departure, and any
suggestion of abandonment is plainly fabricated. ISA’s obligation to make students aware of the
potential consequences of departing an academic program early is also
misrepresented by Mr***The purpose of ISA’s Withdraw While on Program
form, which Mr*** inaccurately refers to as an indemnification document, is
not used as a means of threatening studentsRather, it asserts that the
decision to leave a program is the student's, and explains the potential
academic and financial repercussions that may be associated with a withdrawal
One such academic repercussion is that the program costs are forfeited, as is
consistent with ISA’s published Cancellation Policy on its websiteStudents
are asked to release ISA from liability for any consequences stemming from
their voluntary withdrawal, which is another reason for ISA disclosing the
sameAt no point, however, are students coerced into signing the document, and
in the present case, when Mr***’s son asked for time to review the document
with his parents, ISA agreed and continued to provide him with the support
noted above.Finally, ISA is responsive to customer
complaints and fully investigates any claims for refundsIn asserting that ISA
failed to respond to his concerns, Mr*** neglected to note several
communications between himself and ISA’s Director of Health, Safety and
Security throughout his son’s incident abroadAlso absent from his complaint
is the fact that his son is an adult, over the age of majority, and the initial
notification to his parents was in his son’s discretionWhen Mr*** became
aware of the incident, ISA’s Director of Health, Safety and Security spoke with
him four times over the phone to discuss safety measures in place and the
available in-country supportWhen Mr*** advised that he wished to withdraw
his son from the program, he was made aware of the Cancellation Policy and the
protocol for requesting a refundWhile ISA was not at fault for the incident
that occurred, at no point was blame placed on Mr***’s son. Recognizing Mr***’s dissatisfaction as a
paying customer, and to help ease the financial burden on his son and family
that resulted from their decision to voluntary withdrawal Mr***’s son from
the program, he was offered a partial refund of $4,600,
almost half of what he paidMoreover, to the extent that Mr*** wished to
discuss his remaining safety concerns about the program site and his
suggestions for improvement, he was invited to have a call with ISAMr***
never responded to the refund offer and the invitation to discuss his safety
concerns furtherRather, Mr*** subsequently filed the present complaint with
the Revdex.com. The health and safety of ISA program
participants is of the utmost concern to our organizationISA takes every
parent's concerns about the safety and welfare of their children very
seriously, we welcome and foster an open dialogue with parents, university
advisors, and students on safety mattersISA's mission is to provide high
quality education abroad opportunities to college students from around the
world, and we remain committed to upholding that mission for every
student. Sincerely,*** ** ***ISA
Executive Vice President of University Relations and Marketing
From: [redacted]mailto:[redacted]@**.com] Sent: Thursday, March 26, 2015 11:45 PM To: info Cc: [redacted] Subject: RE: Revdex.com - You have a New Message from Revdex.com Regarding Complaint #[redacted] Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for your message sent on 3/24/15, (copied below), which tells us we have 6 days from that date to respond to the business response to our Complaint #[redacted]. I am pleased and encouraged to report that Mr. [redacted] from ISA has returned my calls and we at long last had an encouraging beginning conversation which we agreed to continue later this week. Please make sure to NOT publish my complaint on you website pending Mr. [redacted] and I having an opportunity to speak further. We discussed continuing our conversation on Friday, 3/27/15. We should certainly have a status update to report to you prior to the 3/30/15 / 6-Day response period closure. Thanks for your assistance so far in creating a forum for discussion that we simply did not have previously. I will update you with our response prior to the 6-Day period expiry, and we are very encouraged. Best Regards, [redacted]
Dear Ms. [redacted] of the Revdex.com of Central Texas,
I am writing to address a complaint (#[redacted] that was filed against International Studies Abroad (ISA).
Mrs. [redacted] notified ISA of her complaint to the Revdex.com regarding her daughter [redacted]'s program and we welcome the...
opportunity to explain our policies and how we reached our decision of no reimbursement. We understand that Mrs. [redacted] did not see eye to eye on this with us, and this was the precipitant to her filing a complaint. However, we are confident in our decision. We state throughout our catalogs, website and orientations that prices, dates and course offerings are subject to change. We reserve this right
because we work with international universities that can change anything at a moment's notice, sometimes without any grace period for us to help our students
make appropriate arrangements. In this instance, we notified our students more than 89 days in advance of their scheduled departure and [redacted] did not express having any concerns. Originally, Mrs. [redacted] asked us for a pro rata reimbursement for the shortened program. We explained to her that the price billed from the university and housing was
unchanged because the program was priced for the actual program dates (by course credit and semester, not by number of weeks), so a pro rata reimbursement
is not applicable. Therefore, the services provided were not inferior in value to what had been promised. It is important to note that ISA did not benefit financially from this change.
The complaint to the Revdex.com alleges that ISA did not notify [redacted] of the date change until April 2014. However, ISA successfully reached out to [redacted] on November 12, 2013 through both phone and e-mail to confirm that she understood this date change; a full 89 days prior to departure. Had [redacted] reported that she would need to change her flight when we notified her of the program date change in November 2013, we would have been more than happy to assist her in doing that. However, in her response, [redacted] told us that she had no issues with this date change. It is important to note that there is no distinction made between a shortening of the educational portion of the program and housing lease terms. Program dates reflect the beginning and ending of housing lease terms, and encompass the educational portion of the program. This provides time for orientation prior to courses beginning, housing during the program, and a day or two to pack and leave ISA housing. [redacted] confirmed her understanding of this.
After reviewing [redacted]'s file extensively, we did find record of a phone call and an email from the end of April and the beginning of May between her mother and the ISA Site Specialist, which was the the first time we had received word of an issue with the date change. We responded citing our previous conversations with [redacted], in which she confirmed that she would still remain in Paris until June 3rd, regardless. Neither Mrs. [redacted] nor [redacted] contacted ISA again until July, seeking reimbursement. If the delay to
notify us was due to [redacted] failing to inform her mother about this change when we contacted her in November 2013, ISA cannot be held responsible. Though Mrs. [redacted] was the primary financial sponsor of her daughter's program, ISA follows FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974) and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) regulations; our students are legal adults, the program participants and therefore are the appropriate party to be informed of grades, changes, and any other issues that might arise throughout the application process and the program.
From our direct communications with Mrs. [redacted] it appears as though [redacted] did not inform her mother of the program date change until well into her semester abroad, and we certainly understand why Mrs. [redacted] might feel that this information came as a surprise to her in the middle of her daughter's experience in Paris. It is never our intention to cause undue stress or lack transparency, which is why we made it a priority to notify students immediately of the program date change.
We hope this clarifies the matter and welcome a response from both Mrs. [redacted] and the Revdex.com. Should you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us at ###-###-####.
Kind regards,
[redacted]
University Relations and Marketing
International Studies Abroad (ISA)
Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: although we have no issue with the dates and course offerings being changed, we paid for housing through May 31, 2014. We are not requesting any refund for the shortened semester. Moreover, we did communicate with our daughter about the shortened semester but at no time was she or we told that her apartment lease would be shortened as well and nowhere in the materials were we advised that that could change. We believe we paid for and therefore, [redacted] was entitled to a place to live through May 31st.
Regards,
[redacted] [redacted]