r/scrubtech • u/stoyFC • Jul 04 '24
BEWARE of Med Cert programs, PLEASE READ FIRST
Lately we've seen quite a number of potential students inquiring about med cert programs for surgical technologists. It sounds nice right? 100% online, done in 18 weeks, and pretty cheap (claiming $4,000 to $6,000 total tuition). If you're looking into the career be aware of the dangers of these so-called "med cert programs"
-They claim to be accredited. MOST hospitals do not acknowledge their accreditation. Their websites claim to be certified by boards like the National Healthcareer Association, Pharmacy Tech Certification Board, and American Academy of Professional Coders, among others, NOT CAAHEP, ABHES, or of course the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA) OR the Association of Surgical Technologists (AST). THESE are the governing bodies (CAAHEP, ABHES, NBSTSA and AST) that I would say ALL reputable hospitals acknowledge, and therefore if your school is not accredited by one of these two boards, DO NOT ATTEND the program. Your job search will be extremely difficult.
-Clinicals I feel are a necessary part of the learning process, as others in this sub I have no doubt will agree. Med Cert programs offer NO real life clinical experiences, only "interactive modules" and "point and click adventures" if you call it that. Most hospitals require new techs and grads with some experience scrubbing in, and having proof of that. AST and NBSTSA accredited schools require stringent documentation on cases you scrubbed in, and that can be taken into an interview. In many cases for these med cert programs, you're responsible for finding your own clinical site experience and obtaining 125 documented surgeries you've scrubbed into, with no help from the school.
-You DO NOT receive Certified Surgical Technology (CST) certification through these "med cert" schools. In some states (Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia ALL require CST certification, and these Med Cert programs offer NO pathway to it. TSC can be obtained through med cert schools, but that is only after you've provided proof of obtaining 125 clinical cases, which as I've stated before you have to find on your own. A reputable school will provide those clinical experiences for you.
Our job is too important and too vital in the surgical suite to undergo a "fast track, online only" program. We're dealing with patients at their worst, in life and death scenarios, and working within a multidisciplinary team of doctors, nurses, other techs, medical service reps, and many others in a fast paced environment that offers little time for you to "catch up" or to "develop," especially if you're lacking in education. It is in your best interest to attend a fully accredited and reputable school in your area (or the area you chose to go to) with hands on experience, and with good connections and reputations at local hospitals.
My suggestion? Before even starting into a med cert program (if you're lacking in options to attend school), call local hospitals in your area and ASK if they acknowledge a med cert program. DO NOT ASK THE SCHOOL, they will ALWAYS tell you "yes." Many larger hospitals are in dire need of surgical techs, so with being proactive they may be able to work with you on getting more education to become accredited and fully certified potentially. In some cases, they've hired people in other positions and offered clinical experiences on their own time. This really is my only suggestion to you, my honest opinion is to STAY AWAY from these med cert programs.
Please comment below if you have other suggestions, or even stories of your personal experiences with these med cert programs, good or bad. The more informative we can be in one place, the better. Please keep the comments civil, I know this is a divisive topic but let's not muddy the waters with bad rhetoric and arguments.
For context, here are some actual quotes from those that have had bad experiences with med cert programs. These are all from within this subreddit, you can search for them yourself:
"I attended medcerts for a surgical technology program and before I joined I called to make sure the program was accredited. Turns out it’s not. I have a recording of the call being told and guarantee of the program being accredited. so very solid evidence. I found out it wasn’t accredited because I managed to score clinicals and was fired 4 days in because they found out my school was unaccredited. It felt like a double punch in the face to find out I had been lied to and losing my job..."
"I enrolled in this program in 2022 and I come completed in 2023 and I’m just gonna be really honest with you that legislation was already in place that MedCerts would not be able to offer surgical tech program in the state of Connecticut yet they didn’t tell me that I’m so when I went to get internships and externship, I was not able to Later on the legislation went down in October, so that bogus certificate that I got from that MedCerts don’t mean squats you will never get hired or get placed in an externship in the state of Connecticut because you went to school at MedCerts they were not honest with me."
"Unfortunately I did the program a year ago… & still haven’t gotten a job. I definitely think I wasted my money & time doing this program."
"Don’t do medcerts! Every student we get from them is horribly under certified to be in the OR. The CSTs have to teach them everything! Even scrubbing your hands and gowning and gloving. I totally get the appeal but if you want to know anything that’s going on at all, go in person."
"We hired a guy who did his program through medcerts. We’re a level I trauma hospital. He did his clinical at a dental office doing extractions. Only extractions. The experience didn’t line up with anything that he needed to be successful in the OR. He was put on an extended orientation to try and get him up to speed, but I haven’t heard anything since. That was only a couple weeks ago."
"We provide you with the Tech in Surgery (TS-C) from the National Center for Competency Testing (NCCT). That’s straight from a med certs advisor." (TSC certification isn't widely recognized compared to the CST certification).
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u/bythepowerofgreentea Jul 04 '24
Thank you, OP! Ours is a hands-on skill AND. an intellectual skill all in one. No program is complete without both.
Medcerts is like saying your kid can learn to swim from online school.
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u/nattinaughty Jul 04 '24
I was lucky enough to be part of a program in my hospital that is sending me to ST school for free. Not an apprenticeship but having me take classes at an accredited school that offers that program. I had to sign a contract to stay with the hospital for a few years after I graduate.
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u/prettyhispanicfeet Jul 04 '24
this is true, i got lucky and my hospital is willing to work me thru extended training but most places dont do that
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u/Repulsive_Tie_3389 Oct 26 '24
lies, with NCCT - TS-C SINCE 2005
AND BEEN A TRAVEL FOR TEN YEARS NOW.
I NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH MY CERTIFICATION ANY WEAR IN THE US
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u/gatorsfan2018 Mar 07 '25 edited Mar 07 '25
I personally did the med-cert surgical tech program and completed the online portion in three days. I was currently on leave from my full-time job from a surgical procedure I had done on Halloween of 23. I had all the time in the world to focus on this course work. I reached out to the admin guy who enrolled me and he said I set a record for the fastest person to complete the online portion. Someone from career services will be reaching out to me shortly. It took over three wks before anyone reached out and they were more focused on my resume than they were finding me a clinical site. The admin guy was more focused on me taking the NCCT exam and said, I have two yrs from the time I pass the NCCT exam to get my clinicals completed. I didn't feel comfortable taking it until I get hands on experience. Move forward two mths later and still no clinical site. I took the test as it was paid for with the tuition I had already paid and failed it. I applied to externships and apprenticeship just to be denied within hours if not mins of applying. I reached back out to my admin guy and he sent a msg to career services to reach out to me. After a few more mths, I finally said forget this, I'm done. I should be in a job by now and I'm not. I went back to my creditcard company and disputed the charge. To this day, Med-Cert sent me to collections and I still refuse to pay them for their non-accredited program that means nothing to me. Move forward a few mths and I went through a different online surgical tech program and it's just as shady. This one was through preppy and they offer an externship with theirs which is a joke. They hire a company to place us students at a site. They only look at private practices such as dental and plastic surgery. They can't get students on at hospitals due to the lack of liability insurance. Therefore, they are setting us up to fail as we can't get the hospital experience we need for a job. I was told with that program we would be placed at a site within two wks of completing the online portion. It took three mths before I was placed at a site that let me go on day two because they expected more out of me than a student was suppose to do. In conclusion, here it is now 15 mths later after starting the first surgical tech program and I'm still not a surgical tech or working in the OR.
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u/AggravatingDingo2045 Mar 08 '25
Sorry this happened to you! I have been trying to do some research and find what to look for as an accredited school would have on their site. And I have seen so many Preppy videos on YouTube & it has made me angry. The first one I watched was for a sterile processing course & I had the video playing at 1.5x speed. I lost track of how many times he said “don’t waste your time with a long 2 year expensive program…” because he only repeated the same things over and over to make a long ass video for watch time and have ads on it. And I literally said to myself what is the price of this course if we don’t want the laptop? Just course & externship placements? Both sterile tech and surgical tech had the same price course. Now it’s been a while since I went to school but when a degree is more difficult and more clinical work why would one be the same cost as the other that is less intense? I felt like they just slapped a price tag on anything and said hey shiny words. A small part of me was hopeful for it & that I am just always a skeptic. I hope you do find a way to make it work
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u/XenomorphQueen1009 Aug 17 '24
I recently began looking into the med certs surgical tech program to better supplement me while I wait for nursing school to begin. The advisor asked which state I was in and then specifically told me that I would have to find my own clinical hours before they would even enroll me. I am going on Monday to be interviewed for said clinical hours but as a surg tech. I have to complete my program within 18 months of hire. Is this a good idea? Can someone give me some possible feedback?
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u/nanmarii Nov 05 '24
I did the medical Assistant program through them here in Texas and was able to get a job in central Texas at a MedSpa that is paying me $19/hr. I know it doesn’t work for many but the program worked for me and I was able to land the job when we just moved to Austin.
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u/Powerpack1976 Oct 30 '25
I was lucky. Right before the call with them, I looked them up. Very bad reviews. I’m thankful I did. They lie.
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u/Distinct-Range-9004 Apr 27 '25
Do you have any insight on Indiana University Northwest online surgical tech program? They provide an externship when course is completed.
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u/Financial_Ant_7640 May 04 '25
I didn't necessarily see you say anything about this... I'm actually about to start with MEDCERTS, and the only way I could start, was finding a hospital that would take me, which i busted my ass and found. They (the hospital i found) also said they would help find clinicals if they weren't able to provide them. You did mention busting your ass, couldn't agree more. Its like they did it on purpose to see if you actually want it. Just my 2 cents.
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u/Oceana1984 May 18 '25
You have to be really careful with schools you attend for healthcare because lots are not even if they say they are. I can't tell u how many people I have heard stories from like this.
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u/Zealousideal-Bike294 Aug 05 '25
I am a current "student" enrolled in MedCerts. I am taking a course right now, where they refer to the ACA-Affordable Care Act as Accountable Care Act...that's right...that's what I said....Accountable Care Act. They really don't know what the ACA is. That is one of thousands of examples of misinformation I have encountered during this course. The course is Allied Healthcare Professional (v24.7). Let me tell you something else, it is outdated material. I mean you're looking at stuff from sub 2020...it's 2025 folks. It is the most confusing and backwards attempt at teaching I have ever encountered. If you read this review and enroll in it anyways...then you are the right fit for this course.
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u/BeginningSignal7791 Aug 11 '25
I’m currently searching for a medical coding/billing program that is recognized for not only inpatient hospital coding, but outpatient as well. My backstory is I have a VAST clinical knowledge base of 39 yrs as an RN, including insurance case management. I’m unsure what route to go, the program etc. Purdue University & Arizona College are $17K which seems pretty excessive. I’m no longer practicing nursing, and I bring a wealth of knowledge to said program(s).
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u/Jazape_ Aug 21 '25
Good morning I am unfortunately a student of Medcert and I have fallen for this scam. I’ve been in this program for about a year now and in the beginning of the year, they were like oh you gotta start looking for your 400 hours already and I started doing that I started looking I started applying. I started doing everything that I needed to do. I never got any hospital clinic call back so I complained to the school and when I complained to the school on my Advisor told me was keep on trying to keep on applying you’ll get something mind you I never been in an online school before or a program and I thought that maybe if I keep on applying, I will find something it’s been a year and I’m still applying and I’m still complaining I have the same Advisor for about six months, maybe a little more than that and as soon as I started complaining, they changed my advisor to a new person I spent $4000 out-of-pocket not no monthly and I feel like I got scammed I don’t know what to do. I don’t know where to look. I feel ashamed that I wasted this money when I could’ve used it for something else more important. And I’m here to just say that Medcert is definitely a scam and I went for the sterilize processing technician, and I know that it says on the website that we are responsible to look for our own clinical hours, but there was no guidance. There was no body to help me assist me. To find this 400 hours that I need I just want help guidance because I did spend a lot of money and I feel stupid for believing them and now I just don’t know what to do so please whoever decides to read this do not fall for them. They won’t help you whatsoever and I’m struggling and battling. To at least get a partial refund.
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u/Firm-Chicken3459 Sep 11 '25
Do NOT use this program. They are a scamming company that doesnt know state laws and will just take your money!
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u/[deleted] Jul 04 '24
As I have said in here, we have about 3-4 techs that have NCCT certs. Every one of them had over 20, 2 had over 30 years in surgery. They had to get certified as the hospital started requiring it, even for them. I think they basically filled out the paperwork, paid the $$ and were certified very quickly. Those are the only people I know that are employed with the NCCT cert, the other 25 or so of us are all CST. I lucked out and randomly picked the only CAAHEP school out of about 6 in our area 20+ years ago. Also this needs to be pinned on both ST subs here.