James C, 27 Apr 2021
Edinburgh
The course i found a bit frustrating Myself and everyone else on the course are taking it so we can be mortgage advisers yet there is little content linked to mortgages. for example on day one we spent about an hour on what money was. The trainer Terry is clearly a highly intelligent individual and was able to go into great detail however i think its fair to say we all understand what money is and that time could have been better spent on other more complicated areas such as pensions and investments or regulation. I asked on day 4 when we eventually started discussing mortgages in slightly more detail what the point of the course was and i was informed it was to give us a broader base of the financial landscape to assist us when we are mortgage advisers. however i worked for a bank for 5 years and have been in a mortgage brokerage for 2 years and any time a client wishes to discuss pensions, investments etc we always tell them we can not discuss this and suggest they speak to an investment or pension adviser. This was the case at the bank too so why if none of us are currently wanting to be pension or investment specialist why must we study so much of this and have it make up a large part of the test when most of it will never be used in our roles as mortgage advisers. When i have spoken with other CEMAP qualified advisers with experience in the industry they have all said the same thing so its very frustrating to have taken 5 days off work and near £1500 in total for it. Terry's teaching ability is undoubted and he is one of the most intelligent people i have ever come across as well as very supportive if we needed any additional help however he had a tendency to go into great detail or tangents about a matter which for me sometimes made the info we needed to take in get lost in all the other info. aside from this id happily take a course on any subject from Terry as his passion is infectious. As for the location having it in Edinburgh city center is a bit of a nightmare for parking as the hotel never had any parking available. this means i was £14 per day even with the hotels discount in an nearby car park. i would like this sort of thing to be held in a Hotel in a less built up area with parking facilities.Response : Dear James Firstly, thank you for your kind words regarding your tutor and congratulations on passing the CeMAP 1 examination, I am disappointed that you felt the need to leave a 1-star review which judging by your comments seem based on the actual module’s syllabus and the city centre location of our Edinburgh venue. Please note the CeMAP 1 is titled “UK Financial Regulations” and the content is designed to give students a general overview of financial services its rules and regulations. The syllabus is not determined by Simply Academy as the training provider but the awarding body and the regulators. Our role is to support students through the qualification by presenting the syllabus in an easy-to-understand manner whilst highlighting any key points that carry the most marks in order to give students the very best chance of exam success. With regards to learning about “Mortgages” this product is covered in detail within the CeMAP 2 syllabus the content again determined by the awarding body and its regulators, rest assured this modules tuition will once more be presented by an experienced and approved trainer who undertakes over 150 days CeMAP tuition per year helping bring the syllabus to life with real world scenarios. Lastly may I apologise for the inconvenience of having to travel to the centre of Edinburgh to attend your chosen course. Simply Academy pride themselves in helping people from all backgrounds achieve their education and career aspirations and by locating venues near main transport hubs ensure our courses are easily accessible by all forms of transport and not only those that wish to drive.
Geoff C, 26 Oct 2020
Birmingham
We were suggested to read the course material before attending the course, I read section one in 3 1/2 hours. The tutor Paul Valpy took four days to go through section one it was appallingly slow. On the final day he started section two which is equivalent to half the exam questions by giving out a “ cheat sheet” of 30 correct answers saying we should learn the answers . I feel I’ve been conned by Simply Academy.Response : Dear Geoff I’m sorry you thought it necessary to complain. Mr Valpy's been presenting CeMAP training for well over twenty years, and he’s method of delivery and style predominately stands the test of time in terms of first time examination success. The purpose of spending so much time on Unit 1 is that it does need to be trained and not just read through. Unit 2 is a quite different scenario in that it is primarily a read and remember arrangement. While Unit 2 represents 50% of the required marks it is quite a bit smaller than Unit 1 and some material ports from Unit 1. Mr Valpy’s training style therefore encourages candidates to keep focused and involved whilst building on many of the topics discussed in Unit 1 to create a picture. Having used this process for many years it is a proven strategy. Once again I am sorry you felt the need to comment in such a way, should you need any further support do feel free to get in touch.
Clive R, 15 Apr 2019
Bristol
Course was poorly delivered. Trainers knowledge of the material was poor and the students corrected the trainer on a number of occasions. Slides were very poor quality,some not relevant, answers to questions were often wrong. Whole presentation looked thrown together. Great disappointment and poor value for money.Will not recommend this to my employer or my Union rep.Response : Dear Clive, thank you for taking the time to provide us with your feedback. Simply Academy tutors are carefully selected and amongst the most knowledgeable in the industry. All tutors are fully qualified and are backed by years of practical experience. Our Teacher Development Program ensures the highest standards are offered with every course. I understand that your courses were undertaken with different tutors and although I appreciate each tutor has a unique delivery style and to ensure continuity, we do deliver the CeMAP programme in a consistent format. Please be aware that your booking is backed by our Pass Assurance scheme, therefore should you require any further support post course please do feel free to get in touch with our Student Support team whom will be happy to assist further.
Lee D, 14 Dec 2018
London
I would like to put on record my dissatisfaction with this course. I thought the tutor had no real knowledge of the course content. I have taken the cemap courses with your company and was very happy. I would prefer a refund of my payment or at the very least to take the course again with another tutor.Response : Hi Lee. Thank you for providing your feedback and I’m sorry to hear you were not satisfied with your recent training course. At Simply Academy we pride ourselves on delivering the best possible training to our students, and our tutors are highly skilled and knowledgeable with many years industry experience. I would like to point out that you are still within the Terms & Conditions timeframe to reattend the course free of charge under the Pass Assurance Scheme. A member of the student support team will be in touch with you to discuss how we can assist you further with this.
max t, 07 Aug 2018
Manchester
We are in the midst of a very hot summer and there was no air conditioning in the training room that worked at all, many complaints to the reception and many promises of "maintenance" being informed, absolutely nothing happened, didn't even see the "maintenance" people, wonder if they actually have any?? The very uncomfortable room was a terrible learning environment.Response : Hi Max. Thank you for taking the time to provide us with valuable feedback and I’m sorry to hear that you were unsatisfied with the learning environment. Unfortunately, the air conditioning had a fault which was unable to be fixed straight away, and although you may not have seen the maintenance team who were trying to deal with the issue without causing any disruption to your training, I can confirm that every effort was made to rectify the fault. Please do feel free to get in touch with your course adviser should you need any further assistance.
John Y, 15 Dec 2015
Southampton
Compared to CeMAP 1 I think the course is very overpriced and poor value for money. I was very disappointed and feel that I have received very little back for such a big outlay. The pre course training material is almost identical to CeMAP 1 so spending £20 to have it printed off felt like a waste of money. I also think that the course could have been done in half the time so much was a repeat of 1st course. Just feel course 2 is a big let down after such an excellent 1st course.Response : Dear John, thank you for taking the time to provide feedback however I must dispute the comments made. Each CeMAP module is based on a different syllabus therefore it is impossible for our pre course guides to be identical, in turn the 100 page guide is available to read online therefore their was no need to incur any printing costs for this element. With regards to covering the course within 2 to 3 days again this would be impossible and would no doubt have a negative impact on the end result. Rest assured as market leaders within the financial training industry we endeavor to provide a 1st class service to all our clients therefore should you require any further support please feel free to call in.