Is Pay After Placement a Scam?

Introduction

Can I be frank? It tickles my bone to write a blog if pay after placement courses are a scam or legit! It seems quite funny to me, especially after churning out 3 blogs last week on the benefits of pay after placement and how they are climbing up the ladder to set up the benchmark and revolutionize the ed-tech industry.

But here’s another fact about me that cannot go unnoticed - I have lost close to 3.7 lakh Rupees in online courses and did not learn a sand-grain of a thing!

So, I was equivalent to your position a few years back, with the only difference being you did not lose 3.7 lakh. Let me break the ice for you - Yes, some pay after placement courses do scam people!

But let’s focus on the bright side - Institutes like Masai School and Alma Better strive to provide access to quality education for all without the constraints of an upfront heavy fee.

In the end, it all boils down to one thing - Research. You should do your research and conclude for yourself which pay after placement courses are genuine and might benefit you.

However, there’s a recurring pattern in Institutes offering PAP courses that are out there in the market to scam you. This blog will put the limelight on fraudulent activities that might help you stay secure in the digital world.

Why are pay after placement courses the new norm?

Pay After Placement has taken centre stage in today’s date, where ‘outcome-oriented’ education revolves around the education landscape.

The job market in 2024 is becoming saturated, with companies seeking skilled employees and not fresh college graduates.

The Economic Survey 2023-24 presented in the Parliament on July 22 reveals only 51.25% of India’s graduates are employable, highlighting a significant skills gap for the remaining 48.75% who are deemed unemployable. (India Today)

To bridge this gap, students are walking down the path of obtaining non-core jobs, such as marketing, design, or data, which is completely different from their course of study.

To do so, students are enrolling in institutes that impart industrial training and equip students with real-world skills that are required to sustain themselves in the corporate sector. However, that’s another slam to students, owing to their hefty upfront fees.

Cherry on the top, there is no placement assistance, so you cannot measure an ROI on your investment! I am not even talking about the ‘bad’ education loans that students are already prey to!

According to the RBI FSR for June 2024, 3.6% of education loans were announced as NPA (Non-Performing Assets), which translates to around 3.5 lakh students failing to repay their debts.

That’s exactly where pay after placement courses comes in!

So what exactly is Pay After Placement?

Pay After Placement is a financial agreement between the learner and the institute offering PAP courses that entitle the student to pay zero upfront fees during the course's entire tenure.

The student is only bound to repay the course fees after they secure a job above a certain salary threshold. This ensures the student is safeguarded from unnecessary financial burden.

After successful completion of the pay after placement course, the student is also facilitated by the institutes’ placement assistance, rather than applying hopelessly on online job portals.

Pay After Placement is solely focused on ‘outcome-oriented’ education, and its major goal lies in equipping students like you with industry-demanded skills and grooming you to start working for any corporate from Day 1.

That in itself showcases the ROI that pay after placement courses provide you, which is revolutionizing the traditional education curriculum taught in colleges and universities.

What is the pay after placement revenue model?

As I sat down with piles of articles and online forums on the Internet, it turned out that pay after placement are no scams, except a few, which I will unveil later in this blog.

So, how are these institutes generating revenue? What if they fail to place a student? Are they providing these courses for free? Is this a media stunt? Is there a hidden catch?

All these questions should be crossing your mind! Let me break it for you - no, institutes offering PAP courses are completely genuine.

Here’s the catch - Institutes offering PAP courses have a wide array of hiring partners in their pipeline, and they exactly know what subjects and skills you need to crack a job.

How is it possible that a student enrolling in an 11-month online pay-after-placement course in Bangalore can crack a top IT job, but a student with a 4-year degree struggles? It all boils down to one thing - practical skills!

Institutes like Masai School only include relevant course materials in your curriculum that you need to secure a job! Cherry on the top, you also get worked on your soft skills, such as communication and interview preparation.

All these combined make you an ideal candidate that corporates seek. Once you get placed above 3.5 LPA (min. Salary threshold for Masai School), the revenue model comes into effect.

According to the ISA (Income Share Agreement) signed by you before joining any institute offering PAP, a portion of your monthly salary will be deducted every month till the entire course fee is recovered.

Please note that institutes offering pay after placement courses in India do not guarantee job placement but ensure a commitment to make the student job-ready with in-demand industry skills.

What if a student fails to secure a job?

Now, here are 2 ways to go around that - what if a student fails to grab an offer, and what if the student secures a job below the salary threshold?

In the first case where the student fails to grab an offer, they remain in the pipeline of the Institutes and get fair opportunity every time there is an open position with any of their hiring partners, provided it is relevant to the candidate’s role.

In the second case, students always have an upper hand in accepting or rejecting a job offer they receive. In a case where the student might accept an offer below 3.5LPA (from the perspective of Masai School), the ISA will not come into effect, and therefore, the course becomes free for them.

They don’t have to pay a single penny as they secured a job below the minimum salary threshold of Masai School.

Is pay after placement a scam?

As I said, not at all! But yes, here are a few ways that can save you hours of research in concluding if a pay after placement institute is trying to scam you of money.

If you find any of the following in an institute that claims to offer pay after placement courses, they are likely scams, so be cautious as you proceed.

100% Guaranteed Job Placement

The only realistic thing that Institutes offering PAP courses can do is to upskill you and equip you with the right set of industry-required practical skills needed to crack an IT job.

If someone is committing you to a 100% job guarantee, that is practically not possible, especially in today’s competitive job landscape.

Though the major revenue for these institutes depends on getting students placed above the salary threshold level, they are well aware of the current market surroundings and will never guarantee you a placement.

Unexpected salary expectations

It is common to start a career as a fresher with a 15-20 LPA package. However, it is exceptionally rare unless you are starting yours in the Big 4’s or MAANG companies.

Typically, the majority of hiring partners associated with pay after placement institutes are either startups or mid-size companies and might consist of a small proportion of large-size enterprises.

The hiring intent in 2024 is around 17.7% across various Organizations in India, down from 36.09% in 2023. Under these circumstances, most companies seek interns before rolling out full-time offers to ensure job role-skill and company-culture fit and avoid the costly mistake of a bad hire.

The typical salary threshold offered by genuine Institutes ranges from 3-6 LPA as a fresher. If someone promises you that they will get you a minimum package of 15 LPA as a fresher, you know it’s time to reconsider your decision.

Hidden enrollment fees

The overall motive of the pay after placement model is to charge course fees only after you secure a job, and it’s also the responsibility of the Institute to assist you in placements.

Typically, the flowchart of the model follows a test wherein you need to pass the exam, and your enrollment is confirmed. The ISA (Income Share Agreement) is rolled out to you for signing and your classes starts.

In case the Institute is asking for any form of ‘refundable’ fees, it’s probably trying to thicken its wallet.

Poor online reputation

What can be the best way to verify the legitimacy of a pay after placement course provider than hitting up a basic google search?

Check up past testimonials, google reviews, and above all, leverage public opinion on open platforms such as Quora and Reddit.

Unless an Institute has some shady background money-minting history, you will find clear and positive reviews about the Institute. Be very through during scrutinizing online reputation of such providers.

Let me give you a bonus tip! If you find only positive reviews about someone, it’s likely to be explicit reviews and have been manipulated. No matter how good pay after placement courses in Bangalore are, you will find one or two unsatisfactory reviews!

There lies authenticity and credibility! Last but not least, social media is your biggest tool for judging the authority of any pay after placement course in India.

Best Pay After Placement Courses in India

As you have got a canopy overview of how pay after placement functions, how they generate revenue, and the biggest of all - that these courses are not mere scams, let me introduce to you the 2 most sought-after pay after placement courses in India.

Full-stack Web Development Pay After Placement

The Economic Times reports that there is a significant need for web developers in India and that this demand will only grow in the future.

Demand is predicted to rise by 17% in some sectors in 2023 and by 22% in 2025. The industry requires developers with a broad spectrum of expertise, including knowledge of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning, software design, testing, and technical and analytical abilities. (Economic Times)

In today's digital world, web development is a highly sought-after career. A full-stack web development course may provide you with the end-to-end skills needed to create and manage websites and software applications.

Explore more course-related details on Full-Stack Web Development.

Data Science Pay After Placement

Data Science/Data Analytics is making a strong push to establish a firm foothold in India. Nonetheless, the Indian market is severely lacking in skilled workers.

Large-scale data analysis and interpretation are key components of data science, a fast-growing area that involves extracting training models for artificial intelligence (also known as AI Explainability or XAI) and using that information to make decisions.

India had 416,000 data science experts as of August 2022, compared to the required 629,000. There is currently a 51% shortage of qualified data professionals, and by 2026, it is expected that there will be a million more. (NASSCOM)

The skill gap is significantly higher for other roles, such as data scientist, AI/ML engineer, and data architect, ranging from 60% to 73%.

Among many other topics, you will learn the fundamentals of Python, databases, data structures and algorithms, analytics with Excel and PowerBI, predictive and descriptive analysis, data management and warehousing, and machine learning using artificial intelligence.

In addition, you will receive classes on clearing up doubts and practical capstone projects, as well as training on interview preparation.

Given the increasing popularity of data science, Masai's Full Stack Data Science course can provide students with the knowledge and abilities needed to lay a solid basis for a successful career in the industry.

Takeaway

I hope I was able to deliver you a canopy overview of the pay after placement course and why it’s not a scam until and unless you spot any of the above 4 pointers taking place.

The PAP model is relatively new and still in its infancy in the Indian subcontinent. The ‘outcome-driven’ approach is being highly embraced, with more recruiters expressing their interest in skill-based hiring.

69% of hiring managers express their shifting interest in skills over degrees, and 87% of companies are currently facing or expecting skill gaps, according to a McKinsey & Company report.

With such statistics in place, the pay after placement model is posed to climb a high ladder in the near future, and revolutionize the traditional education system which still relies in bookish knowledge.