I'm *SO* glad I washed my car today…
Yep, it looked really pretty when the clutch went out…
So, let’s rewind to yesterday when Erik and I were driving home from Kealanis (which has the best Hawaiian plate lunches in town, BTW). I was talking about how stoked I am that my car, a ’99 Ford Mustang, is paid off and we were also talking about the pro’s and con’s of down shifting (it’s a manual transmission thing).
Pro’s: saves your brakes.
Con’s: more wear on your clutch.
Well, I’m a down shifter and I was making a point about how I have never had to replace my clutch and I have over 100,000 miles on my car. Well, funny thing, because my clutch went out today. Less then 24 hours after talking about it. Too funny. Luckly I made it off the freeway and into a parking lot, so it wasn’t *too* much of a hassle. I did hit a light coming off the freeway, so I had to stop. Ever try to drive your car in 5th gear from a dead stop? Yeah, that was fun.
I know what you’re thinking…Why the hell was I out of the house in the 1st place?!(For those of you that don’t know me, I rarely ever leave my office, let alone drive my car.) Well, funny you should ask, because that’s a whole ‘nother story…So, I technically graduated from college almost a year ago and my stupid school (FIDM SUCKS!) still has not issued my diploma. So, after bugging them off and on for a year, I started to get pissed. You know what they told me…”Oooooh, the reason your diploma hasn’t been issued is because you have to complete a financial exit interview”. Great. Perhaps you should of told me that, oh I don’t know, LIKE A YEAR AGO?! So, I drive allllll the way downtown (45 minute drive, each way) and I fill out their stupid paperwork. Halfway through I notice that I am checking off “yes” boxes to questions like, “You know that you must repay your loan”, “You understand that if you default on a loan payment, you will be reported to the credit bureau”, etc…So, I say, “Um, you guys DO realize that my loan has been paid off for years, right?”. You know what they said, “Really? Wow, good for you, we don’t need to do the financial exit interview then!” Rad. I’m sooooo glad I drove all the way down there to be dicked around some more! The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandizing is a total joke, but I’ll have to blog about that some other time, because I’M HUNGRY!
p.s. At least I got to ride in my brothers new Hummer H2 SUT
Wow, I knew something was fishy about FIDM. Especially with the lame guest speakers and getting spam/junk mail from this school. I am JUST learning about scamming schools like DeVry, Art Institution and more. Thanks for posting your thoughts about this school because I wasn’t sure if it was a ripoff or not since I haven’t heard other complaints from other people.
I’m sorry what you had to go through, but hopefully things are a lot better now that you won’t need anything to do with FIDM.
Yep, FIDM is a total scam. When I told them that I didn’t want to attend the 2nd year because I wasn’t learning anything, the dean of students told me, “That is fine, but we will still bill you $15,000 for the 2nd year and if you refuse to pay we will ruin your credit. This is a business and we are here to make money. Sorry!”. Isn’t that nice to know that money is all FIDM cares about? Now, why would they give a shit about the well being of their students…
Wow!! I started at FIDM 1st yr, 1st quarter in October of 2006. For some reason my decision to go to this school seemed a bit uneasy for me. I had these gut feelings that I should drop out. So, I was absent a total of 3 times- bad thing at FIDM!! Realizing I was very behind and seriously hating the rediculous amount of workload for just one class I decided to drop out. Even though I have a loan, they are making me pay back 2,000.00.
Im so glad i got out now before that bill turned into 10 grand.
I would not reccomend FIDM- Go to a “normal” 2 or 4 yr college
and skip FIDM or any private college like this
I slept with Summer..she is crazy
I attended FIDM for almost 1 whole quarter. Thought the world of the school while I was there. Somehow, my financial advisor was unable to secure the last $3500 for the remaining tuition. Guess what they did. They asked me to pay it all off in 7 days or I would not be welcomed on campus any more. This was in the middle of class, no less!
The day I walked into their financial offices, I was told that if I defaulted, they would find me and ruin my credit. The fact that it was a business was no shock. The shock came to me by the 180 turnaround in how I was treated. They contacted my neighbors and told them I was in default on my student loan and could they please get through to me how important it was to pay the school back. I’ll never forget the day my neighbor rang my doorbell and said, “you really shouldn’t try to cheat the school and loan system.”
FIDM is one of the worst kind of crooks out there.
Im thinking about starting FIDM in the winter session. I’m already in my second year of community college and I dont know which direction to go. I’m sure I can handle the work load but the only issue with me is the degree and being able to get a job with a major in Merchendise Marketing. Any suggestions?
OMG. I am so glad I found this post. I know this post is a bit old, but I had problems with FIDM also. I had received a private scholarship and there was somehow money left over and was receiving it in checks each quarter I was there. I ended up hating FIDM and dropping out and they kept the rest of my scholarship AND they’re saying I owe them almost $5,000. They have also been telling me they will ruin my credit. Has anyone had experience with this? Do they actually ruin your credit or is it just a threat?
Wow…some of the stuff here is crazy!!!Truth is I am a recent graduate of the school and I NEVER, as hard as I worked to pay off my loans, had the school call my neighbors to fix a problem they had with my repayment. FIDM had always been a dream of mind even though I looked into other schools in LA and NY just to leave my options open and I always came back to FIDM. I did what ANY OTHER normal student would do which is look on their website, check out their graduates to see what my chances are after graduating career wise and then toured the school. I had to look at getting loans and outside scholarships to come to FIDM but I was willing do that to go to the school of MY DREAMS! If you feel you didnt get anything out of it then that is entirely YOU! You get from a college what you put in and for the 2 years I was there I worked VERY HARD AND NETWORKED AND started paying off my loans when I graduated. Financial aid wise, I had a great financial advisor that would help me figure out my repayment options considering that my family didnt have a lot to give me. The school offered me work study and job opportunities to start paying off some of the amount while in school. At the end of each quarter I could sign paperwork to continue or not! Never did I ever get the impression I would have to pay for quarters I may NOT TAKE. Never would a dean or any other person for that matter make you feel uncomfortable especially with the state of the economy the way it is! An education is an investment regardless if you go to FIDM or any other college. Harvard is a private college as well and a business and ANY COLLEGE is going to ask you to pay for the time you are there! I would recommend anyone to look into the school and ask advisors first about all these concerns and questions like I did when my parents felt they couldnt afford some of the amount. I decided to help them out by being proactive and building relationships with my instructors, advisors and my major department including the dean. THAT helped me get the most out of the school and eventually find a position at a high profile design company that I am in now. You should never default on loans if you have to in ANYTHING you do whether it is your car payment or credit card bills…you have to take responsibility and make things happen! Where there is a will there is a way and I applaud all students who stay strong and motivated in their coursework, have a part time job/ paid internship to pay off their loans while in school. IF you feel FIDM isnt right for you after your first year than its ok. Talk to your advisors first and make sure your first year is taken care of.