NASM
reviews and complaints

Back in January 2023, I purchased NASM’s ELITE package for my son. At this same time, my son requested special accommodations due to his learning disability. We were told to contact Compliance, the company that handles accommodation requests. After months of no response & numerous attempts to contact them, I reached out to NASM to inform them of the situation. They told us to resubmit the request & in addition extended my son’s exam deadline date to January 1, 2024 (giving my son an additional 6 months to get his accommodations in place & schedule his exam). Finally, after much time & aggravation, Compliance sent my son an email saying they had already approved his accommodations & had sent a letter soon after our first request. When I told them we received no such letter, they sent us a copy. Upon receipt, I saw that the address on the letter didn’t match our address, & putting 2 & 2 together, realized that the letter had been sent to another student at a different address with the same name as my son. Compliance acknowledged their mistake & resent an updated letter with the correct info. At this point, we were instructed to contact PSI, the company that handles the testing. When I couldn’t reach anyone there, I called NASM again. They, in turn, extended my son’s exam deadline date to January 14th & also walked me through scheduling an exam via the NASM website. This was all well & good, except I could see that the accommodations my son requested weren’t in place. So I was left to call PSI again. This time, I was able to reach a representative, but when she asked me to confirm my son’s information, she told me the info I gave her didn’t match the info she had in her system & that she couldn’t help me any further. Frustrated, I called PSI again. The second rep put me on hold & before she could get back to the phone, the call disconnected. I called a third time, & this time I got a message that said I was calling outside of their business hours & to call back during their normal business hours. The next day, I reached out to PSI again. The rep took my son’s info & like the other rep, put me on hold. After several minutes, he returned to the call saying he was very sorry but that he had to end the call. When I asked why, he said he was sorry & he hung up! I was so mad at this point that I called NASM & told them I want my money back. They told me they can’t do that because it’s outside of the 28 day refund period, but that they would contact PSI to see what they can do. I’m so aggravated over this run around & just want to get my money back so that I can take my business elsewhere. All my son wants is to get his certification & get on with his life, but NASM’s only solution is to keep postponing the exam date. At this point, I’ve lost all faith in this company & the way they conduct business. I feel all they care about is your money. Do yourself a favor. If you’re interested in a career as a personal trainer, find a more professional company. This one, in my opinion, is a total SCAM!

I signed up for the nutrition course and chose the payment plan as I am not working full time due to covid. I changed my mind 2 days later and tried calling and emailing them for a refund and could not get a hold of anyone. It states on their website you have 7 day trial and 28 days to get a refund minus the 10%. I thought the 7 days trial was excluded from this. It is not clear and they were not helpful at all. I feel like they just took my money and that was it. I am really disappointed that they wouldn't work with me since it is not normal times right now. I do not have money to waste like that.

I'd leave a 0 review if I could. I purchased the *** course last year and ended up procrastinating, which was my fault. I purchased an extension (they failed to inform me that they've upgraded to the 7th edition), studied all the material, and failed on the 1st attempt. Called to purchase a re-take and failed the exam AGIAN. It's discouraging knowing we're only allowed upto 3 attempts and have to wait an entire year to take it again. Some of the questions were not even in the study guide. I know the quizzes and practice exams are different than the actual exam itself, but making the exam 10x harder is exasperating and unfair.

no support since day one My email address was wrong and after 4 very long calls to try to fix it I Gave up since no one in the support team could figure the problem!After 6 months studying by my self I notice NASM double charged me for the months but somehow the can not see it even with statements and bank letter! And I am at the 8th long call!Its unbelievable How can you charge a credit card and do not find the money!?I waisted so much time and mental energy with NASM that I cant even open my studies in my computer anyway because all I a think is this school fault of ORGANIZATION.Also I was denied to talk to the manager DO NOT WAIST YOUR MONEY

While the certification process is self-led and interesting, this company tends to mislead you at every corner. I had to fight tooth and nail for my Master's Exercise Physiology degree to count towards my CECs (they don't adhere to their own policies). I've been locked out of courses and unable to complete them with no refund whatsoever. Support told me they would waive my late fee, but when I called back there was no record and no follow up and I was informed they actually can't do this. Support keeps abysmal records, are beyond unhelpful, and overall makes the NASM experience pure garbage.I will be recertifying with another organization. They aren't worth giving your money to.

Course material is great but the exam does not reflect the information. I am an educator and have my masters degree in Testing/Evaluation and this is a horrible test. It does not focus on the important factors of personal training. I aced the chapter tests and at least 50 domain practice tests. I have taken the test 3 times and have scored one point away from passing. Each time having to pay more money to take the test. I have appealed my last test score but no one will respond when I keep sending messages asking what the hand scored grade was. Very disappointed in NASM. Very discouraging to someone who has a passion to be a personal trainer but cant ever seem to pass the test just getting 1 more point to pass. Something seems very wrong with this.

NASM is a terrible company, TERRIBLE! I have an exam this month on June 18th and I am loosing 3 days of study and practice exams due to your site being down. I have been trying to get through to NASM Cares for 3 weeks. No one will answer the phone or return email. I want to talk to them as my course is about to expire. You called and harassed me when I was late with payments during being out of work from COVID 19. Called and called. I made my final payment and now your customer service disappears. Now I can't access my account to study for 3 days? What am I expected to do without access to the practice exams? I've paid a lot of money for your course. Terrible company! At this moment it looks like you stole $1,000 from me as far as I am concerned.

Man, youll speak to an employee at NASM when theyre selling you and they will sound like a blessing. But anytime after you call about an issue, it is the worst customer service imaginable. The one Program Advisor in Sales, ***, simply up hung the phone up because I guess he didnt feel like taking a call. Especially in the world were in today where everything is remote, online, and the only communication is mobile, for an employee to hang up on a client that has been waiting on hold to figure out what they wasted their money on, its outrageously unprofessional and unfortunately has to go unpunished because, what should I do, call back to get hung up on again? NASM employees do what they want and will up charge you for anything. Beware.

NASM is so money hungry. They do not help you when you are trying to re certify. I completed my CEUs and CPR before my CPT expired. I submitted this all on the website and was told that would be all I needed to do. I wasn't sure if I should do anything else so I called in and spoke with a staff member from NASM. The person I spoke to said it seems like I did everything correct and I should receive the updated certification on the portal soon. I never needed to look back so a year later I check to retrieve my certification, and it says it's expired. I didn't think I would have to double check their work but apparently I missed the whole renewal process and have to pay $149 to renew. This is unfortunate since I am a business owner with hundreds of trainers who have to get certified and I will not be sending them to NASM.

I was trying to get rectified for my group instructor cert and went on the website to pay the $99 fee for the recertification. I miscalculated how long ago my cert had lapsed and realized I made a mistake and needed to get a brand new certification. I called and talked to a customer service rep who told me that the $99 is a NON REFUNDABLE and a NON TRANSFERABLE "administrative fee". I'm not even sure what that means. I told the rep that I am going to sign up to get newly certified, which will cost another $300, and I wanted the $99 to go towards that. He said that is not possible. Of course it is possible, they are just choosing not to. I understand that I made a mistake, but this is truly bad customer service. I have been in the group fitness industry for 20 years and will be letting all my instructor friends know what happened.

The WORST! Very shady company! Avoid them! I signed up for the 10 month payment plan and they tried to charge me a month in. Then they suspended my account because it was the 12 month plan. I told them I signed up with Chris Billingsly when he offered the 10 month plan. The rep puts me on hold for a few minutes and then comes back on stating they talked to Chris and that I signed up for the 12 month plan. I make a payment on the 3rd of March. The rep says the next payment will be the 30th. My bank shows another charge on the 5th. I call NASM and they said it was the bank's error. The bank investigates it and it was the banks fault, BUT NASM suspended my account again on March 24th stating that the bank has not notified them of the outcome of the investigation. Does NASM notify me though? NO! Even with my account suspended, NASM still took out their payment from the same bank account.

Terrible terrible company . 100% a scam . I have spoken to over 20 people who have the same pattern and issue . I dont understand why Complaintsboard.com has not investigated their company . Read the book 4 times page to page . Taken the practice quizzes over 20x per quiz . Taken the practice A& B exam 6 times and passed each time . Failed once . Failed 6 months later . They give you material that covers the basic answers to the real test but the rest are scenarios and added information from other certification that I have not even taken yet . They barely answer the phone . Oh and when I took my test the first time it shut down on me 4 times I told them that I was not comfortable finishing my test because it had been over 5 hours and I was exhausted , frustated and unfocused and was forced to finish the test . Emailed and called them to ask for a retake no response . Wasted $1000 just to take another test from another Program a week after signing up and passing . Ive been to college bro and took health and a CPR class its no possible way . Complaintsboard.com please do what yall do best and get this solved !

NASM is an absolute mockery of a company. Customer service might as well be non existent unless you've made it clear that you will be paying for something. Even when I have come in contact with them they have repeatedly been rude, unhelpful or downright unknowledgeable. One instance for example, I attemped to purchase a retest after their mandatory 30 day waiting period. I called a day early to confirm this. The person I spoke with told me I was elligible to purchase the retest the next day, then when that day came up the next person I talked to told me this wasnt the case, hung up on me, then repeatedly sent me to voicemail when I tried to call back. The course material is not indicitave of the NASM exam at all and I purchased the "ELITE package". This gives you access to speak with coaches and ask for help at any time. These people might as well have been robots, they will send you directly back to the ridiculously monotonous, oversaturated text. If you genuinely want to become a personal trainer think of this as a last resort. Honestly I would recommmend jumping off a bridge before ever giving these people the time of day. TERRIBLE COMPANY!

Worst customer service Imaginable, and lazy writing. The CPT course is replete with errors and direct contradictions ie flashcards for self study have incorrect answers, written material presents contrary information to charts that follow immediately in the text, and objective information is presented in contradiction to the same information elsewhere in the course or text. Also they just shut down all courses for 3 days without any notice the last week before my scheduled exam. Customer service said reschedule because we won't help you. If you pay an extra $400 for the guided study thinking you'll get a personal mentor as they advertise. Think again. There is one mentor for everyone enrolled in the course and it takes weeks to get answers from anyone at nasm. So when youre reading the text saying huh? constantly because they use terms you've never heard of in defining new concepts, as if those terms were common knowledge, it will be your responsibility to look them up, like constantly. Don't waste your time with this nonsense. They are happy to take your money but they don't give a [censored] about you, and will not take responsibility for their myriad mistakes. They are just plain shady and not to be trusted.

I signed up for their service and I paid the first monthly payment. I only logged in the course one day, never used it since then. I lost my job and was unable to pay the next month payment, I received countless emails over and over daily about my payment from NASM, borderline harrassment. I called customer service to cancel my service today 10/5. I was told that I was out of my window for cancellation. I told them I'm confused because its not like I purchased a sofa or something that I have in my possession and now I owe you. If I only used your service one time why isn't there an early cancellation fee so I can end this service, like every other company offers that provides a service. On top of that, the representative didn't even offer me any other options for hardship. She just kept saying I couldn't cancel the service. I asked her to send me something in writing letting me know that I can't cancel the service, so that I could have a lawyer look over it for me. She told me since I mentioned the word "lawyer" she had to terminate the call, then she hung up on me. Wow, that was terrible customer service. So now I have to guess what my options are. If she would have offered me solutions to a problem, like customer service reps are supposed to do, I wouldn't even want to cancel the service, all I wanted when I made the call was really just a way extend my payment dates somehow since my income has changed due to the pandemic. SMH

To start the company took a decent amount of time for me to receive my course material. That being said I had a job change and few other things happen in my personal life that kept me from being able to start my program. I inquired about getting a refund because I simply haven't had time to work on the program. I get in touch with the chat service that took forever to connect to only to find out that I missed the return period by 5 days. As someone who has worked with a lot of customer service and person to person interaction there are times the return period can be extended and I stated in the chat what was mentioned above and they basically just said the return period is strict and didn't offer to help or offer any solutions. At this point, it appears I am out roughly $2000 for a certification that I can't work on due to unforeseen circumstances because I missed the return period by 5 days. I do not recommend going through this as they do not allow any flexibility in case something where to happen or come up where you're unable to complete it. So I'm truly stuck in a rock and a hard place because my work may slow down and I might be able to complete it but I honestly have 0 desire to do business with them. To top it all off in the chat process after saying in my original message I need to see about cancellation I get told to call the number anyways. I wasted over a half an hour of my time. I do not recommend them at all. Truly a poor showing of customer service and caring for the people who are interested in their program.

I purchased their CPT program #6 for $600 in June during the middle of the pandemic with my unemployment money, in hopes that the mentality " you have to spend money to make money" would propel me in my dire need of employment. I should have never spent that money nor had faith in this company! Worst decision ever! Due to ongoing unemployment for over a year, losing everything and having to move in order to even find work, I was unable to schedule to take the exam. Waited on the phone for an hour, spoke to three different people who only offered me the 7th edition program for $400 (at their discounted rate), As I continued to tell every person and even the manager that I was transferred to that I didn't have the money to buy a whole new program. All I wanted to do was take my test that I paid for. They all gave me the same answer... that it wasn't available and that I would have to purchase a new version that would be good for 5 years. So why wasn't the #6 version good for that amount of time? If this company can not offer me the test to take in order for me to obtain my certification, then they should refund me my money because they stole it from me! I will continue to speak up about this company and their thievery! NO help what so ever with refunds due to extenuated financial challenges due to COVID nor an alternate option for taking the test! So extremely disappointed in this company, larger corporations offered more help and leniency then this company did. By far the worst company I have ever had faith in due to it's large presence in the fitness industry.

This is hands down the worst experience I've ever had with any school or certification program! I purchased the Elite package right before COVID hit, which includes multiple certifications and a gym internship, plus in person classes. The CPT program (personal training) was a complete nightmare- support was basically nonexistent, and as a current student I couldn't get ahold of anyone half the time via phone, and had to wait 3-5 days for email responses on simple questions! My exam date got pushed due to a scheduling error, they couldn't place me in the internship as promised in 45 days (took over 3 months to find a single option that's too far from my home), and all of the in person trainings/workshops were cancelled. I requested a partial refund on the package I purchased - I told them I was happy to pay for the CPT program, but did not want to pursue the additional certifications, plus NASM was unable to deliver on several parts of the program that were supposed to be included. I also let them know I lost a significant amount of business due to COVID, had to apply for a PPP loan and didn't qualify for unemployment at the job I lost due to also being an independent contractor. I sent written proof of all the issues I had encountered, plus proof of financial hardship. I've been back and forth with them for weeks now, constantly given conflicting information, and am simply passed off to the next person with no resolution. Even if it wasn't a financial drain, the experience with the initial certification was so negative that I have no interest in pursuing other programs with them. I wish I had read all of the negative reviews before wasting hundreds of dollars on this awful company.

Ok I will try and be polite, so I signed up for the nutrition coaching program I don't even think I had really logged in to start studying and the telemarketing calls start not just emails but phone calls trying to sell me more services. Not calls asking a new *** if they are happy with the program, not Mr *** we are calling to make sure you as a new member have any question or need help since you just signed up NOPE straight to aggressively telemarketing me to SELL ME MORE. STRAIGHT *** USED CAR SALES TACTICS. I had to blow up at some poor girl before they stopped, I was so disappointed I stopped logging in and chose to not get certified through them I just kept letting them *** me because unlike Nasm I choose to conduct myself with integrity. It was finally time for my last payment to go through and they started calling and emailing saying my payment didn't go through, each time I checked my bank and there was plenty of money to cover the charge. After 3 days of them calling me I called them upset, I have not change my checking account or debit card it is the same as last month when they charged my account just fine. About 30 minutes on the phone not once did they offer to make things right with me just you signed a contract. Yep I did I paid my last month over the phone out of the account they claim they could charge. So cool I have paid in full for certification that I choose not to get because I will not be associated with a company that conducts themselves like a *** telemarketing company. Nasm your follow up calls to some that just signed up should support and and *** satisfaction calls then maybe you will have earned the right to ask a *** to by more. Shame.

I've been certified with NASM since I started training in 2012. They offered a Certify For Life option that I jumped on in 2014, which basically pays for itself over 3 certification cycles. Well, it is 2020 and they are no longer honoring the 0.3 free CEU per cycle, going back on the product I purchased only a few years ago. I have had to petition all of my CEUs for a fee each cycle (essentially equal to recertification fee for ACSM which is waived with Certify for Life). On this latest cycle, I petitioned my licensed dietitian and all affiliated CPE for that credential. They took my money and did not give me any response. I have spent multiple days on 50 min + wait times for customer service and have not got through yet. One time I did get through, and I was promised 2 business days turn around on my petitioned CEU. I haven't heard back and that was a month ago. It is 2 months out and still no response, just money taken. I would think a license renewal and associated CPE should count for a personal training level CEU as it all has to do with nutrition research and ethical practice. The email they gave me to inquire about it also bounced. Maybe it isn't set up to take attachments? The name NASM is not recognized in medical circles to the same extent ACSM and NSCA and even ACE are. The only reason I got NASM years ago was because I thought I might work at a place like Lifetime Fitness, which required the certification. 8 years later, NASM is less recognized. Some of the training procedures taught also don't make a ton of sense. I like the balance to hypertrophy to strength/ power progression. The exercises and training protocols seem odd in the stability-strength. No client wants to do bicep curls while standing on one foot, for example. What exactly are we training here? Balance, or bicep curls?

I passed my NASM CPT on my first try :). I took the test in person on 8/29/23. I already had a job offer lined up too so this was exciting times. However, as I’m on boarding for this job on 9/12/23 my new boss explained that she needs my actual certificate not the test results from PSI testing center (I received both a physical copy and an emailed one). So I check the portal on NASM on certificates and only see “CPR/AED certificate”. I have been calling non stop and sent multiple emails to NASM and psi to resolve this and have yet to reach a single person. This is so unprofessional and weird ? I understand everyone’s busy but this shouldn’t have happened in the first place.

I am filing this complaint because I purchased the *** Guided Study course with National Academy of Sports Medicine and I did not receive an order confirmation code or reference number, but I was getting charged monthly. I purchased this course it stated I was supposed to have guidance from a mentor which I did not receive; I was never in communication with a mentor and when I reached out for guidance to complete the course for my certification on 04/15, 05/05, 07/31, 09/28, 11/13, lastly on 01/04 when I was going to take exam 7 and I was unable to take it because no one was able to speak to me to explain anything and because of a message that popped up saying You are receiving this message because either your course has expired or you do not have access to the course you are trying to view. Although, my expiration date was not until the 27th of January . I attempted many times to get in contact with someone from NASM to complete my personal trainer certification course, but I did not benefit from this at all because I was charged a total of $1,202.91 and I did not receive my certification. I would like my refund that was promised to me.

Due to the national emergency, I was not able to complete two courses of my self-study program at Nasm. I put my account on hold in March being encouraged by them to do so if I was affected by the pandemic. My account then was put on hold for a couple of months as a verbal agreement since they said they were not prepared for a pandemic so it was going to be verbal (but we did email a couple of times on it) Since then they have never allowed me online access plus they also have a credit company calling me multiple times a day trying to collect a debt. When I wanted to activate again they didn't allow me back if I didn't pay the total balance which I was told that was not going to happen therefore I wasn't able to continue, I never received the goods I paid for, plus NASM keeps giving me the run around in addition to having over 60 minutes hold or wait time to speak to a representative. Markayla from NASM on 08/27 confirmed one course is $775 and the second is $500 which is what I remember the fees were, but now they're saying its more, according to my credit card I've already paid them almost $1,500 and they are wanting to collect almost $400 more from me, so I am confused on their charges and billing as well, but if they cancel and refund everything there's no need to dispute those amounts.

the national academy of sports medicine seems to only care about making money. i took months of my summer to read the book and study the course materials only to fail the exam by 4 points that i studied really hard for. it is impossible to study for, you don't know exactly what will be on the test and there is tons of material to cover with 120 questions. the questions i got happened to be a bunch of stuff i thought i did not need to focus on to study, others are luckier and get a better pool of questions. they want you to be a walking textbook, it's all scientific based questions and nothing that i feel helps me in the real world. I have testing anxiety so this type of proctored exam with difficultly phrased questions was a terrible fit for me. they want to charge $200 for a re-test on top of the $1,000 to just take the course that you study by yourself with no help. this shows me they are just greedy and really don't care if you pass, which proves their terrible pass rate. i would not recommend this program to anybody and have found a much better program that is less expensive and fits me better, and I feel as though they want me to succeed. for example this program in comparison does not charge for a re-test if you fail their 200 question open book exam, and only makes you correct the ones you got wrong. i will learn way better from this and be a lot less nervous to take the test all while saving money.

I signed up for this program due to interest. Once I told some fellow gym members about it they told me to not go through that program many people have had many issues with them. I was told I can cancel with in 30 days for a full refund I have on file I either talked to a Michelle or Jamie. I cancelled with in the 30 days and I NEVER even started the program. I checked back either the day after the 30 day mark or the second day after the 30 day mark and whom ever I talked to must have not cancelled it correctly or didn't bother at all and I got a bill. I called repeatedly over time and they said there was nothing they can do even though I cancelled with in the 30 day mark. I told my fellow gym members about this and they said this has happened to other people with National Academy of Sports. Months later I got a bill from a debt collector of 1,496.98! This was from *** Inc. ***. There number listed is ***. I was so upset I called them to explain what happened but no one answers the phone there. Also they would go me many times a day and when I would try to answer no one was there! I called National Academy of Sports after I received this very upset. I have on record at 5:45pm I talked to a Jason I told him I would be filing a claim with the Complaintsboard.com and his response was " I have to disconnect the phone if you are filing a complaint with the Complaintsboard.com." then he hung up.

I just took my NASM CPT test on 10/23 at 1pm PST time remotely, the platform they are using for test takers is call "proctorU" which I confirmed later that they are not NASM employees, this "proctorU" is a very fishy platfrom because I was not able to start my exam til 1:40pm, during the 40 mins I was transferred to a representatives to fix my network issue ( I don't have any) they will ask to control your computer and all she did was two speed test and she told me all the issues has been fixed. however I was disconnected 3 times during my test, I had to go back to save my answers and before I finish I was transferred to another representative... after all the anxiety and confusion I failed of course! (I scored 60,not far)and now I am worry that this "proctorU" is not a legit company and my personal information might be stolen, they are not in the US so there is no way to confront them about it. I called NASM 5 times wasted about 3 hours to explain my experience and request a free retest because what happened to me is not fair, all of their representatives are cold blooded and only cares for money because none of them will try to help! then when you ask for the supervisor they will transfer you to a dead end, if you are lucky enough maybe a voicemail. all in all, NOT trying to help and money always comes first. I would really strongly suggest anyone is consider NASM CPT, DO NOT TAKE THEIR COURSE, THEY DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOU!

The product was faulty. The training materials are not accessible in legible form electronically - not via their online system as advertised nor via other electronic means. NASM staff represented that they are unable to send me the training materials separately via e-mail either. Weeks went by and NASM was not able to solve the problem of accessing the training materials that I had paid for. I spent a lot of time with multiple customer service staff at *** to troubleshoot the problem. I finally spoke with a manager on 12/23. Incidentally, they don't have a manager that can speak with you the same day - you have to leave a VM and they call you back within 2 business days. The manager apologized and said they would fully refund the money I was charged for the product - $543.29. The manager agreed I should be able to access the training materials legibly online and that they should be able to send the materials electronically. Neither was made possible by NASM or their staff. I purchased the training course on 12/4 and asked for a refund timely within the month as NASM indicated. The manager assured me that I would receive a full refund. I was sent a written e-mail on 12/23 confirming the refund amount and was advised I would receive it within 15 days. I have not yet received it. I have called but keep being told that it should show up on my credit card shortly. I have not seen a credit yet and no manager has called me back.

I contacted this company to cancel my account, no refund necessary (I'll cut my losses) and they said that I can't cancel it because it was past the 28 days after original purchase. Now, the reason for my need of a cancellation is because my internet provider failed me and I no longer have internet. Thus, I am not able to access any online materials (the very materials which were purchased). I had been fighting to fix my internet problems for over a month and I did tell NASM about this issue via a phone call around the end of October. From a business standpoint, to tell someone they can't cancel a service you provide is to say that they as humans under the good *** of the Lord himself (who bestowed the very free will they have to them), are not able to freely take their business elsewhere and that they have no say (no freedom) to refuse to pay for a service they no longer desire or can not use. Now if we look at them as a school, then they're basically saying that if the student has no access to the course materials that they still have to pay for said materials despite that those courses can not be taken. Therefore denying the student the ability to learn because they can't guarantee the access required to learn from the course materials and forcing extra hardship upon the student. Essentially speaking: their establishment is contractually negating students freedom of finance, causing undue excess hardship during a pandemic and not guaranteeing (as a school) access or assistance to gain access to the course materials purchased. I can't control the services provided by the companies around me (which are currently failing me), but I can demand the simplicity of basic human decency and more respectable business practices.

2 years ago I was diagnosed with throat cancer. I underwent radiation and chemotherapy, and afterwards was in remission. I was in the clear for a full 2 years. During this time I had really enjoyed getting into health and fitness, and changing my lifestyle. While going through this process I decided I wanted to help others obtain their goals and change their lives so I signed up for a NASM CPT, Weightloss Specialist, and Nutritionist certifications ($1,500+) in order to gain employment, and be marketable in a Gym as a professional trainer.Unfortunately, after having signed up, but after the normal refund request time had expired, I found out my my cancer had returned. I underwent a neck dissection, and then another round of high intensity neck radiation. These 2 treatments have left me with serious side effects that prevent me from pursuing my initial goals of becoming a personal trainer, and as of my last checkup the cancer is still there, is highly aggressive, and there is a high % chance I will not survive another year.Due to an inability to continue, and since I hadn't taken any of the tests I officially emailed the company about my extenuating circumstances while requesting a refund through there exceptional circumstances refund department on November 2nd. I have also messaged them every month since then and the only time I have recieved a response was on November 30th which wasI do apologize for the wait time on your appeal. I have re-submitted all of your documentation to ensure this matter is being handled. We will reach back out as soon as we have more information for you!It has been almost 3 months since I requested a refund. I really hate to resort to filling a complaint, however I feel I have been more than patient in waiting to recieve a response.

I had an account with NASM. When it was time to pay my ***, I was told that my form of payment was not accepted.During this tone, the country had just gone into lockdown for the pandemic. I was unable to switch payment forms. At that time, my account was suspended, and I had no way of seeing my courses.A month passed by and I went to pay my ***. But instead of having a one previous balance owed, along with the current months balance being due, instead I was told that I would have to pay three months worth of payments to gain access to the courses. I then asked for a supervisor, because an agent told me that I could probably discuss my issue with a manager to get it resolved. The agent came back and told me that a manager would be in touch. Days later, no one had called and no one was answering the phone. A month later, someone finally answered and told me that my account had been sent to collections.1. ) I do not pay for services that I did not receive. One payment was successfully accepted and only one assignment was completed that month. (It is not possible to move on until the first assignment/payment is complete). Therefore, since my account was suspended by the second month. They were paid for the services used that month. 2.) it is illegal to charge me for services that I had no access to.3.) This is not the proper to conduct business. Especially during a pandemic. 4.) sending someone to collections for a contract that was impossible to be fulfilled as stated, is wrong. The country was under lockdown. Banks were closed, no one could get money like talking about.I would like for this account to be closed and the balance deleted/erased; have *** Services cancel their collection for me. I contacted the State Attorney General already about these unfair business practices.

I found the NASM bundle for a CPT and CNC on their website at the end of December . I started messaging with *** then about the bundle. He repeatedly tried to get me to speak on the phone with him to purchase the bundle and also kept attempting to upsell to a bigger bundle. I finally had to get a little rude and say I was not going to buy that day. On January 3, 2022 I saw a woman's face in the chat and opened a chat with her. It was *** AGAIN! He would not answer any of my questions until I called him, so I did. He answered all my questions, but also tried to get me to purchase right away and upsell to a bigger plan. I refused and told him I would buy it myself later if I decided to at all. He sent me an appointment date through email after we got off the phone anyway. When I tried to purchase the bundle on Wednesday, January 5, 2022, my email was already being used for another account WHICH I HAD NEVER SET UP, so I had to use my husband's email account. We paid $1,897.73 for the Certified Personal Trainer/Certified Nutrition Coach bundle.After purchasing the bundle, I was looking over the test requirements and saw that the CPR/AED certifications (Which are REQUIRED to even be allowed to take the PT certification test) were only accepted from certain organizations and my organization was not one of them. This information was not provided until AFTER I purchased the bundle. When I emailed *** on January 7, 2022 about this, he said, "Im sorry that you are having trouble. I called many times trying to help you and set things up correctly. Please contact our member services at *** option 2 and they can help you."I am very disappointed in NASM as a whole and specifically ***. I would like NASM to either accept my current CPR/AED certification, or pay for my new one from one of their approved organizations.Thank you.

We purchase NASM at the beginning of this year to fulfill spouses Lifestyle Change career to help others change. Most recently we have been having troubles with NASMs billing department in them withdrawing our account and then refunding the full amount back in days later without giving us notice other than the harassing phone calls to tell us that our account was in default. Earlier this year our family got really sick with COVID to put us behind in payments and although we made our monthly installments days later, we still found it hard to keep track of when NASM would withdrawal the account and then refund the money back making it very difficult. Adding to this our account debit cards/credit cards were compromised by unauthorized purchases and NASM would not accept direct account/routing payment which makes it even harder for us since we no longer choose to carry debit cards on our person and have everything automatically with-drawl from our account and NASM is the ONLY business that we have had this issue with. Amongst this all we have requested multiple times for our agreement which have failed to do on their behalf and only receive automated emails with no response, no compassion. We choose not to further continuing the career path that we had hoped for as NASM has made it unbearable to deal with on a month to month basis not able to log in due to the fact their billing has major issues and how their program is setup which is by far really not user friendly and complicate things by not notifying you that they decided to refund your money or at best step into the twenty first century where monthly account withdrawals are a thing and communication is key rather than harassing phone calls are made about account not in good standing. We dont want a refund we would just like to be left be, cancel this agreement and hopefully NASM changes the way they run their business.

I signed a contract while becoming a personal trainer which stated a refund was guaranteed within 30 days of purchasing their CPT training course. After 2 weeks of starting the course, I came to a conclusion that due to personal obligations, I no longer was fit to continue the course. I went forth and tried to contact customer service two times (was on hold for 30+ minutes before hanging up) about a refund but did not come in contact with any human figure. I also sent three emails and received automated emails back saying a customer service rep would contact me within three days (which did not happen). After not hearing from them, I decided to go to my bank since my debit card was linked up so that NASM would be able to take out the $91 a month for 10 months which I agreed to pay when I first signed up for the training program. I had told them about the lack of customer service and my issue with not receiving a refund from the business. They went forth and put in my initial $50 up front fee in as a fraudulent charge and cancelled my card so I would not be billed for my first monthly installment. On June 29th, I received a call from NASM customer service asking how I would be paying for my first monthly installment since my debit card that was on file was cancelled by my bank. I had told this rep about my dilemma with trying to get in touch for the past two weeks about a refund and she ended up transferring me to someone who could "help", she ended up transferring me to the general customer service number which I had called twice prior. I was put on hold for another 20 minutes and ended up being hung up on by their automated system. In the past 7 days, I have received 5 emails from them about my financial standing with them and have been told that I need to put a different card on file in order for them to bill me which I do not want. The total I would be paying over 10 months is a little over $1000.

On 5/21 I purchased the NASM Certified Personal Trainer - Self-Study Program after speaking to one of their customer service reps. *** plan was to work towards the certification during my contract working on a cruise ship. I have been wanting to get certified for a while and I was able to work it into my budget by doing the monthly payment plan. The representative at NASM helped me with all my questions regarding the product including telling me that I would be able to print out the course material from a PDF file. This was the main reason I decided to purchase the course because while working on the ship I do not have any internet or cell phone service. When I got around to starting the course I could not figure out how to print it out. I reached out to NASM to inquire how to do it and I was told that the version of the course I have does not have a PDF. I tried to work with NASM to figure out how I would be able to complete the course (a goal i have had for a long time) but the solution they offered was a discount to purchase the textbook at a discounted price. I was not able to spend any more money on the course than I already did. Eventually I realized I would not be able to do the course under the circumstances but at that point I was outside of the NASM return window. I have not accessed the course beyond the first few slides and I have been trying to work with NASM for over a year the get a refund. I have spoken to multiple people and submitted all the forms, appeals and supporting documents they requested and I still have not been able to get a refund. The last communication made was an email that I sent on 5/14/22 and I have not received any response. I purchase a product that does not include a feature that it was marketed to have. I was not able to use the product because of this. It seems to be a very straightforward situation but I am having a difficult time with the refund from NASM.

I have been attempting to contact the company for weeks to withdraw from the program, but every time I am on wait for 30+ minutes. I finally emailed and received no response. I emailed an employee and was finally given a phone number. After waiting for 20+ minutes, an employee finally answered. They said since this was not within a 28 day cancelation window, they state they cannot withdraw me from the program. I tried to contact them prior to the *** past the window. There is no even a prorated option, which I am fine paying, but to expect someone to pay for a course they have no taken and are not taking any one elses spot for is very disappointing. They would not allow me to speak to a manager. This is clearly being dragged out and there are clearly tactics in place to make dropping from this program difficult to happen. I heard from a manger, ***, on November 4 and explained the situation. He told me I could file for an appeal to downgrade programs, I would just need to send documentation. I sent him an email with information, including divulging my wifes medical condition that has crated the hardships to begin with. He said I would hear back on 2-3 weeks. After waiting over three weeks, I emailed asking where the process was at and he responded on December 2 at 1:18 pm stating my appeal was denied due to lack of documentation. I responded by asking about the delayed appeal response and asking what documentation was need (I.e. they are seeking my wifes private medical information) and he did n out respond. They are engaging in unfair business practices through making contact incredibly difficult. They also hide payment information so that you cannot change your payment methods, either. I do not want any part of a business that operates in such a vicious, deceitful, and unethical manner.

This is my second complaint against NASM, they provide me a retest last time because of technical issues of their end and I was not able to have my exams on the schedule time and during the exam I was breaking off consistently. I took my retest on October,31,2020 and I scored 69 ( Their passing score is 70) and I am very confident with all my answers since I studied the whole book. I then responded to my first complaint on Complaintsboard.com asking for a break down of my exam result since I was informed by proctorU (the third party agency are observing while I do my exams) that only NASM can give me the break down. ( I have screenshots to provide for my statement) A guy name *** reached out to me shortly after stating that 'I attempted to contact you today in regards to your request for an exam breakdown but was not able to get through to you.I apologize for the frustration you have been experiencing with the *** exam. I wanted to reach out to you directly and inform you we are working on getting a full breakdown of the different sections of the exam, it just takes a little time to generate. Once I have that breakdown, I can send it to you and even have one of our student success coaches go over it with you if you'd like." this email was sent to me on Mon 11/9 12:15 PM and he was lying about reach out to me because I never got any missed calls. I replied the same day and kindly asked him for mu exam result breakdown and he disappeared into the thin air, I can never get a hold of any of the NASM staff ever since. Base on NASM's handbook PG25 stated "although all scores are released immediately, all data subsequently will be analyzed for anomalies. If any anomalies are found that impact the scoring, the exam will be rescored and the candidate will be advised if the rescore impacts whether *** passed or failed the exam." I suspect fraud with NASM since they made false promise to me and they are not even following their own handbook.

In May during covid-19 I saw an add on Facebook for sports medicine through NASM. I called registered and was told it's an online course which I have 180 days to complete by Nov 1st 2020 and my payments won't start until July 1st. When I had questions concerning the course NASM was very hard to get a hold of by phone sometimes it took 3 days for someone to answer. I scheduled my final exam through Protocol U to take on Oct 27th 2020 at 11:00am. Everything was set up ready to go diagnostic checks were successful on my laptop. On Oct 27th I logged in to take my final exam for my certification in sports medicine, yet my exam didn't appeared at 11:00am, so I'm texting the protocol customer care, after 40 mins texting back and forth customer care states there's no payments made on the course. I texted I have payed $120.31 since July 1st. They said if I was you I would call and ask for a refund. So I called NASM no answer. The next day I get an answer. I explained everything concerning my final exam, NASM tells me I am up to date with my payments and that I missed my test yesterday. I told John of NASM I was an unsatisfied customer I would like to be reimbursed I don't want to do business with NASM. John told me he would give me a new enrollment number and send me to forty-fort 5 min drive from my house to take the exam. I said why give me a new enrollment number when I'm already paying for one. I kept requesting my refund, I was told I don't qualify for a refund because they offered me a new enrollment number and a place to take the exam. I said as an unsatisfying customer I don't want to do business with you. So Oct 28th 2020 I stopped payments. Now NASM is calling me 1 time a day for the past 2 weeks for a payment which I refuse to pay due to the fact I believe that I was scammed out of 4 monthly payments of $120.31. There has been too many red flags for me to continue to make payments. I just want to be reimbursed.

I was vehemently harassed by the NASM during the month of December over email and phone. When I finally answered I decided to proceed with a *** course. This would prove to be a huge mistake, for in late December the job I was initially getting the *** for did not pan out. Right after the new year, and before the 5th of January (my apparent deadline despite not purchasing anything until the 8th of December) I attempted to get ahold of the NASM when I had the time. Each time I was trying to get ahold of membership services I was put on an endless hold to which I hung up after a while of waiting. Several attempts to cancel were made to no avail before the 28-day deadline, and no one would answer their phones, so I emailed ______ who sold me the program, and we went back and forth until she stopped replying to my emails. I figured maybe she had solved the problem because it was the fault of the NASM for not answering their number for their membership line, and it wasn't my fault, as it turns out she had not, and they attempted to charge my account in early February. The charge was denied, and I have no intention of paying them. Every time I tried contacting the department that handles canceling memberships, I did not have someone receive my call, they failed to provide me a timely way of canceling my membership within their deadline, and now they want me to pay, I absolutely will not. I believe their business does this intentionally to scam people out of their money, and after my recent email dealings with them this would appear to be the case, this institution is operating a shady business and needs to be investigated. The NASM is incredibly malicious and if this goes to collections I will be getting a lawyer involved, for you guys did not provide an adequate means of canceling due to not answering your phones in a timely manner, which is the only way you offer for cancellation. Regarding the NASM only contact me by email, do not call me.

National Academy of Sports Medicine sold me a lemon product. I paid a lot of money for a program to become a certified personal trainer. NASM sold me a course for personal training that promised me TWO online exams. However, they did NOT disclose that their online exams are not supported by *** I did not know this until I was getting ready to take my test when the testing company (yardstick) informed me that I cannot take my test on my Chromebook computer. NASM should have disclosed this information to me BEFORE I purchased the program from them. And before my test started. Other fitness certification platforms, like *** tells people up front that their online tests are not supported by *** before purchasing their program. NASM should do the same and not promise their costumers something they cannot provide. Secondly, when I emailed my adviser at NASM about my problem, he did not respond. When I called NASM about my problem, I was on hold for *** my test session because it wouldn't load on my Chromebook. Since I paid for two tests, they counted the first one as taken. Even though, I did not take it because the system wouldn't support Chromebooks. I still only hear from NASM when they want my money. They have not contacted me regarding my test, they have not contacted me regarding my second test. They lie to their consumers, sell fake products, and don't communicate respond to emails.NASM is guilty of negligence in that no one has responded to my emails. I have yet, to be given my first and second test attempt, and they sold me a faulty product. They are wanting me to pay them for product they didn't provide. I have attached substantial evidence that includes: emails, phone-calls, etc. of their negligence and lies. Along with other reviews and testimonies about this scam.

I signed up for a personal trainer course. When signing up I told the sales agent I would be living in *** for a year. I was assured this would be no problem. Everything was very flexible, payment plans, etc.Then due to the fact, I was in Europe my bank thought something suspicious was going on and blocked my account. Unlocking was not possible due to not having my phone, etc. Long story short I could not unlock my account and therefore payments were not possible to NASM.To solve this issue, I sent them multiple offers to use a different card such as debit card, wire transfer, paypal payment. one-time credit card payment, etc. They rejected all forms of payment, they could only accept automatic drafts from the bank. Also, they couldn't accept it from my *** I couldn't use a family member's bank to resolve it. Absolutely no flexibility at all.They, of course, blocked my account and then for months sent me threatening emails on a daily basis. Account will go to a collection agency, extra costs, etc. (I didn't really care, maybe would be better, at least the collection agency can accept any form of payment, which sounds weird, but I was ok with that so I could get back to studying). Eventually, my account is back and unlocked. And they have been withdrawing money. I called to ask to reactivate my account, but they can't because too much time has passed and they will not reactivate it. It is expired and not willing to give me a reasonable extension.I made many attempts to pay, I called, chatted, emailed and nothing was accepted. Only bank draft which was not possible. When signing up no one mentioned this even though I said I would be in a foreign country. They did no effort to make it work, they sent harassing emails and locked my account, and did not give me any reasonable extension now that I am able to access my account. I have about 5 more payments of $40 to make and all for an expired account which I cant access or finish.