The Knowledge Academy - Vancouver, British Columbia

Amir Fatemi

Disappointing CISSP training experience - NOT Recommended

I am writing to provide feedback on the CISSP training course I recently attended (Aug 2024) with The Knowledge Academy, which I found to be disappointing. Based on my experience, I do not recommend taking this course with The Knowledge Academy.

The Knowledge Academy should have been transparent that the instructor might be on a time zone with 11 hours difference. This is important as it's a challenge for participants from North America - we start the day, it's already too late for that time zone - this resulted in sessions being shorter than what they promised.
The instructor might be strong in technical fields but CISSP is NOT a technical exam and with all due respect, he didn't demonstrate the level of expertise required to effectively teach a CISSP course. The method of presentation wasn't engaging at all. It was more like reading through the slides rather than presentation and discussion for such a high level management training. The instructor seemed to be more comfortable with the technical chapters as they were probably his domain of expertise but not the management ones and for example on the last chapter which was software development, he wasn't very convincing and skipped through the material quickly. Specially when it came to ISC2 code of ethics and copyrights, I saw some serious concerns. I tried to explain these to their customer service but they didn't seem to care at all.

Most critically, the course and the instructor did not provide adequate preparation for the CISSP exam. The instructor seemed to lack knowledge about essential exam-taking strategies, such as how to approach the exam questions, avoid common pitfalls, and effectively prepare for the test. Given the importance of these elements for success in the CISSP exam, this omission was a significant drawback.

The course delivery was equally disappointing. We simply read through slide decks, which included several duplicate slides and even one or two that were incorrect. The overall quality of the material was noticeably lower compared to previous versions of TKA’s CISSP slide decks for earlier exam editions. The online training environment was disengaging and boring, with the experience resembling an automated machine reading through the slides rather than an interactive learning session.
Exam voucher was part of the package that I purchased. I reached out to customer service asking for the voucher right after the course ended and they sent instructions. I responded right away but they haven't provided the exam voucher and it's worrying to me that why they're not responsive.

This course was ultimately a waste of money and time. For the same fee, there are better training providers or self-study options available that offer far more value and effective preparation for the CISSP exam. Additionally, the course content seemed more like an introduction to cybersecurity rather than preparation for such an advanced exam.

At the end of this course, I was left without learning anything new about the exam or the material, stressed about my lack of preparation, and frustrated about the money spent. I had expected to be supported and gain peace of mind to prepare for such a difficult exam, understanding that being calm and relaxed is crucial for success. Instead, I faced these issues. This lack of support is extremely frustrating and adds to my overall dissatisfaction with service from the knowledge academy.

Overall, my experience with this training was unsatisfactory, and it appeared to be more of a cost-saving exercise than a genuine effort to provide quality education.

Anant Bhattacharya

This company is fraud. Do read the reviews online, they are all true. The company advertises their office location in Vancouver, Canada. Their office there does not exist. I was contacted by their salesman for the MSP program which included online course material and exam vouchers. Their online material was of no help and when I requested them for the exam vouchers, they started asking for more money. It's been a month and I still do not have the exam vouchers. The phone number mentioned in sales guy's email was fake, their whatsapp number is fake, their Vancouver office address is fake. To contact them, I have to open a ticket and get a response through email. No way to talk to anyone. Buyers beware. This is a scam as most people online have posted.

Been There

They put me in the wrong class and won't refund my money!!

It looks like a total scam, as the phone numbers are not working either!
Months later, I'm still out 800 dollars for absolutely nothing. They are most DEFINITELY SCAMMERS.
My biggest issue is Canada allows this to go on and gives the victim nowhere to turn or at least nowhere that actually helps

Pancholi Dhaval

I can give negative stars if they had that option. They gave me fake promises about the training and trap me. Even though they have a return policy on their website, I have been trying to get my money back since I enrolled, made more than 50 calls, and contacted many people but they did not help me. I also contacted the senior person from management regarding my issue and he said they can not refund my money even though it is their fault. I have put the ticket for the refund, let's see how many years they are taking for the refund. Please do not enroll for any training, they will not give your hard-earned money back even if they failed to provide what they promised to deliver.

Lindsey MacLeod

Awful communication/planning and customer service. Multiple employees I was working with just stopped answering and when I called to try and sort it out / talk to someone else I got hung up on twice and spent an annoying amount of time on the phone with customer support with no resolution. Do NOT recommend at all

Seyi Adeyemo

Too bad we can’t give negative stars. This business is a proper scam. You’re better off learning on YouTube for free. They do not give you anything close to your money’s worth and they do not respond to any inquiries.

Zara Zang

They made admin mistakes with booking my class. I lost 5 days of vacation at work and they refused to refund my money. Terrible company.

Jason Tran

100% a scam, they will take your money and not be responsive.
Indian call center scam with no support.
Google should take this down to prevent further damage to anyone..