Chaotic Learning
It is very easy to find information about real estate broker certificate training classes online. Online learning, quick, all-inclusive care from the learning and testing process are what the organizing units will offer to attract students.
In mid-April 2024, posing as a land broker with no experience or skills, a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper went to the Lien Viet Real Estate Training Institute - a branch of Lien Viet Education Joint Stock Company (Quang Trung Ward, Dong Da District, Hanoi) to get support for learning and taking the certificate exam.
After understanding the needs, an admissions officer named Binh (the character's name has been changed) from this unit enthusiastically provided specific advice about the course information.
According to Binh, the real estate broker certificate class and exam will start on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Classes will be held on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays every week, from 7:30 PM to 9:30 PM.
The reporter paid a tuition fee of 1.2 million VND for 6 sessions covering topics such as: Overview of the real estate market; Real estate brokerage process and skills; Real estate transaction floor management; Real estate valuation...
Notably, during the learning process, the reporter noticed that the actual number of students was always lower than the class size. For example, in the first session on May 16, the number of students recorded at times was only 38 compared to over 60 on the class list. By May 28, the number of students at times was only 34. During the sessions, it was not difficult to see other students doing personal work, going out, sleeping, or driving... without paying any attention to the knowledge being conveyed by the lecturer.
Additionally, the final test at the end of the last session was merely a formality, as it could be erased and redone, or even not completed at all without any issue.
In an off-the-record conversation, when the reporter cited being too busy to attend the class, Binh enthusiastically reassured: “If you work directly with me, you don't have to worry about attendance, I can support you.”
At the time the reporter paid the tuition fee in early May 2024, the number of students starting the first session was only about 60. However, the number of students increased with each session, reaching nearly 80 by the end of the course.
Instructing Candidates to Prepare "Cheat Sheets"
After the quick course ended with almost no retained knowledge, the reporter was asked to pay an additional 2 million VND as an "exam fee" to participate in the certification exam.
Additionally, the admissions officer named Binh instructed the candidates to prepare a complete dossier including documents such as the exam application form according to the Department of Construction's template, notarized copies of ID cards, diplomas, photos...
Before sending these documents to the address of the Lien Viet Real Estate Training Institute - a branch of Lien Viet Education Joint Stock Company, candidates need to take photos of all prepared documents and send them via Zalo for Binh to check. If students do not take photos and send the dossier directly, in case of errors, the dossier will be rejected.
About a month before the exam, Binh urged the reporter to complete the dossier to send to the office. He said that at that time, more than 600 people had registered for the exam, so it needed to be completed soon.
After paying the fee and completing the documents, the reporter was added to a group named "Real Estate Exam Group 23.6.2024 Tuyen Quang Department of Construction". At the time the reporter joined, there were only a few dozen people, but as the exam date approached, the number increased, with the final number of participants in this group being 233.
More surprisingly, about a week before the exam, when the reporter expressed concern about not studying thoroughly and whether they could pass, Binh quickly advised: “Just print out the "cheat sheet" to bring into the exam room. Go to a photocopy shop and ask them to arrange the answers alphabetically for easier reference”...
According to the reporter's research, the demand for real estate broker certificate training and exams has increased recently because the new Real Estate Business Law, effective from August 1, 2024, requires: Individuals practicing real estate brokerage must have a practicing certificate and must practice in a real estate transaction service business or a real estate brokerage service business. Previously, the regulation only required individuals independently providing real estate brokerage services to have a certificate.
Additionally, the new law also adds that individuals taking the certification exam must have a "certificate of completion of real estate brokerage management training and knowledge enhancement course".
