I have been going to this massage school for years and have had really good massages. I only complained once because they assigned me a male who breathed really heavy, was super nervous and had no idea what he was doing - gave me the creeps. Cortiva made good and comped me a free massage for future use. Unfortunately, they're raising their prices as of January, which doesn't make it a bargain anymore. I will be seeking better deals through Groupon with licensed experts. read more

My partner was laid off because they preferred to hire their friend for the position after my partner got the job, bought things for the office and very excited to expand her profession and grow. They just decided to laid her off, call to come and pick everything from the office but without entering school. They decided to send another person to bring everything outside because the "boss" didn't want to face the person. And funny, they almost wanted to stay with the fridge because it was them to keep "school property" even with receipt in hand. That affected us financially really hard. They don't want staff to grow professionally. read more

We prepaid for a significant number of massages. Recently without warning we were told that our certificates are no longer valid. They say it's because ownership changed hands. That's not our fault, and we were not notified in a proper manner. We joined the class action suit, and are waiting to get out money back. At this point I'd say avoid them altogether. read more

Please don't go here. It's a money hole. It's such a negative environment, They are liars and so unorganized, they don't care about the students just the money , yet they fail to provide us with consistent (qualified) teachers, supplies and equipment read more

I'm going to begin this review by stating that you are doing yourself the biggest disservice by choosing to work here, get educated here, or send your child here. You will not be respected, you will not be valued, you will not get a quality education and you may not even get licensed or be hirable at the end of your journey at Cortiva Maitland. As EMPLOYEE: Most of you have probably heard the phrase "too many chiefs and not enough Indians" although not a politically accepted phrase nowadays, it best fits one of the biggest issues at this institution. Each human holds an entire department at this location, yet reports to at least 4 people at different junctions of the Corporate ladder. 4 bosses and one "worker". Seems legit. The Registrar (attendance, grades, retention, leaves of absence, transcripts, creation of electronic access, graduate documents) is all fulfilled by one human. Then director, corporate, compliance, and regionals all audit that ONE human worker. The Department of Financial Aid (financial aid officer, bursar, clerk, collections) is all fulfilled by one human. The role of Career and Student Services (professionalism, community resources, job placement, licensing, MBLEX testing, ABMP monitoring, campus events) is all fulfilled by one human. The Campus Director oversees this team as well as a front desk receptionist and a Clinical Coordinator for the student Spa. That means that SIX humans are staffing a fully functional place of "education" (not class instructors). Let's read that statement again. Six humans are basically running a fully functional educational institution. For Educators: just simply do not bother applying. You will be let go if you breathe air. In 8 months over 21 employees have cycled this campus and yet not a SINGLE one of them were a Corporate Team member. Always the staff and instructors. As STUDENT OR PARENT: Note that if right away you feel cared for attended too... there are THREE Admissions representatives. Once you or your child is ENROLLED they will have access to ONE Financial Aid, ONE Registrar, and ONE Career Service. That's the reality. Along side a Director is a receptionist and Clinic Coordinator. Your "educational" institution is being manned by 6 humans. After Enrollment you or your child will attend an orientation that ZERO instructors will be at. You will most likely not leave with the promised 5 shirts (that mind you, you paid $75 for uniform fee - read the fine print. That's $15 each for a cotton tee shirt) You will be told they ran out if your size or "they'll be in next week" followed by several weeks of lining up with others to see if they are in. You will get basic kits and product will be missing or promised to you at a later point. If you need further product YOU are buying it for yourself. You will also want to decline the Massage Table due to lack of structural support. The lamps in the classroom will be flimsy and potentially burn you or your client because they slowly fall toward the face during services. To make up for this you will be given one entire additional wood stick for learning to wax. True kindness. It is very important to also mention that you will NOT know who is in your class. What do I mean by this... Students upon Admissions are not background checked so it is completely acceptable for anyone who is on probation, have multiple felonies for any reason, or are currently in legal proceedings to be not only be accepted but to be right next to you or your child. There are yelling episodes, large amounts of students just "around" because they have more hours left to complete. Many certifications are hours based, but it also assumed that those hours are spent learning, not filing or copying or roaming, swearing at teachers or sleeping or TikToking. Please also note that all Cortiva campuses are "monitored" by the same corporate chief teams that do no wrong. Hollywood Institute, the sister school has the same as well. So while this review is specific to Maitland, the cancerous team that cycles students, staff, and instructors is all the same group of Corporate evils. employees in 9 months: Campus Director 2x Career Services 2x Admissions 3x Clinic Coordinator 3x Make-Up Instructor 2x MT Instructor 1x Skin Instructor 3x Front Desk 1x Registrar 1x Financial Aid 2x Paramedical Instructor 1x Lead Instructor 1x Each one a qualified and committed employee that due to lack of Corporate guidance or training of any kind were simply eliminated or bullied out of their roll instead. PLEASE respect yourself, your child, and your profession enough to not in anyway be associated with this disgusting system. You are worth so much more. Also: the new (3rd in a year) Campus Director requested all employees to do a google review. So this one's for you Zach! read more

Within the massage school program, professor Vince is amazing, works extremely hard and often is completing multiple jobs at once. He is a keen muktitasker, hard working, and very passionate about massage and teaching. He teaches in such a way for all learning types to grasp even the most difficult material. However, they do not inform you all there is to programs prior to enrollment and are overly short staffed. The process in which you enroll is highly unorganized and you have to speak to the instructors to learn anything about the courses themselves. The class is structured However very well and you will learn very well with this instructor. As, he really puts in work, cares, and helps his students as much as he possibly can. read more

I graduated from here about 4 years ago now and just started getting random calls from them about a month ago offering discounts prices to come and continue education offer for past students but I'm like wow 4 years later!? And they are saying they are under new management.. to me they sucked when I was there very basic info and so many issues with credits and all my classmates are geting the calls too.. why would I come back when it was that bad and for them to be makeing calls shows the desperations.. do not go to this school just find something else.. read more

I tried to be patient with this place but I can't anymore. I have two gift certificates which I have no idea when I'll be able to use. I understand that enrollment is low but every time I call I get something different for booking a massage. First, I was told appointments were going to be made on a month to month basis and that it would open at the end of the previous month. So, I do that. Nope. Appointments were open and the first two weeks of May were booked. Was told to call later when the next two weeks will be open. I call again and guess what. The appointments had been open for May and June and are all booked. The lady told me to call during the week to see if there were any openings. This is so frustrating because I keep getting different things and all I want is a freaking massage! I've been here twice and both time because of the schools fault my massage has been half of the time. Yeah, they give me an extra massage free for the inconvenience but I just wasted part of my day and gas driving here. The students are nice and do a good job and that is why I'm giving at least 2 stars. Honestly, don't buy gift certificates because who knows when you or the person you are giving it to will be able to use it. They should at least make a wait list for the people that have been trying for months to get in be able to get a massage. read more

use me as a warning. this school is horrible. they only care about money.l but they dont give a shit about your education. if there is zero stars i would put zero stars. my whole education and experience is fucked up until now that i graduated i still have some problems with em. again use me as a warning not to go here if you want to be an awesome massage therapist. you are gonna thank me later. this school is a shitshow and feels like a scam. read more

Mum found a coupon in a local magazine for this place and so we decide to come here on her bday for a mother-daughter massage deal - it was only $35 for both of us!! Getting to the location was easy but parking was a bit difficult. If you go in the main entrance to the building, the college is located on the ground floor to the right (mum is a veteran attendee of this place and told me it was previously on the 1st floor). Check-in was easy since we had an appointment made a week earlier and the we headed towards the back to a waiting room. The waiting room had tons of tables and chairs and played new-age music while we waited for about an hour actually as they were a bit short-staffed!!! Frankly wasn't the great having to wait although they had some decent magazines and snack plus drink vending machines in tr waiting area. So finally my student-masseuse came and called my name - followed her down to the massage area where the massage table was freshly made up. En route I was asked about health conditions, preferences, problem area, what work I did, etc. I must say my student-masseuse did an AMAZING job! There was a knot in my upper right shoulder that I was unaware of and then suddenly under her maagical hands, it was gone! Loved the pressure applied and my whole body was humming and felt incredibly refreshed afterwards! I would totally recommend giving this place a go, but it's not a complete 5 star due to the wait so would advise only booking an appointment if you have time to spare. Note: #132 of Yelp 100 challenge for 2016 read more

Cortiva Institute - Vending machines in the wait room - Vocational & Technical School Near Me - Maitland, Florida

This is the second time my sister and I go to get a massage here. The interior is really nice and it kinda smells like pumpkin spice (which was kinda nice). The staff is very nice and professional. Getting an appointment is extremely hard though. The first time I got a full massage, but the second time around the staff were coming in late and my massage got cut in half. The light in the room where really bright (gave me a slight headache). But overall I do enjoy getting a message in a reasonable price, so it's pretty nice. read more

Cortiva Institute - The interior of the building the school is in. - Vocational & Technical School Near Me - Maitland, Florida

See all

Unthethical, unlawful practices! Do not patronize this business until they pay their customers the money they are owed for pre-paid services. read more

I got a gift certificate for my birthday to the Florida College of Natural Health a couple of months ago but due to work I was not able to make my appointment to go till finally today sense they are only available to do massages on Fridays and Saturday. The massage is about one hour long and they have also other types of massage such as acupressure, cranial sacral therapy, injury massage, reflexology, sports massage, Russian sports massage, structural bodywork, Swedish massage, and trigger point therapy for only $25 BUCKS, good deal and a lot cheaper then other place's also have European facials for $30 bucks and they do waxing for a little as 8 bucks up to $25.00, or you can get a Microdermabrasion for $50.00. I also don not like the fact that you get your massage in a huge room with other people and the only thing keeping you from the person near by is a curtain like the ones in hospitals, but at least they play some soft music and makes you feel like you are in the rain forest of South America. They place is located in Maitland and it is in a building located just a walking distance from the RVD sportsplex ,the reasons I am only giving them three stars because in there directions they say they are in a building with big windows that are colored but they don't mention there is at least four other buildings near by and many small roads that lead to different places. They are also a school for those trying to become massage therapist so if you are interested in this field this could be the place for you. To get to the point they are at the end of the road once you turn of Mailtand blvd and make a right after the seven eleven you keep going and they are on a building on the left hand side you have to take the elevator to the second floor and then when you get off they are at the right. The other reason I gave it three stars is because due to the fact it was hard to find this place among other buildings and its location I was 15 minutes late witch they took out of my 50 minute massage but that is OK because of that and the fact they are so hard to find even though I know they are primarily a school I don't think I would return and they massage was not as good as others I have have previously else were, I know they are students but if they are going to charge for a massage and advertise it and have your office in a place were it is more visible and don't blame the costumers for been late. I did not care they took that 15 minutes extra from my massage because at that point they had ruined there chances of having me back again. Overall the person that did do my massage was curious and professional and did an okay job for a student but wish he had focused more on my problem area(neck) then on my legs and arms witch I don't need as much attention on my arms, my neck is hurting a bit less but it is not fully recovered to were I though I would have it at after this massage. Overall if you want a cheap massage this is the place to go but finding the place will be a task and be careful because if you are late that is time taken away from you, also you have to make appointments and they are only available from 9 am to 4.30pm on Saturdays and till about noon on Fridays so if they are booked then no luck for you. read more

Cortiva Institute - Vocational & Technical School Near Me - Maitland, Florida

I am highly disappointed with this program. First of all, they are Highly Unorganized which lead to both my makeup instructors quitting and as a result some of my tests and homework were lost or not turned in by them. I signed to pay full tuition agreeing to do my part and pay. I was foolish enough to trust the school to do their part in recording all of my turned in material.....turns out the school is billing me for the full tuition as if I graduated but won't give me my license or diploma for both skin and makeup. EVEN After contacting my previous teachers confirming (with Stephanie, the dean) I was present for class and they turned in all missing assignments to the office. The office made it out to be my fault for not saving a copy of all the tests and other projects that I turned in. I was supposed to graduate in April, it is now mid September and nothing has been resolved. I am tired of being put on hold and told to wait for someone to talk to someone. I have been MORE than patient, now I am voicing my horrible experience in hopes to spare every individual looking to grow their beauty skills. My suggestion is to NOT attend this school. If you feel like my experience is rare, its not. But if you need to attend here make sure you document EVERYTHING!! and all the field trips and extra learning they promise is more than likely just a ploy to make you enroll. Once your enrolled most of them really don't care about you or what you have going on in your life. There are major office politics going on at the Maitland school! YOU WERE WARNED!! Be well! read more

I went to the massage clinic and was able to get a 50 minute massage for $20 by one of the students. While it does take a while to schedule an appointment, the massage was great! The students do what they can to create a positive, relaxing environment. The one that I went to was just as good as any masseuse at a salon. I think it's great for what you pay for. Keep in mind that it is a learning environment, so instead of getting your own room, you're going to be in a room with several other people, separated by curtains, but there's generic serene music and you don't really hear anyone else. It's completely worth the cost. read more

Didn't learn anything, super expensive, waste of time. Everyday we got to hear of our teacher problems and didn't learn anything cause she was either to sick or didn't feel like teaching. All of the equipment is old or broken. And they didn't let us practice lashing because they didn't want to "waste" product. read more

I have absolutely nothing nice to say about this institute. DO YOUR RESEARCH!!!!!!!!!!!! I am currently enrolled in the paramedical program at Cortiva. DO NOT SIGN UP FOR THIS INSTITUTE! We are facing many issues as of now at the school but the most important issues are Cortiva provides "student kits" from Dermalogica which irritates the skin and they do not have many properly operating machines. As a student who is currently paying $16.9k for this worthless education, I can only advise anyone looking at this to apply to any other institute besides Cortiva Institute and Hollywood Institute (they are apart of the same company) and netiher of those schools have good reputations. After speaking with the director of the institute Patricia Stein and expressing my concerns regarding the malfunctioning manchinery, lack of quality supplies we were promised and the misrepresentation of us learning about multiple advanced treatments that are NOT in our cirriculum. Patricia took it upon herself to "advise me" VERBATIM "Since you are so unhappy with your education, you can just unenroll and pay us for the hours you have already used". She did not acknowledge my concerns, she did not try to find a solution; she spoke solely about finances and that showed me everything I needed to know about this institute. From the direct reps that are at the campus to the higher up "corporate"/Administrative office individuals, the entire system is filled with rude people. I actually regret coming here but I remind myself daily that learning the basics of it all is my main concerns and that they have no control over how GOOD I learn. As said before there are MANY reasons, sooooo many reasons to not attend this institute. I just named the top 3 issues for myself. If anything look into some of these locations I have below, they will be a much better fit for you and you will get your monies worth. Aveda Institute - Orlando Esthetics Association Florida Florida Academy of Beauty Aveda Institute - Orlando Florida Dermal Institute read more

I attended school here and loved my experience. It is expensive, but it's the best school at attend for skincare and massage and you will be hired over other school graduates because of it. read more

Very unprofessional handling of a broken appointment today knowing students called out "sick" and wouldn't have enough therapists to handle clients. I should have been called and advised our scheduled massages would/could not be accommodated. At least I know where I'll never go again. read more

I had a massage yesterday and the experience from the time I pulled into the parking lot til I left was fantastic! Check in was easy with the girls behind the desk smiling and joking with me, Janize came to get me on time, and her massage was FANTASTIC. My only complaint is I wish they were open more days for public clinic than Friday and Saturday. A great value. read more

I have been for massages and facials and my experience has been excellent. Very professional, friendly and respectful. Always on time as scheduled. I recommend this place! read more

Cortiva is unprofessional, disorganized, and a complete disappointment. They use rancid, old, and molding products. They are always hiring new staff due to the fact that even instructors quit because they're so dysfunctional. My instructor was a scatter brain who is an avid trump supporter. Therefore he was topic of discussion numerous times. Financial aid is clueless in their work and student services is just as incompetent. Nate is usually who does the tours, he's ignorant. Stephanie is the HBIC but does nothing to help students or staff. I enrolled July 2019, didn't get my kit or uniform until November of 2019. 50% of the classroom equipment is broke or damn near broken. Don't fall for the hype. Tour Elise Esthetics instead. Btw Hollywood Institute is affiliated with Cortiva and is even worse. Complete waste of time and money. Don't pay for their clinic services they offer half the time students don't show up and you're just sitting there. read more

The skin care program over all was ok but don't go here for makeup. Your wasting your money especially if you have a little skill. Your better off watching free YOUTUBE videos. Still waiting for my license after I have graduated over 2 months ago...everything is so last minute and not informed about changes until a couple days before. read more

Finally down to last few gift certificates I'd purchased; and unfortunately, still difficult to get a "massage" appointment.

Hello, my name is Kat Gonzalez, my address is 3215 Running Deer Path Kissimmee Fl, 34746, and my phone number is 407-973-2451. The institution that I have a complaint about is Cortiva Institute and the location is in Maitland I attended from July 15 2019 - January 16 2019. I have multiple problems with this school, I was sold on a curriculum that I, nor my class received by Nate. We had two student come to our class the second month, we ended up finding out that they had completely different kits and were not even a part of the program we were on, they were given Dermalogica, the book by dermalogica, different lab coats, different tools, and the pay was different then ours; we were given products from Eminence, Elemis, Bliss, Murad, different tools, and still have not received lab coats. When we got all these products it was 3 months into the program and then we were told we had to buy a plethora of supplies that our teacher said they would supply. It took them two months to get our clinic schedules and the two girls that stared a month after us did not get theirs till two months before the program ended even though we kept asking for them. Clinics were a mess by themselves, we were scheduled an orientation before we actually start and we were just thrown in finding out about clinic homework the last day it was due, also some days we were just sitting down in the lunch room for hours on end. The masks that they used for back facials were moldy and rancid, yet they still had us use it on the client and even classmates; most equipment was broken and not even cleaned. The staff was all over the place leading to a horrible lack of communication which you can read bout from more students on google reviews, (After i asked for my clinic hours for the fifth time to two different people my mom called asking as well, and they did not get back to her until she called a third time saying she had a daughter who wanted to join and how they were lacking of communication after i enrolled, she did not want to bring her other daughter leading them to call her back answering my questions after a month.) The staff did not track our hours correctly and would not get back to us about our questions with our hours. The staff was always changing with new people so it was always someone different to talk to and everyone was all over the place. Other then the staff, the teacher was very unprofessional, at first she was really sweet and knowledgeable and it completely changed after that, she would talk about religion and government conspiracies instead of teaching us what we needed to know on our syllabus (which we skipped or did not do things on because she would sit on her phone and have "chill days.") She even talked ill upon one of the students to another student showing favoritism when she would just give her facials during class as "demos." She would also show a lot of frustration to the students and I remember she didn't want to teach a student who was having a little trouble with what she was teaching and showed a lot of annoyance towards the student, and the student actually ended up leaving the class. When they added dermalogica the teacher would teach us stuff fro their book and use their products, which we did not receive and now my products are collecting dust in my closet. They made us merge with classes in our curriculum that were sometimes ahead or behind us making us migrate to different classrooms everyday because there was not enough rooms, also sharing one projector with each and every class. We also saw that our teacher was not evaluating us correctly because of all the different teachers we had through the 6 month period. The merging of the classes wasted a lot of days when we had to merge classes. All of this show a Breach of Contract because our program was dropped therefore we should not be penalized for wanting to leave paramedical and wanting our refund when it states in contract that if our program is dropped (which it was we get a full refund.) When these concerns were brought to the staff whose names are Erica and Stephanie they dismissed us and made us actually wait longer for a reply causing us to be put into the second pay period making us pay 11,000 for a 7,000 program. This guy called me up from Cortiva to talk to me about this program believing I was not in it yet, I told him all my concerns, this gentleman's name was Randy and he told me that we needed to take an exam for our license which no one ever told us. read more

Best place to get a massage degree, The professors are so helpful and will tutor you and do what ever it takes to help you understand the material read more

Working there for 3 years do any extra task they ask of me- grading, supplies ordering. Taking down large whiteboards when all the men wouldn't. i worked there without a single complaint, referral or so much as a warning. I changed positions to Career Services, and everything quickly came to and end. All my manager wanted to do was talk, pick favorites to help and if i didn't engage in the talking she would become very angry sending me emails of 100 things to do- which I did. Some staff was talking about some very inappropriate things about me. My manager just told me didn't stop the conversation, anything. So i went to her manager to make a complaint about the rumors about me. When i did this she became enraged. Started harassing me every single day. When i requested days off for my birthday she- didn't even look at the paper, said it wasn't enough time to request off. I looked in our Employee Handbook and I most certainly was in time to request off. She then called me a bully for looking at the book and then cornered me and harassed me until i felt so uncomfortable I could no longer work there. There are NEVER raises. I forgot to mention that i was promised a 25 cent raise like the other career services advisor yet never got it. Blatantly lied to. I would have never taken a position for more work without a pay raise? Or knowing both my co workers make more than me. I am appalled at the lack of HR response too. I called and they never called me back. So as long as you're fine with NO raises, NOT being able to touch the handbook, and getting NO HR help. This is the place for you. read more