I've Tried That - We lose money so you don't have to!

If you have done very much searching online for medical transcription jobs, you have probably heard of Transam Associates. Maybe you have even heard from them, like our reader, Teresa.

Like many of you, she posted her resume online and has started to hear back from scum sucking bottom feeders cesspool worms people claiming to be recruiters.

Here, for your education and edification, I include the email they sent her along with my editorial commentary [in brackets and bold]:

Subject: Medical Transcription – Will Train – No Experience!
["No Experience!" Here is the first red flag. In a tight economy, employers are more concerned than ever about getting the most bang for their buck when it comes to employees. Legitimate employers who are indeed willing to hire with no experience aren't going to shout about it. It will come up in the interview if you impress the hell out of the interviewer.]

via Beyond Job Alert

Hello, Teresa
Thank you for your sharing your Beyond resume for this work at home Job Alert! We are a medical transcription company.

After reviewing your resume we are interested.
[Uh-oh, second red flag. Not that Teresa doesn't have a killer resume—I'm sure she does. But this just doesn't sound like the language of a real employer to me. While jobs in which employers chase the employee are certainly real, I believe based on years of experience that they are rare. You chase the employer. That's the way it works in the large majority of cases.]
Transam Associates provides precise medical transcription of voice files that doctors dictate for hospitals, clinics and doctor offices.
[Maybe. But its Web site is so cheesy that if I were a clinic looking for a transcription service, I would not give it a second glance. This leads me to believe that Transam is not really interested in doing transcription.]

Transam Associates also conducts its own training program that prepares individuals for the medical transcription profession. This training is done online in the comfort of your own home. A personal trainer is provided to guide individuals in the training program through a Live Chat environment.

As a recruiter for this national transcription service, I am seeking full-and part-time, home-based medical transcriptionists. We are committed to providing a work environment where medical transcriptionists can grow and be respected for the professionals they are.
[But can you provide jobs? Not according to some of the complaint sites I've been reading.]

This is for entry level individuals and if you are not yet qualified, we’ll provide tuition FREE training and a personal trainer that you’ll need to become qualified. Once you meet our criteria, which will be defined for you before you begin, you will be certified by us as an accomplished medical transcriptionist and can begin to work for Transam Associates, Inc. Our special books and software are required.

[Remaining paragraphs deleted because we're not going to do their advertising for them.]

After transcribing this sample we will answer all your questions.

You are asked to transcribe a simple audio file and submit it to Transam for consideration. I can’t prove it, but my hunch is they would accept just about anything as a transcription of the audio file.

Why? Because Transam Associates is not looking for transcriptionists. It’s looking for people to sell its software to.

After you submit your sample transcription, you will receive another email that says it was true and accurate and worthy of moving forward (their words, not mine), and inviting you to request an application agreement.

The agreement is too long and boring to reproduce here, but it boils down to this the following. Transam claims to be able to train you in medical transcription and then to set you up with paying jobs.

First, however, you must by the proprietary Transam software, which apparently runs about $500. Here is one user’s experience:

They will do no more than rip you off money by making you buy their MT software and never putting peole into real work situations. The only thing they care for is for your MONEY from your purchase of their equipment(total of $490). This is obviously a SCAM. They want the money upfront and they offer NO refunds for any circumstances.

Transam Associates has a BBB rating of C-, for what it’s worth. I don’t put much stock in BBB reports, personally, but if you want to read it, it’s here:

The BBB has received complaints concerning the business’s selling practices and product quality of the software it sells. Specifically, consumers filing complaints with the BBB have stated that the business misrepresents its program. Consumers stated that they are required to purchase medical transcription training software in order to work for the business. Once the software is purchased, the business then requires that they complete practice tests prior to being given paid work by the business. Consumers are not provided work by the business until the business feels they have successfully completed the program. Additionally, consumers have stated that the software the business requires does not work properly.

So, back away from the computer and go for a walk. You are not on the verge of making $4k per month using your typing skills. (Oh, and here is a free bonus tip: MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION INVOLVES MUCH, MUCH MORE THAN GOOD TYPING SKILLS.) You are about to purchase non-refundable software and a lot of headache.

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