Forest Trail Academy Reviews 199

TrustScore 4.5 out of 5

4.4

While we don't verify specific claims because reviewers' opinions are their own, we may label reviews as "Verified" when we can confirm a business interaction took place. Read more

To protect platform integrity, every review on our platform—verified or not—is screened by our 24/7 automated software. This technology is designed to identify and remove content that breaches our guidelines, including reviews that are not based on a genuine experience. We recognise we may not catch everything, and you can flag anything you think we may have missed. Read more

See what reviewers are saying

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

My son attended Forest Trail Academy for three years - 10th, 11th and 12th grades. He enjoyed the flexibility of the asynchronous courses and being able to work at his own pace and create his own sche... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Success: Our son competed ninth and tenth grade with Forest Trail Academy. He then transferred to Running Start at our local community college. When he took the placement test, he was able to advance... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Easy to use format, quick turnaround on assignments, great flexibility (can complete one class at a time or work on all of them at the same time). Always quick to respond to questions and helpful when... See more

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Our 11th grade son is attaining academic success at FTA. The teachers and staff are personal, caring and supportive. FTA is helping our son learn, excel and grow. The curriculum is challenging and... See more

Company replied

Company details

  1. School
  2. Association or organisation

Written by the company

Forest Trail Academy is an accredited online school that offers online homeschool programs for students in grades K-12. The classes provide flexibility to study subjects according to a self-paced schedule that’s suited to the individual needs. We help students reach their educational goals by offering a variety of individual classes online. The curriculum we offer is aligned to Common Core State Standards and taught by qualified teachers.


Contact info

4.4

Excellent

TrustScore 4.5 out of 5

199 reviews

5-star
4-star
3-star
2-star
1-star

How this company uses Trustpilot

See how their reviews and ratings are sourced, scored, and moderated.

Companies on Trustpilot aren't allowed to offer incentives or pay to hide reviews. Reviews are the opinions of individual users and not of Trustpilot. Read more

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Excellent teachers and a good…

Excellent teachers and a good curriculum. Great for any homeschool student,

26 February 2020
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We love hearing from our Forest Trail Academy families! Thank you for the review.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Best decision made

Best decision made. Great school

20 February 2020
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Thank you for taking time to share your experience with Forest Trail Academy!

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Totally terrible online school

Very terrible online school, they did nothing to get money from customers, but stupidly uploaded documents in PDF files that students can't edit, students had to pay for PDF to doc. converter, then they can edit files and submit them to this website. There are only 2 people that were called teachers for grading. This website may have only 5 people working as administrators and 2 of them are so called teachers. They are very inefficient, rude and irresponsible, after my child's attempts to access its courses , and failed, I sent them complaint many times to fix the issue, then they reprehensibly said that I had too much issues , was welcome to withdraw, but I had to pay $150 fee, they wouldn't refund me in full even though my child just registered and paid without being able to access any courses. Don't waste your money and time on this trash website

4 February 2020
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We understand that we are not the best fit for everyone. We recommended they withdraw before their 5-day window was up to ensure they would not be responsible for tuition. The family withdrew and received a refund per our policy.

We wish this family the best as they continue in their academic endeavors.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Foresttrail academy is an excellent…

Foresttrail academy is an excellent place for students around the world to study the teachers go beyond to assist all their students and make sure they understanding the chapter before moving on to the next the school also offer a variety of high school programs which other schools don’t. Foresttrail academy is the best online schooling in America, I would recommend forest trail to anybody trying to earn a high school diploma.

18 January 2020
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Forest Trail Academy is pleased to offer exceptional educational opportunities to students worldwide, and we appreciate you taking the time to leave review.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Recent Graduate

I literally just graduated and received my diploma today - and I (mostly) have only positive things to say about FTA. I started my junior year and had to get an extension because I procrastinated far too much and, while it seemed like the end of the world at first, it taught me how to keep a schedule afterwards; and to set my own deadlines. Senior year was a lot better, and I passed all of my classes with ease. The only class I think could be better is pre-calc. For students like me who aren’t as great with math unless there’s a teacher beside me, it’s a lot harder to process blocks of information. I don’t blame the teacher, of course, I just hope they can tailor this class to be a bit more forgiving for slower students. Overall I have no regrets with FTA and highly recommend this school to anyone who feels like the public education system isn’t pushing them far enough :)

2 January 2020
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We love to hear from our students and we are especially proud of our graduates! Thank for your sharing your experience and providing suggestions for course improvement. We appreciate the feedback and will be sure to share it with our curriculum department. Congratulations on your graduation from Forest Trail Academy! We wish you the best!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great

Had a great time taking classes from here, one of the most applicable classes I’ve taken was an elective from here.

24 December 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We are pleased to hear you found your elective course to be applicable! Thank you for sharing your experience at Forest Trail Academy.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

We enrolled our daughter in November…

I didn't submit medical documentation because under HIPPA laws im am protected because of personal information on the documents. I just want my refund and collections harrassment to stop. I have already made a statement to the local media here and in your city they address wlling to put your heartless name on a story i renrolled our daughter in November 2019 she was hopitalized until just recently she never got to use the services of forest trail. I lost my job due to the medical reasons making me miss work. Leaving our family totally jobless being Christmas and heating season in NY i asked for my $350 back since it was never used they refuse to work with me stating a no refund policy i never received a copy of. Beware of this academy they are heartless

18 December 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We are sincerely sorry to read these sentiments.

Eighteen days after enrollment, the family asked to postpone payment due to recent medical issues. We requested medical documentation for review so that we could work with the family on delaying payment until the following month. Unfortunately, the documentation was never provided. Three weeks later (six weeks after enrolling), the family notified us they would be withdrawing.

Per policy, tuition is due in full upon enrollment. We offer a monthly payment plan as a courtesy to those who cannot or do not wish to pay in full. It is important for parents to understand all policies before signing the school’s agreements. In an effort to be transparent about our tuition/refund policies, all information is provided on the enrollment forms (the parent/student handbook, which must be signed by a parent within 7 days of enrollment) as well as our website.

Edited in response to the updated review:
We did not request documentation that violated HIPPA. When asked by the family if a discharge paper would suffice, we said yes. If this was an issue, they did not communicate it with us.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Buyer Beware

My son signed up to take their online pre-calculus course. It was advertised to have instructional videos and lessons with follow up worksheets. When he started the course he tried to log onto the videos but none of them worked. He then contacted the program and was emailed back that they have removed all the videos and he should go to Khan Academy for instructional videos. Additionally the worksheets made no sense and we had a math teacher look at them as well and he couldn’t understand half the questions either. I then called the academy and asked for a refund since this is not a course and was falsely advertised. They told me they do not refund money after 5 days even partially despite our efforts to work with them on this. What a waste of time and money.

9 July 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We regret to hear we did not meet your expectations, but we do believe there is a misunderstanding regarding the videos. We did not remove all videos from the course. Rather, there was one source that is no longer available and those particular videos were removed, to be replaced. There were additional videos in the course that were not affected and were available for students. While our curriculum team worked to make the necessary updates, we provided your student with direct links to a resource we use in many of our math courses, including PreCalculus.

We see that your student has been enrolled for nearly a month and has completed just over 25% of the course. Unfortunately, this is well beyond our 5 day policy as provided upon enrollment and our website.

Records indicate your student hasn't yet reached out to the teacher regarding the worksheet assessments in the course. We encourage him to do so. Our teachers are available via message center or live, virtual office hours. Please see the calendar for your teacher's office hours. If those days/times do not work for your student, he may contact the teacher to request a time that works for both parties.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

My son had gained the confidence and…

My son had gained the confidence and acquired knowledge about many aspects like searching for references , writing reviews etc. He had also gained experience in topics that he had not ventured before.

The topics in which he faltered could be revised with more emphasis on his weaknesses which was lacking in my opinion

I am satisfied with the academy

19 June 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We're pleased to hear that your son was able to learn about a variety of topics while enrolled at Forest Trail Academy. More so, we love that he has gained confidence! Thank you for sharing your experience.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

We love Forest Trail!!

Leaving the public school system and enrolling in Forest Trail Academy was the best decision for our family. My child has excelled academically as well as emotionally. Administration and staff are always available and helpful. The platform is easy to understand and use. We plan to stay with Forest Trail through middle and high school.

18 June 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 1 out of 5 stars

avoid at all cost

avoid at all cost, unable to access web site and login to do the school work, we tried three computers, and on each computer we tried google, safari and foxfire, and no luck and tech support said "well we can sign in so you will have to figure it out". Three days of frustration and little or no contact or response from tech support or admin. and they have a poor refund policy-dont do it, it will cost you plenty in the end

17 June 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We regret to hear that you had trouble logging in. Given the number of students enrolled in our school and this isolated incident of not being able to login, we are confident this was not a system issue. Based on the information provided, it appears to be an internet and/or browser settings issue, as conveyed via Help Desk multiple times. Records indicate we were able to login, more than once, as your student on all browsers. In addition, per our policy, your entire down payment was refunded minus the non-refundable registration fee.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

AVOID AT ALL COST!!

AVOID AT ALL COST!!
If we could, we would give Forest Trail Academy zero stars as the experience we have had/are having is the stuff of nightmares. We were assured and reassured that the classes are credited and recognized nationally. They are not!! The department of education here in NYC has never heard of Forest Trail Academy and we were told to pull our child out IMMEDIATELY. Our child is now behind on HS credits and has to play catch-up in the form of summer school and next academic year. We were lied to,dismissed, the effect of their dishonesty minimized and to top it all; their "eagerness" to have us pay for something that is not even valid and recognized!! We were strongly advised by the DoE to fight the case in court as the treats of court action have already started. We lawyer'ed up and are eagerly waiting to have the courts decide what to do with these "educators". They are saying that we are in breach of contract, we will then show and demonstrate that they run an illegal establishment. Cannot wait for that day to arrive so they can be shut down and other families will be saved from the misery we have had to go through...

14 June 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

The state of New York does not recognize any online school as an academic institution. They categorize online institutions as a home school. All parents/students enrolled at our school or any online school must enroll in their home school district as a home school parent/student. During the enrollment process, our admissions personnel inform all parents from the state of New York of this information.

We currently have students from NY enrolled in our program. Additionally, we have had former students from NY who have graduated with us or have taken classes or a grade level with us. We welcome any former and current NY parents to substantiate this information.

In regards to your review, we requested from you the name/title of the New York school personnel that informed you of this erroneous information but have not received a response from you, despite our numerous queries. We are still willing and able to speak with the personnel or representative that gave the information to you.

Please note that your student would not have to make up or repeat any courses that have been successfully completed. If the course was not successfully completed, then you are correct, your student would have to retake the course(s).

In regards to accreditation, our website provides direct links to the accrediting bodies so that all families are welcome to verify our accreditation for themselves.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

My son and I has had a very good…

My son and I has had a very good experience with Forest trail academy. He's able to go at his own paste without being rushed what pressured. He's doing very well in this online environment.

10 June 2019
Unprompted review
Rated 5 out of 5 stars

We have very good experience with…

We have very good experience with Forest Trail and we recommending to our friends.

10 June 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

Thank you for the review and recommendation!

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

I have absolutely NO insight into my…

I have absolutely NO insight into my child's work at all. I get an email every time he finishes an assignment, which is fine, but I cannot look at the essays he writes or find a list of work that is due and turned in or not turned in. I have used other parent portals that give a dashboard with all the critical academic info necessary for a parent to gauge how their child is doing and where they may need assistance. I would like to see a little more effort go into transparency for parents. My son recently wrote and essay that I would really like to read, but I am unable unless I am not using the website correctly...

10 June 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We provide parents/guardians with parent portal login information along with the student's login information on the date of enrollment. From the parent portal, parents/guardians may check the status of all assignments in their student's course(s). This includes viewing all submitted work, grades, feedback, and what assignments have/haven't been submitted. In addition, parents may send messages to the office and their student's teacher(s). Our system indicates that you have logged in (although not often). Please let us know if you need guidance on how to explore and use the parent portal. We are happy to help!

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

I hate my experience with this ..

I hated my experience with the school horrible! They don’t deserve no star. My daughter needed a copy of her transcript they refused to release it.
They don’t deserve any star.. they don’t care for the children it’s all business 👶 that’s my opinion

8 June 2019
Unprompted review
Forest Trail Academy logo

Reply from Forest Trail Academy

We are sorry to hear about your experience in regards to releasing records. However, per our policy and the agreement made with our partner program in which your student was enrolled, we are unable to release academic records with an outstanding financial balance. Please contact us once the issue has been resolved with the partner program and we will be happy to release records.

The Trustpilot Experience

Anyone can write a Trustpilot review. People who write reviews have ownership to edit or delete them at any time, and they’ll be displayed as long as an account is active.

Companies can ask for reviews via automatic invitations. Labeled Verified, they’re about genuine experiences.

Learn more about other kinds of reviews.

We use dedicated people and clever technology to safeguard our platform. Find out how we combat fake reviews.

Learn about Trustpilot’s review process.

Here are 8 tips for writing great reviews.

Verification can help ensure real people are writing the reviews you read on Trustpilot.

Offering incentives for reviews or asking for them selectively can bias the TrustScore, which goes against our guidelines.

Take a closer look