FirstCom Academy's Suspension and the Issue of Incentives

SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) has recently highlighted that training providers should not offer incentives for referrals to courses, a practice that led to the three-month suspension of FirstCom Academy. This action is in direct violation of SSG's terms for training providers, as confirmed by the authority in response to CNA's queries.

A former employee of FirstCom revealed that these incentives included shopping vouchers, free food, and gifts. Additionally, a trainer provided evidence of a 2022 email detailing a referral program offering trainers 20% of the full course fee for every new learner they referred.

The academy has been under investigation since early this year due to public feedback received by SSG. The suspension, effective from January to March 2025, is primarily related to the use of a referral program for marketing purposes.

Vouchers for Google Reviews: A Question of Professional Conduct

Besides the referral incentives, FirstCom Academy also offered vouchers for Google reviews. Both a former employee and an ex-trainer provided slides to CNA, showing that course trainees were asked to do reviews in exchange for shopping vouchers.

SSG has strongly discouraged such practices, stating that they are unprofessional. "We strongly discourage incentives in exchange for favourable reviews on platforms such as Google, as it runs against professional conduct," SSG told CNA.

As of December 9, FirstCom Academy boasts nearly 50,000 reviews with a 4.9-star rating. The company prominently displays this rating on its website, describing itself as "the most publicly-reviewed training academy in Singapore." Despite this, FirstCom Academy declined to comment when contacted by CNA.