Our Take
Model Mama’s Take:\r\n\r\nFirst let me start off with Barbizon is not an agency. It’s a school. What’s the difference? An agency makes money (everyone has to make money) by taking a cut of the jobs they book for clients. Barbizon is a school, they make money from tuition they charge for their training. So yes you should never pay for an agency, they are still going to make money from you, but they are going to take it out of your check. Everyone has to get paid, it just comes in different ways.\r\n\r\nSecond, The Barbizon representative that called SHOULD NOT have said that she was calling from an agency or with any mention of modeling for a fall clothing line because it’s just not true. While some Barbizon locations do have a placement division which helps notify grads of opportunities in the industry, they can not guarantee job placement, no one can. When my daughter went to Barbizon they were fairly up front with us but I also asked A LOT of questions. And that’s always my advice for parents, ask questions. The deal with Barbizon is it’s a modeling and acting training program, what drew me in more as a parent is the self-confidence building they provide. What drew my daughter in was obviously the modeling and acting.\r\n\r\nBottom line, Barbizon should not allow sales tactics like the one cited in this complaint, but it’s not a bad program, parents just need to ask questions and know what they are getting into.