This initial ‘report’ is so uninformed it hurts. I’m a few years out from going through YEAA and calling this a pyramid scheme is far from the truth. The genuine and tightly knit entrepreneurial community and mentors they offer paired with high-level coaching and willingness to help you through the process of starting a business is priceless. I would recommend to everyone I know and its changed my life for the better in so many ways, and for one knucklehead who may have struggled with this program to try to shut down the organization as whole is ill-minded, shortsighted, and ignorant to what the organization really is.
I worked for YEAA in the summer of 2019 and I made over $12,000. All of the above statements in this post are false. The skills I learned through YEAA helped me get the job I have today and I will forever be grateful for the opportunity.
Victim Location 43210
Type of a scam Employment
"Young Entrepreneurs Across America" is a pyramid-scheme like "business" that traditionally targets students on college campuses who may be interested in an "internship" opportunity. I was contacted by a recruiter from YEAA and it sounded like a scam, so I did some research. YEAA markets itself as a company that provides leadership training to college students, but in reality it forces them to sign a contract that mandates they buy tremendous amounts of proprietary YEAA products in order to "market" their painting business. The vast majority of students get tricked into this because they advertise testimonials on their websites of students who make tens of thousands of dollars over a summer. But, most students end up losing money because there is a limited market for house painting and they are required to purchase so much product up front. This is a pretty typical pyramid scheme that preys on college students.
This is the email I received from a recruiter, on the campus of Ohio State University:
OSU Student,
Are you currently looking for a challenging internship for the upcoming 2019 summer that will truly test yourself? Are you looking for an organization that encourages learning and development from its interns as opposed to the low-end tasks the full time employees don’t want to take on. Are you seeking an opportunity that is unique and outside the box that could help set you apart in that future job interview? Are you looking for something outside of just sitting at a desk next summer while refining your leadership and management skills?
If any or all of the above apply to you then Young Entrepreneurs may have the right internship opportunity for you. Established in 1987, Young Entrepreneurs have been hiring OSU students for over 25 years and putting them through their summer management internship program.
We are seeking motivated, driven, high-energy individuals that truly believe that it is the opportunities that they take on during their collegiate career that will set them apart upon graduation. This is also a paid summer internship with last year’s managers earning an average of $10,000 in income.
We will be holding information meetings on main campus next Thursday, November 15th in the Ohio Union during the afternoon. This is the first opportunity for students to get all of the information on our program, ask questions, and to be considered for employment. Due to the overwhelming response that we typically have at this time of the year these information sessions are appointment based.
Simply reply to this email with your name, phone number, and the city you will be living in this summer. We will contact you Wednesday evening to set you up with a recruiter for Thursday afternoon. Info sessions are casual in nature, conducted in a group setting, and typically last about 30 minutes based on the amount of questions asked per session.
In the meantime feel free to check out our company website at www.yeaainternship.com. You can search both alumni and current students of OSU and other Ohio universities to see their testimonials and where they are at today.
Regards,
Matthew Amheiser
Student
Max M. Fisher College of Business
Regional Manager
Young Entrepreneurs Across America
I did not lose money from this as I know it’s a scam, but I’m worried that other college students will fall prey to these dishonest tactics.
I am a 3rd year Senior Executive at the YEAA and I am sad that anyone would put this type of innacurate information out there about it being a scam. I am in my 5th year at UMass Amherst studying Applied Mathematics and Engineering and after only 2 summers at this internship I have experienced insane personal growth, gotten an awesome network from the company and some of my closest friends are interns that had this amazing experience alongside myself the past 2 summers. My first year I ran a $90,000 business and made around $16,000. This past summer returning as an executive to mentor the next class of incoming branch managers I ran a $161,000 business and profited over $47,000 dollars. Choosing to be an intern with YEAA has completely changed my life and is the best decision I have made in my life so far.
I didn’t make any financial investment in order to become an intern with the company. The only investment I made was to trust their process and put in time and effort, as any business does to market my business and sell work before actually launching it. An amazing thing about YEAA is the support system that you have around you, you are given an executive who is your mentor throughout the entire process who you can call 24/7 whenever you want to either just talk or get advice on something. On my most challenging day my first summer I called my executive 21 times in one day.
This internship is for people who want to experience personal growth, get out of their comfort zone, and learn what it takes to actually run and scale a business and become a leader.
The great thing is, say you take a little longer to learn how to be a good leader than the rest of your peers. Then the floor of what you earn through the company is minimum wage for the summer.
Once again, I hope you understand how ridiculous this claim is about YEAA being a pyramid scheme.
I interned with YEAA last summer and had an incredible experience. I enjoyed my experience so much that I decided to come back for a second year. The company did not require us to pay for any of our marketing materials or make any up front investment like this post says. I gained an invaluable experience through this internship opportunity and grew immensely from it. The company supports its managers with everything and provides a risk-free opportunity to learn how to run a business. I have made some incredible new connections, developed an understanding of what goes into running a business, gained experience in marketing, sales, management, and more, as well as earned myself a significant amount of income for the summer which I am using to pay for school.
YEAA has been in business since 1987. Last summer, it employed nearly 1,500 college students in 10 states across America. None of our Managers are at financial risk and we guarantee that all Managers hired will make at least minimum wage over the course of the summer. YEAA also never mandates any managers to buy tremendous amounts of proprietary YEAA products in order to ‘market’ their business. We provide all marketing materials, training, and tools to make a successful business over the summer. All of the testimonials on our website are actual Alumni and people that went through the program. Again no students are at financial risk as they are never asked to give us any money, or pay any money to be a apart of the program. I hope this helped clear up your misunderstanding about our company.
Maybe not an MLM (pyramid scam) but they sure operate very similarly in that you’re expected to harass your family, friends, neighbors, etc. to buy from “your” painting business. Only it’s not really your business, you have to pay YEAA most of the money and if you decide it’s not for you and you back out early – you owe them money. Students make squat for all the work, the money goes to YEAA, so it’s a bit like a pyramid scam in that regard but you cannot recruit so technically, no. They refer to the “employment” as internship, which it is not.
There are plenty of legitimate businesses out there offering internships and positions, go to one of those and avoid this shady company.