Durham Technical Community College

So far I've only attended for some Spanish classes. The campus is fairly easy to navigate and students and staff alike are usually keen to help if you're turned around. The library is AWESOME, tons of resources in book, DVD/Blu-ray, CD, graphic novel, etc formats, and small spaces you can reserve for study groups.

It’s fine. No social scene though so not like a normal college if you want the college experience don’t go here but it’s good if you just want to take a few classes and go home. Also, be kind to the resident geese or they will hiss at you.

Good school, watch out for phone theft. My phone went missing a year ago. Yesterday the find my iPhone app said my phone was found in china. So good school but if you drop your phone on the ground, someone will steal it and ship it to China

I had a wonderful experience. The staff was very professional and kind. When they speak you can tell they really want you to be successful in whatever career you choose. I made a good decision on selecting this school to continue my education.

Horrible horrible office staff. Very little capabilities in assisting students, especially within the VA department. Incorrect contact information ALL across the website. Was forced to drive 3 hours to be able to speak to someone in person, since phone calls and emails are not answered. To get there and be spoken to like a child. Sorry ma’am….do your job right and be pleasant or find another job. Students depend on you for your guidance so be helpful and smile. Luckily I’m only a summer student and attend Chapel Hill full time.

I'm a new student at Durham Tech, and so far I think it is good. The teachers are good and helpful. The staff is good and always try to answer questions as soon as they can, as well as giving you appointments to meet with the right person you need to talk to. The campus is safe and people around are friendly.

Their departments are quite disorganized, and it feels like the office staff are never actually working, especially in the Continuing Education department. Emails go unanswered, and phone calls just get endlessly transferred without ever reaching anyone, as if no one is even there. You’re almost forced to visit the school in person, as if it were 50 years ago, because nothing gets resolved remotely and you simply can’t reach anyone.

I recently earned two IT Certificates from DTCC, and had a positive experience overall. Two of my instructors were outstanding - Ms. Carol Terrell and Mr. Donnie Sommerfeld. All of my classes were online, so I didn't get to know my fellow students or spend time on campus, unfortunately.

Unengaged teachers, poorly structured classes. Also they pretend they accept 504s but actually the just ignore them completely. And when you look for help nobody is available.

My child registered for this school and it's almost impossible to get help with anything. You can't reach anyone. People are not knowledgeable about what's going on at the school. I guess she's gonna have to sit this year out because unfortunately this was the school she chose. She has been trying to change her program with no help because she can't log into the system after changing her password multiple times per her advisors request. She was compelled to change her program after speaking with her advisor, but she has received no assistance with their system issues. I guess Fridays are their days to chill because you literally can't reach anyone. I tried going up to the school to see if she could possibly get this resolved today, but they had the doors locked at 2:00pm when we arrived. This place is poorly run.

This is definitely your typical community college. Nothing is done promptly. I will say once registered things do flow smoother. I have completed an associates degree in medical assisting here and I love the career I'm in. That program has some really great instructors. I'm now finishing my last few classes here so I can transfer to a university. So have a plan and move on to better things!

Durham Tech...what a waste of time and energy. Signed up for a class....class canceled. Signed up for the next class.....class canceled. Both times I was only given 24hrs notice of cancellation of the classes. When trying to get answers I got tossed around from this person to that person none of them willing to assist me. They have now had my my money for a course I seem unable to take with them for almost 3 months, is there even a sincere apology for basically stealing from me? Now they offer to transfer me to the next class that they cannot guarantee will not cancel and even told me its likely that it will not wind up taking place. I would rate this place 0 stars if I could, hell I would run it into the negatives if the system allowed. My experience has boiled down to rude employees quick to take your money and uncaring about whether or not that money that you spent on coursework ever actually winds up delivering said coursework. I will be requesting my money back and pursuing my coursework at a different school which may actually provide what you pay for. Could not be more frustrated and disappointed in my experience.

Good lord, where to start? Well, I suppose I should start at the beginning. Application and registration. What a nightmare! It took longer than forever, making 3 - 5 calls per day, to get a call back from anyone regarding the registration process. The good news is, once you've applied and registered, the hard part is over. As far as instruction goes, I've had nothing but good experiences. I'm currently a student in the Dental Laboratory Technology program, which is staffed by instructors who not only know their subject matter inside and out, but honestly seem to care about their students' success. If these 4 faculty members are any indication of the school's faculty at large, all students are in for a good experience. From my experience, the key here is to already have a plan of what you want to do, and not rely on the application/advising/registration staff to be integral in those decisions. All in all, the instructional side of the institution should be getting 4, if not 5, stars while the administrative side gets 2.

My first thought in writing this review mimics Andrew R. exactly, "Good Lord, where to start..." Durham Tech was a good choice for me as a college graduate looking to complete some pre-requisites as I transitioned into a new career. As someone who has been a young professional since 2011, the cost of the classes didn't break my bank, $72/credit. They offer classes for every persons needs, and as a working professional while taking classes at DTCC, I was able to take three classes during the semester while working full time and not feel overwhelmed (I did study my ass off, don't get me wrong, but was still able to enjoy a social life). During my year stint at DTCC I took A&P I and II, Statistic and Sociology (online). Out of those classes, only one of the professors would I recommend, one I would say was okay, and the other three I would not recommend unless you're looking to only self-educate yourself. While most of the professors were easy to get hold of, some seemed every unaware of what was going on within the rest of the school community, didn't know class policies. In addition, a couple times I tried to reach out to the heads of certain departments and never received responses. I would study often in the library, although as far as school material and resources, it was definitely lacking. In addition, students as only allowed to print 10 black and white copies out a day. Another very frustrating issue about DTCC was the enrollment, ID, etc process. It was hard to get answers as a transferring student enjoying to take a handful of classes and I had to follow-up and constantly call to discover answers. I even took some lunch breaks where I went into the school just to wait in line to try to get questions answered. Wait times are insane as you get closer to the semester and each staff person you interact with will either be friendly and helpful or make you want to yell at them to quit their job and find something that makes them happy. I swear one of the most unpleasant ladies I've ever met works in parking permits/IDs, was hateful, grumpy and very unhelpful to me as a student. The unfortunate part is her job is seemingly simple and she could make a students experience so positive, yet she chooses to call students out, tell them they aren't doing anything right yet not pointing them in the correct direction. It was very intimidating waiting for her to call me up to the counter after a thirty minute wait and watching countless students being ridiculed and sent away because Durham Tech doesn't have a policy in place to teach students how things should be done. Overall, my experience at Durham Tech was a necessary evil. If you can get through the admissions part just be ready to study and teach yourself materials. I've got to pay, Professor John Stauble was one of the best teachers I've ever had, throughout my entire undergrad and post experience. If you have the chance to take him, you will learn a great deal. He encourages students to discover their most beneficial study habits and really made me feel like an individual student in a room of 25-30 peers. So there's a give and take at DTCC, out of five professors, one was stellar and the other were okay to terrible. Unfortunately, if you're looking to go back to school while working full time and not make a huge dent in your bank, DTCC is really the only in class option available in the Durham, so you'll just have to make your own choice.

The school is a joke. Don't waste your time unless you absolutely have to take classes here.

This location is a joke. Completely disorganized and unprepared for anything. A four year old could manage this location better

This review is specifically for the Esthetics program. What a mess. The whole program is suppose to be 11 months and during that time we had 6 different instructors. Their biggest problem is that they don't train their instructors on how they want things done, so while the students are learning we have many different inputs and changes all the time. The lead instructor can't carry on a conversation without getting distracted or looking at her phone, also she does not answer questions. If you want a very basic cheap education where you are treated like a child, this is where you go.

This is your typical community college. My only issue is that the class schedules are not as flexible as you would hope for from a community college and there are not as many online learning options as I would have expected.

I love Durham Tech. Great value, good instructors, helpful staff. Ain't no UNC, but a good education without all of the argyle.