Online Trading Academy

[stevenann 10]

Has anyone ever taken any trading classes or have any information on this trading school?

[samhollander 10]

Stay far away from Pacific Trading Academy. No backup & after you finish your on your own. A lot of MONEY. Try a Live trading course. Maybe E-Mini Day Trader. Looks like a reasonable price.

Edited November 26, 2008 by Soultrader

[Minis Trader 10]

Has anyone ever taken any trading classes or have any information on this trading school?

 

I have not taken any classes from them but I do know someone that has.

 

The thing that I like about their system compared to some others is you actually trade their money (in small dollar abounts) to learn what it is like to be in a trade. Most other companies use a tell show strategy, theirs is tell, show, do!

[stevenann 10]

Minis Trader,

Thanks for the info. I liked the fact that you actually trade and you can also retake the classes at no extra cost.

[Minis Trader 10]

Minis Trader,

Thanks for the info. I liked the fact that you actually trade and you can also retake the classes at no extra cost.

 

If you take the class let me know what you think about it.

[mckinneyseller 10]

OTA has a lot of different types of classes: options, forex, equities trading, etc.

I took the equities trading 7 day class - Professional Trader I and II. The first time it was horrible. Didn't learn anything. May have written 1/2 page of notes over the entire 7 days! I had more knowledge from books than the instructor who may have been trading for a few years but hadn't taught himself anything!

 

I signed up for a retake and that experience was much better. The instructor was incredibly knowledgeable. I took about 30 pages of notes over the 7 days. If I do another retake, it'll cost me money but luckily I shouldn't need to after this instructor.

 

Bottom line: it is completely dependent on who the instructor is. Some are terrible, some are wonderful, most are medium. I talked with a lot of other students at an alumni event about their instructors. They concur with me.

 

It's a lot of money so think carefully. Read a few books first. The course is an odd mix of very basic information (what is bear/bull market) and technical tools (using Fib. for retracement).

 

OTA does offer a free 1/2 day to sell you on their courses. I think the free 1/2 day is worth your time. You get to know who is running the training center and how sincere they are.

[JONX 10]

Hi! Who can say whether it's useful to take courses at such academies? Will I improve my trading skills? How long will it take?

[diablo272 10]

I've never taken a trading course, but in my experience, trading is something that you have to do yourself. It seems to me that taking a simple 7 day course won't help you much because trading is just like any other profession--it takes a lot of time and dedication to learn how to succeed. You don't become a doctor without several years of education, right?

 

If you're completely new to trading, a profitable trader could tell you their strategy and everything they know, but you would most likely still lose money in the beginning. This is hard to explain, but knowing someone's strategy and knowing how to make money are two completely different things, and knowing how to make money only comes after you've spent many, many months watching your market every day for as long as you can afford to. Once you feel that you have some kind of grasp over what happens on the screen you're watching, start trading live. Some people will tell you to sim trade, and sim trading is very valuable, but you won't really know a HUGE part of trading until you're traded live, using real money. When your own money is on the line, all the rules you've made for yourself and all of the knowledge you accumulated take a back seat until you learn to trust yourself and the strategy you've created. If you don't have a strategy, you will probably lose money. I could go on and on, but instead I'll give you these links that will probably be much more helpful than any course you might pay for. I advise that you read all of these articles, browse this forum, and watch your selected market as much as you can. It's very important that you take this as seriously as possible--make it your LIFE--and you will have a great advantage over the majority of people who try to trade. Links:

 

http://www.trading-naked.com/Articles_and_Reprints.htm (make sure you read the articles on risk management)

http://www.trading-naked.com/library/Prologue.pdf (this "Trading as a Business" series is pretty good, I recommend that you read all of them)

http://www.traderscalm.com

 

I should add that I discovered those three links on this forum after I had already learned much of what is contained in those links the hard way--that is, through experience, trial and error, and a lot of reading. So I give credit to those who originally posted those websites here. One final piece of advice is that you throw your ego out the window and never look back. If you're new to trading, you have no idea what you're getting into. You might think you have some idea, at least the smallest idea, of what this is all about. You don't. You don't know what you're in for, but prepare yourself for the worst, NEVER even THINK about giving up, and you will probably have a decent chance of "making" it.

 

Keep in mind that I only have a little less than two years of trading experience, so I have a lot to learn myself, I'm sure.

Edited February 10, 2009 by diablo272

[JONX 10]

Absolutely agree. It's silly to hope than 7 day course will make you succeding trader, but maybe it will give you some instruments that of course you could have found yourself, but it would take more time and efforts, and maybe money. But I'm agree with the idea that personnal market learning is better.

 

P.S. I don't know how to remove angey smiley from the top of the post

[mckinneyseller 10]

Some people do learn better "hands-on" than by reading a bunch of books and articles. As for the web, how do you know which web sites have accurate information that will work for your style of trading (rhetorical). The course isn't for everyone which is why the free workshop is good to attend first to introduce you to what will be taught in the course. And the course is greatly improved by what the instructor brings to the course, if anything. You are right -- 7 days is only the beginning -- and you will have to keep learning on your own. If you want to day trade, statistics say only 5-7% are successful long-term.

 

At the risk of going off-topic, here are some calculators that may be useful but I'm not intending any new comments on this thread since it is off-topic:

http://traders-anonymous.com/calculators.aspx

[JONX 10]

I agree that trading maybe is more practice than theory. For ex. I have read a lot of literature, but there were no more than 2 books that developed my understanding of what is really goin' on concerning market.

[TraderJen 10]

I attended an Online Trading Academy seminar years ago in Orange County, CA. The sales pitch was pretty corny, IMO. The owner of the operation started the seminar by priming the audience to the idea that we could be trading at home in our bunny slippers, independent from investment advisors, mutual funds, etc... After an hour or so, their head "trader" casually walked in with his half buttoned shirt, gold chains around his neck and a stubbly face. He proceeded to talk about how he was totally financially independent, how he's traveled the world and charters yachts, blah blah blah...

 

Then, one by one, they called attendees out of the conference room and into separate rooms, where they had associates giving each attendee the hard sell. When it was my turn out of the room and into a one-on-one with a sales associate, I repeatedly declined their 7-days for $3XXX offer as well as declining to buy several of their packaged DVDs for home study around $800. They wouldn't even show me the respect of allowing me time to marinate on the ideas from the day. The sales guy, who identified himself as an OTA franchise owner in Houston, almost seemed hostile and patronizing towards the end of the sales pitch. In truth, I was actually interested in their school up until the interrogation style sales push.

 

Fast forward six years later to now... I'm very glad I didn't buy into OTA. Could they have effectively taught me skills to be a successful trader, I can't know. All I know is that I walked in there with genuine interest and walked out feeling like something was mighty fishy at OTA. It may be enticing to think that a 7 day course will fast track your trading skills, but I don't believe I could have had the same learning experience as I have had if I did join them. The years I've put in of reading, researching what works for me, sharing with other traders and developing my own style is something I highly appreciate.

[Dompie1985 10]

Hey guys, I just came back from a OTA Stock Trading seminar today and it seems like they have a lot to offer. My oppinion on OTA is that yea, it teaches you basics and technical analysis.... where you can get online and learning from experience. But I think what this class really focuses on is discipline, risk managment (how to control your mental stops) Psychology, not getting to greedy, not getting too carried away about your losses (thinking or hoping they will turn),

how to live, breathe, and abide by your strategies religiously and than adjust accordingly. Which I think is key because people get too carried away emotionally. This is a great class if you need some help with your stop limits, knowing when to pull out, and how to control your greed.

The bottom line is, If you are NOT HARD HEADED, than think of it as therapy.

 

Good reference tool, probably the best for people who know nothing about the market (great foundation). But if you've been trading for a while and have a set strategy, do not even bother.

[mjackson 10]

There is a lot of truth in what you guys experienced with these academy trainings...All I know is that technical trading (method) is not enough to be successful no matter how much you pay for training and what you learn there...

 

There is mind (discipline and personality, greediness...all kind of emotions..etc.) and money management involved very much in trading...

Someone can make living on MA crosses and other trader will not be successful with latest and greatest indicators and platform...

 

There are a few instructors from OTA having webinars on FxStreet.com: Sam Seiden and Steve Misic. I respect both of them.

[mjackson 10]

Hey guys, I just came back from a OTA Stock Trading seminar today and it seems like they have a lot to offer. My oppinion on OTA is that yea, it teaches you basics and technical analysis.... where you can get online and learning from experience. But I think what this class really focuses on is discipline, risk managment (how to control your mental stops) Psychology, not getting to greedy, not getting too carried away about your losses (thinking or hoping they will turn),

how to live, breathe, and abide by your strategies religiously and than adjust accordingly. Which I think is key because people get too carried away emotionally. This is a great class if you need some help with your stop limits, knowing when to pull out, and how to control your greed.

The bottom line is, If you are NOT HARD HEADED, than think of it as therapy.

 

Good reference tool, probably the best for people who know nothing about the market (great foundation). But if you've been trading for a while and have a set strategy, do not even bother.

 

I was talking about same thing in my previous post : discipline, hopes, emotions and I am glad you pointed it as well...Well I need it ...

[awylan 10]

Thanks for the links, they look really interesting.

 

I did go through Online Trading Academy. I was new to trading, so I was glad to have the 7 days and others to talk with. I have done most of their courses and am in their XLT (advanced training) now. It is a lot of money, but traders can loose so much more with losing trades. I think it was worth the $ for me, but I still have a lot to learn.

 

They teach the trading aspect well, especially if you go back and have different teachers. I think they do not cover the psychology of trading well enough at all. They just started a new course on this, which I am sure is a start.

 

I just started offering coaching to traders to work on the discipline (I am a business coach in a past life) since it is the discipline and psychology I find that I am struggling with now.

 

I agree with a post above, that it seems no matter where you are trained it just takes time to learn. You have to preserve your capitol so you don't run out while you are learning!

[jeffgroove 10]

I took the pro trader course, and I do like that you can retake, and ditto to other reviewers as far as worthiness of instructors. While their is only so much you can get out of a book, the only thing I did not like about OTA in retrospect is that they are kind of a power/pressure sales operation. Even while I was taking the pro trader course, at one part of the week, they did a one hour infomercial for their other stuff which kind of annoyed me. Especially if I am already allotting time off a busy schedule. If your brand new to all this, then it is decent.

 

So my review is kinda mixed. Their is nothing that they teach that you cannot get out of a book, and if someone had a perfect trading system, it would be virtually priceless. Would I do it again, knowing what I know now? Not really sure. If anyone has a specific question about it, ask me.

[ek123 10]

I took almost all the OTA classes and I am a 3 XLT member.

In my opinion its worth taking the OTA Pro-Trader class if you are very new to trading. The class gives you good inside about how to read charts, different type of indicators and lots of technical analysis. But don't forget NO one is going to teach you how to make money in trading. OTA classes will introduce you to general education, it up to you how you will interpret and use this info.

Each OTA school is individually operated and owned, its a franchising. I had a good experience at the Northridge, CA location. But its a different story when you talk about the XLT class. Please do your homework before buying the XLT class. Its completely different experience from what they present to you. Don't get me wrong they do have good instructors also but and there are many buts.

Most important is that instead of paying thousands of $ for the XLT class, you can get the same recordings and information for free on the web (NO I am not black market selling the recordings, this is unethical in my book)

Pls e-mail me at market_account@yahoo.com if you like to know about the pros and cons.

[Tomatoes 10]

SCAM! Although not new, Online Trading Academy based out of Irvine, Ca pretends to offer investment/trading education across multiple asset categories like stocks, options, futures, commodities, forex and real estate.

 

The cost is salty beginning at $5,000 for their basic course and up to $10,000 per mentoring class and $65,000 for their passport programs.

 

They have been running informercials on late night tv much like the now defunct Teach Me To Trade. More recently they are using apparently bogus testimonials on the internet posted by apparently paid shills and OTA employees.

 

They even have their own website which implies that it is a 3rd party review site. An obvious clue is the raving five star reviews which all look like they were written by the same person and that other accurate, but not so positive reviews are blocked and deleted.

 

OTA will lure you to their facility to attend a Power Trading Workshop, ostensibly a 1/2 day workshop which really only lasts about 3 hours, time for lunch and registration included.

 

Calling it a workshop is quite a stretch. It is a blatant sales pitch much worse than any time share presentation.

 

The course includes primarily basic t/a which can be found in any inexpensive book or even free on the internet.

 

They claim to offer a one time $2,000 schlorship discount for that day only. This is a lie.

 

They also promise lifetime retakes. But their class room only seats about 20 people and they are constantly pushing for more clients. Where will they put everyone? FACT: Most clients quit in frustration and even though classes and workshops are listed as "sold out", there are more often less than half full and cancelled.

 

And they also promise tuition reimbursement. (Don't you love the way they throw around those educational terms to make them sound like a real school?) Here again, read the fine print and really check them out. You know what they say about when things sound too good to be true.

 

On some websites where complaints have not been deleted, supposed company officials post rebuttals and challenge anyone to contact them at their corporate offices in California. The number is a toll number, not toll free and those who have called find it links to a voice mail and after leaving multiple messages, no one returns the calls. So much for help from corporate.

 

OTA also seems very upset about the increasing number of complaints appearing about them on the internet and are now charging complaintants as being people who work for the competition, frustrated, lazy students who wouldn't take the time to follow their courses, deadbeat clients who defaulted on their loans (18% interest, t hey may be right on this one!) people whose credit cards were denied and disgruntled former employees.

 

Before it was called Online Trading Academy, it was called bloc securties, then momentum securities, then Newport Beach securities. In Orlando, the local office ownership has changed hands five times in a few years and has had massive employee turnover.

 

Many of OTA's offices are located in right to work states which means that employees were probably treated unfairly so there probably are a lot of unhappy ex employees out there for sure.

 

However, one thing that Online Trading Academy doesn't want to admit is that they have a lot of unhappy clients and whatever is showing on the internet pales compared to what goes on in the local offices where clients are many times screaming at Online Trading Academy staff for their wrong doings and high pressure sales tactics.

 

Stay away from these guys!

[Laki 10]

The truth is although i like online trading academy, it's probably the best "trading school", their prices are quite prohibiting for me. In order to reach their XLT level, you might need more than $15.000. I still believe that they offer great information, and I, as a forex trader i have learned a freaking lot from just the free articles of some of their traders/instructors. But still, cmon, $15.000? And that is only for forex, if you want stocks etc, you got to pay these amounts again. Especially for forex, i don't think it is worth it, as you can get all the "supply and demand" stuff that online trading academy teaches and preaches from other sites like advantage signals. Don't know if their signals are any good yet (i don't have enough data, i am still on free trial), but the educational info provided with every signal is quite unique. Anyway, about online trading academy, if i was rich and wanted to learn about forex trading, i think i would give them a shot. But I cant pay for that now anyway :P If you want to buy me a "passport" to their classes for my birthday, then ok!

[pb2013 10]

Hi, check out this conversation thread also going on right now about Online Trading Academy, fyi , you may find it helpful also. ~ pb

[pb2013 10]

Don't know how to link here, so try this to see the other convo going on about them right now... good luck!

 

http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/beginners-forum/8476-online-trading-academy-ota-review-strategy-4.html#post176838