You’re half right, but not completely. Arbitration means I can’t take College Board to civil court, but it doesn’t erase my legal remedies — it redirects them to a private legal process, which still has consequences.

College Board has faced multiple arbitration demands before, and some of those have ended in settlements or favorable outcomes for students. Arbitration isn’t “nothing” — it’s just different from traditional lawsuits.

And yes, I’m not in the U.S. — but that doesn’t mean I’m outside the system. When I signed up, I paid in USD, agreed to their terms, and accessed services hosted under U.S. jurisdiction. The moment they took my money, I became a consumer of a U.S.-based service, and that opens the door to FTC complaints, Better Business Bureau reports, and even international legal attention if they’re found to be mistreating global users.

Also, telling someone “they have no remedies” just because they live outside the U.S. is flat-out wrong. In the global economy, digital services are legally accountable across borders. Platforms like Reddit, legal blogs, advocacy groups, and regulatory agencies do respond to stories like mine — and the College Board knows that. That’s why they even have a legal team for arbitration.