SAN DIEGO -- Brad and Tiger Wicks are brothers that had the same dream -- a new career with better pay.

The brothers went back to school and each paid $26,000 for training at the Southern California College of Construction in San Bernardino.

"They promised us the world," said Tiger Wicks.

The brothers said the vocational school promised to teach them how to operate heavy equipment, like tractors and excavators, and certify them for jobs that would pay up to $50 an hour

"It was a good sell for us," Brad Wicks said.

After six months of classes the brothers said they were told by school staff that they were qualified to work as heavy equipment operators. They were supposed to receive a certificate from the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER), a non-profit organization that sets standards for construction industry training. The brothers said they never received it.

"It's never shown up," Tiger Wicks told the I-Team.

Experts said a person does not have to be certified to operate heavy equipment, but the certification is important to employers looking to hire heavy-equipment operators. If one is not certified, experts said, it's hard to find a job.

"I got turned down for 12 jobs," Brad Wicks said.

"When we apply for the jobs they all tell us, 'Well, you're not NCCER certified,'" added Tiger Wicks.

The I-Team paid a visit to the San Bernardino school, but they had cleared out. Their offices were empty except for a few signs on the wall and some leftover mail. The property manager told the I-Team that the school fell behind on their rent payments and left.

The I-Team searched business records and found that Matt Klabacka is the man in charge of the school and four others. All of them are part of a nationwide company called the National Association of Heavy Equipment Training Schools, based in Henderson, Nev. The Wicks brothers said they called all of the schools run by Klabacka and asked them about their missing NCCER certification.

"They said there was nothing they could do for us," Tiger Wicks told the I-Team.

The I-Team tried to talk to Klabacka at his Las Vegas headquarters but it was closed and so was his Nevada training school. The I-Team was able to reach Klabacka by phone.

Klabacka told the I-Team that bad economic times forced him to shut down the two schools and that he never intended to deceive students. According to Klabacka, the certification that the Wicks brothers said they didn't receive isn't needed anyway. Klabacka promised to review his records and get back to the I-Team.

An attorney for the school told the I-Team that it was the fault of the NCCER that the brothers did not get the certificates. The attorney said he will work to correct the problem.