Life Coaching has its own niche management groups that churn out dozens of websites that all adhere to the same standards. Life coaches may benefit from the marketing of these groups. However, for someone just starting out, the fees are quite high.
The fact that an educational institution would partner with a website building firm is not a surprise, and it's not a surprise that they want to make money. I guess what is a surprise is that people would spend the money to learn how to help others and then never get their businesses off the ground because they spent too much money on a website.
I would recommend this for any life coaches considering how to present themselves to the world: if you plan on getting most of your referrals online, believe a large database of your competition having the same design is good, and have a large amount of money to invest, it might be worth using a niche web design service. However, if you plan on doing your own marketing and want compete control over your website and content, and you're looking to stand out among your fellow life coaches, then find a web designer to help you launch your career.