<p>I really need to take an SAT prep course this summer and I found ivyinsiders in my search but I haven't heard about it before .. but it seems pretty good w/ all ivy league instructors 280-300 pts guarantee .. so I am thinking about taking the hybrid course</p>
<p>has anyone taken this course and what is your review on it ? </p>
<p>i need to noe asap thnx!</p>
<p>how do you know they're REALLY ivy league instructors? and who cares if they're not? and the 280-300 pts guarantee is just plain funny.</p>
<p>what do you mean? i read it on their site .. they give a detailed overview of the instructors and their score on the sat and all of them are in ivy leagues..so obviously they know how to score high on the SAT .</p>
<p>What he means is that there is no way to guarantee a 280-300 point increase. And how do you know that they are not lying to you? There no way for you to check if they truly are who they say they are. I can make a site saying that I am an Ivy League instructor just as easily as they can, but that does not make it necessarily true.</p>
<p>The point is, if you have not heard of it before, then chances are, it is not that great of a course. Try searching on the forums to see if anyone else has taken it. If not, then I suggest that you do not either.</p>
<p>Apparently the only other thread about ivyinsiders is almost 100% negative, so it probably isn't that great of a course.</p>
<p>haha..hi..i am taking this course currently. my teacher is from yale. and i know she is REALLy from yale..because of facebook creeping and stuff..so yeah you can trust that they are really ivy league instructors. as for the course itself..ehh i think it really depends on your level. if you're more brawny, you could probably get full potential of this course but if you're already in ther 650+ range, then it won't really help you.</p>
<p>dear khoitrinh:
their site is legit. they have copyright books and accredited editors who are all students from harvard, yale, brown, etc..
so no need to be such a pessimist :)</p>
<p>In my opinion, any SAT course is a waste of time unless your scoring way below average. 200-300 score guarantee? If you have a 2100 and they guarantee 300, then go for it. I mean, you can always take your money back if you don't get a perfect score.</p>
<p>I know they are real students at ivy leagues, but I am not sure if the course is good.</p>
<p>that the instructors are from Ivy or not is not the problem. every teacher at sat prep course must have a high score in every single test so that he can teach you. I'm currently taking a course at PR and the teacher is Yale student. anyone with a persistent score >2300 can be a teacher</p>
<p>I don't know much about the company or the course. The advertising appears misleading, however. The "36-hour" course actually only features 15 classroom lecture hours (the rest are presumably diagnostic testing hours). A 15-hour classroom SAT course cannot possibly claim to be comprehensive or in-depth, no matter how good the instructors or the materials are. The score improvement guarantee chart on the home page is also misleading. As far as I can tell, there is no actual score improvement guarantee (with a refund of the course fee). The guarantee simply allows the student to retake the course free of charge. There is really no point in retaking a classroom course that did not work the first time, and the student will almost certainly not be able to magically achieve a 250- to 300-point improvement on the exam simply by taking the course multiple times (and even if this could be achieved, this tactic is a decidedly time-consuming and inefficient way of achieving such an improvement). I would recommend avoiding this course.</p>
<p>thnx for all your replies! i guess that i won't be taking this course .. i just need some desperate help with critical reading ... i take so many practice tests but my score still does not improve it remains in the low 500s</p>
<p>Have you researched the private tutoring companies or private tutors in your area? Some high schools maintain a list of test prep companies and private tutors they might recommend for SAT preparation. Of course, the phone book is another place to look. Good luck, and let me know if you have any other questions.</p>
<p>For anyone who stumbles onto this discussion… let me clear a few things up.</p>
<p>I am a current instructor for ■■■■■■■■■■■, so I am biased. I go to Princeton University and was hired in May - they really do come to the Ivy League schools for personal interviews (so no scam there) and do have published materials authored by the founder of the company.</p>
<p>I do not want to deceive anyone by saying that IvyInsider’s score guarantee means that you’ll raise your score no matter what - the guarantee just reflects (and maybe rounds up - I’m actually not sure) the average scores raises over the company’s six years in existence. </p>
<p>What actually raises scores?
A student’s desire to work at it.
This can be by the student’s own impetus, but a course often provides the right push. Since all courses do this, I’d prefer the cheapest course out there. </p>
<p>The right basic techniques.
There are some techniques to learn about the SAT and it’s pretty important to learn them early, before you practice with poor technique. I think this is more dependent on the quality of the material the class offers, which honestly doesn’t really vary (there is no magic program). </p>
<p>Practice
The number of REAL practice tests taken is pretty important, and this number is the same with all prep courses.</p>
<p>So is ■■■■■■■■■■■ going to guarantee a high score? Not if you don’t work at it. </p>
<p>Can you get a high score without a course? Yes, provided you have the right motivation without taking a course</p>
<p>Why am I involved with ■■■■■■■■■■■? Because I honestly enjoy the process of teaching - and I think that’s the real advantage of this program. Most Ivy League students have a lot of options for a productive summer and would not be involved with ■■■■■■■■■■■ if they were not passionate teachers. I’m genuinely excited about the prospect of seeing my students grow and will work hard to make sure it happens - any student of mine will have my personal guarantee and my commitment to do my best to get them into their target school.</p>
<p>The only thing needed to improve on the SAT’s is yourself. No need to pay hundreds of dollars for a course, or a tutor. </p>
<p>If you want it bad enough, there’s no reason you can’t teach yourself.</p>
<p>So much for a assessment test if you’re being prepared for it beyond understanding the layout of the test.</p>
<p>Here’s all you need to prepare:</p>
<ol>
<li>Intensively read philosophy and scientific literature for the CR and Writing sections.</li>
<li>Look for YouTube SAT math videos for the math section. </li>
<li>???</li>
<li>Profit!</li>
</ol>
<p>While I’m sure ■■■■■■■■■■■ is an honest company, quite frankly they defeat the purpose of standardized testing.</p>
<p>■■■■■■■■■■■ waaaaaaaaaaay overcharges. Total scam.</p>
<p>I’m an ex-■■■■■■■■■■■ employee (was hired, decided to not scam students so I just didn’t hold any classes like they wanted me to (they take 60% of the revenue)) so I’m biased. :P</p>