<p>I was wondering if Kaplan Test Prep is a respectable test prep company. How does it compare against other national test prep companies, such as Princeton Review? Anybody taken test prep there before and what did you think about it? </p>
<p>I heard its a lot more prominent in the East Coast than it is here out west.</p>
<p>bump... any opinions?</p>
<p>any thoughts?</p>
<p>I hear that Kaplan's new SAT course is only 20 hours long -- woefully inadequate for the exam. I've heard many stories of Kaplan students not improving or improving by a very small amount after taking the class. I am a former instructor for both Kaplan and the Princeton Review. I don't really recommend either company, but if you had to choose, you should go with PR.</p>
<p>I took Kaplan classes for the new SAT, and it all depends on what you are looking for. If you are aiming for the 700s, Kaplan won't help you. It teaches basic things that are designed to get people in the 620-650 range, at best. I found the classes repetitive, and my teacher was not very smart, she just read straight out of a book. The only benefit was the simulated tests, which helped my timing and got me ready for the actual testing environment in the new SAT.</p>
<p>If you are looking for scores in the 700+ range you probably shouldn't even bother with classes. Safe yourself a LOT of money and just buy the CB's official book and Kaplan workbooks in whichever subject you feel you need help in. Take a lot of simulated tests.</p>
<p>I'm taking it now for the May SAT's. I'm really finding it helpful but then again I'm kind of a slacker and know I wouldn't self study.I think it's great for kids like me, solid B+ students that are looking to get in the 650-680 range. Your first class is a simulated SAT which is used as your base/diagnostic test then you have classes focusing on all three parts of the SAT. Every other week you take another full length test. I just took my first test after the diagnostic test and went from a 590-600 to 650+ so I'm encouraged I could crack 700. I like it because it forces me to prep. It's not for most of the kids on this board who are highly motivated and really smart but it's great for average kids looking for above average SAT's. Oh yeah, there is homework :(</p>
<p>Based on economics, Kaplan and TPR must provide decent test prep to the majority of students or they wouldn't be in business any more and surely wouldn't be making money. I've taught various courses for Kaplan for five years and I have been very happy with the course but it definitely depends on who delivers it. There are several stories (and I'm sure TPR and any other test prep company are also filled with them) of students who had a horrible teacher and didn't learn the method, didn't get the repeatable timing, etc. That's what I'm hearing from the people on this post. It is frustrating that you could either end up with someone who has been teaching for 5 years and is really involved with test prep, or you could end up with a teacher who is teaching a first course.</p>
<p>I'm sure either course is good but remember a couple of things:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Classroom time is not nearly as important as the work you do <em>outside</em> of class. If you don't practice on SAT problems for at least 20-30 minutes <em>every day</em>, your score will only improve marginaly. It's a lot like people trying to take short cuts with weight loss. The key to weight loss is diet and exercise but everyone is searching for a short cut to it and thus we have a lot of "Lose weight quickly" products which are largely ineffective. The key to score increases on the SAT is consistent practice. That's what <em>everyone</em> needs to do whether or not you take a test prep company or not.</p></li>
<li><p>Beware of test prep companies that offer you a specific score increase. Kaplan has a "higher score guarantee" which guarantees that your score will increase from your diagnostic if you do attend all classes and tests and do all the required homework. Kaplan will give your <em>money back</em> if your score does not go up. TPR has a 200 point score increase but does not offer your money back if your score doesn't increase; they only offer a "Refresher Course." I'm not sure about other test prep companies "guarantees." </p></li>
<li><p>Trying to improve scores in the 700 range is a lot of luck since every question counts for a lot of points in that range. In this case, I recommend some private tutoring rather than a classroom course. Most classroom courses are geared to the 50th percentile student. As a tutor, I've had very large score increases with students wanting the highest scores with tutoring.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Jon</p>
<p>Don't Do It No Matter What!...</p>