Earlier this month I traveled to New York because I will open a branch there. I had the opportunity to speak with two successful SAT tutors/instructors about a variety of topics related to the SAT, the College Board (which administers the SAT), and parents. I thought I’d share some of that information in this article.
First, if you or your child is a Junior or going to be a Junior and isn’t taking at least one online SAT course, you’re behind the eight ball. This is why. Assuming you live in an affluent or upper middle class area, your SAT (and ACT) scores are graded differently than if you lived in a less desirable neighborhood. How?
Because college admissions officers will assume you’ve prepared for the test because you’ve likely enrolled in an SAT prep course, like Kaplan or Princeton Review, or hired a tutor. Even if you haven’t!
In other words, kids from less affluent areas who don’t score as high can have their scores “raised” to be on par with students who are likely to have taken SAT prep classes. So an inner-city student hitting 1100 could be just as impressive as a Long Island high school student hitting 1400.
Now, say what you want about the SAT and other standardized tests; the fact is that they are vitally important to admissions officers, even if they have flaws.
The next thing I learned was how much money parents in affluent areas will spend on preparing for college. Granted, Long Island isn’t exactly Boise, but it’s similar to pockets of Miami, Boca Raton, Newton, Mass. (my hometown), the North Side of Chicago, parts of Los Angeles, and other affluent areas across the country. .
So I’m sure there are thousands of families spending between $5,000 and $10,000 just on SAT prep! A private tutoring company charges about $1,000 to sign up, then $200 or more for each session. And the sessions are usually weekly, so it’s easy to lose $800 a month for several months!
Do they get value for that amount of money? Of course, the answer is “it depends”.
I believe that the tutors that College Pete and I recommend are top-quality, results-oriented educators.
But the other half of the equation is that no tutor can get blood from a stone: if the student doesn’t follow the plan, it doesn’t matter how much mom or dad spent on test prep.
Which brings me to my third point: It seems that kids whose parents were shelling out the higher end of the spectrum in tutoring fees tended to be highly motivated. In other words, they respected the investment their parents made and were held accountable by their instructors.
That reinforces the argument that ‘you get what you pay for’.
If you’re looking to hire an SAT tutor, here are some questions to ask, especially if they charge a high fee.
1. What is your philosophy? I mean, are you the same as all the other options, like Sylvan, Kaplan, or Princeton Review, or do you do things differently?
2. What characteristics do your most successful students share? In other words, what are you looking for in a potential student?
3. Who does the instruction? How is he or she trained or qualified?
4. Why would a student be unhappy with his or her results after working with him or her? Give examples of students or parents who were dissatisfied with your services and give reasons why.
5. Do you offer any kind of guarantee? Why or why not? Then follow your instinct. If you received reasonable answers to the questions above, use your instincts to make a decision. Then make your little student snap!
