To measure the benefits of expensive test prep, you would need a control group of students that self-studied for the ACT the same amount of hours over 9 months. How much did 9 months of private tutoring cost?
This is eye-opening. Princeton Review charges $2600 for 10 hours. The top SAT tutors in Manhattan can charge $1500/hr. Wealthy parents are paying tutors hourly rates in the ballpark of billable rates for big law attorneys.
I used to work in Princeton during grad school and I made $100/hour to do summer skills tutoring for students. During my tutoring years I found that I could successfully get my students ready for college - but here’s a surprising confession, it’s not worth paying that much for my time!
When it comes to the ACT/SAT/TOEFL test prep, portions of those exams are black and white. You either choose the correct answer, or you don’t. Writing is different. Preparing for the written section of these exams can’t be mastered with books or flashcards.
A cheaper and more practical option is to turn to technology. When you “hire” technology tools to help you prepare for tests, rates are much more affordable. A tech tool is more convenient than working with an in-person tutor. Feedback is not only immediate, it’s unlimited. This allows students to work and revise at their own pace.
When I was tutoring, I worked with multiple students and was reading and re-reading essay drafts, but I found that we got to a point where the writing was “good enough.” That’s precisely why I suggest that my students use writing technology. There’s no stopping point. They can revise until their writing completely meets the top notch standards to get that high score.
If you’re not ready to research, schedule, and commit to a private (human) tutor, you may want to start out with an online option to help with writing test prep.
There is no doubt that test prep, especially focused one on one tutoring with a good tutor, can provide some benefit for certain students, maybe even substantial benefit for a few. There is also no doubt that too much or inefficacious prep also hurts some students, relative to what they would have achieved had they undertaken it on their own. All kids are different, not all tutors are particularly good, and few parents can make an objective determination when it comes to their kids.
In the aggregate, I tend to believe the academic studies that on average test prep only has a small effect, on the order of 0.10 - 0.15 standard deviations.
At the end of the day, it certainly didn’t hurt to have a tutor and highly likely that it helped D20 stay on the studying/prep track (e.g. having a coach/mentor throughout the process who works with many high school students, knows the most effective study techniques, etc.).
While she didn’t continuously use the tutor for 9 months, I would say we spent about $2,500 on test prep. Also, spent another $3,000 for a private college counselor over two years who helped D get into her top college. Money well spent IMO. You get one shot at an undergrad degree, why not give it 100% if you have the means…
^ $3,000 seems reasonable for a good outside college counselor.
My own junior is at a very fancy high SES private high school, and I have been less than impressed with the college counselors, even though there is one for every 20 students or so. If I thought it would help, I would spend $3,000 on someone good.
I have to agree with @roethlisburger here - this is an anecdote, not a controlled (or a pseudo-controlled) experiment. My D’s PSAT improved from 1300 to 1480 in a year without any tutor or prep. Would a tutor have helped her get a higher PSAT? Maybe. Would it have helped her get a better SAT? Less likely, but maybe. Would it have made the slightest difference in her college plans, even without her scholarship? Extremely unlikely.
However, my D is also just another anecdote. There are kids who need help preparing for SAT/ACT tests, there are those who are helped by prep classes/tutors, there are those who do not need them, and there are those for whom a tutor or prep class is a bad idea.
I think that parents should have their kid take a practice test in “real conditions”, and then take a different one a couple of months later. I think that the best timing is one in the fall of sophomore year, and the other the next spring. If the school provides free PSAT 9 and PSAT 10 testing, that would be even better. No tutoring and no test prep classes in between. On average, there is a 50 point or so increase without any tutoring or prep classes, just due to the classes the kid takes and the fact that a kid has taken the test before. In my opinion, any decision about tutoring/prep classes should be made based on how the change in the score looks.
It is so surprising to hear how much money is being spent in this area, although I guess I shouldn’t be shocked. If I had the money to spend and my kids weren’t good test takers I probably would have paid for some tutoring. As it was, I only paid for an SAT book and ACT book and a few tests. While my kids were not particularly motivated to study on their own due to busy schedules, fatigue etc., I felt that it was up to them to put in the work if they wanted, and I shouldn’t need to pay for expensive classes or tutors.
S19 took his first ACT right at the end of sophomore year without prep. He scored pretty high in all areas except in English where he had a 26. He took it again about 6 months later and did fairly minimal studying (much to my dismay) but did spend a few hours reviewing grammar. His English went up to a 35 and he had a composite of 34. We we went back and forth about whether or not he should take it once more and he eventually decided to try it for a third time during the summer after junior year. Again, he put in very little time studying but I believe just the experience with the real life test and working on the timing (especially with math) was what helped him. He got a 36.
Our budget was about $20 per kid. We gave each of them a book of practice tests, and they took a test under timed conditions every week or two during the 2-3 months before they took the real test. Sometimes we sat down with them afterward and reviewed their incorrect answers; other times we left it to them to figure out what they had done wrong. I think they each wound up doing about a half dozen practices tests, plus occasional visits to Khan, and that was all they needed to get comfortable with the test and learn to pace themselves.
Our budget was $0. Khan academy is free and has plenty of free practice/free exams. We found some other free practice exams on reddit and signed up for Critical Reader’s and the College Board questions of the day. We looked at some other books from the library and others borrowed from friends. But my girls found the free resources were more than sufficient. They preferred to keep things simple. I homeschooled my kids and was always available to answer questions if they had any after taking any practice tests. I can see why some parents who do not feel equipped to help their kids through test prep might want to hire a tutor, though. The cost seems a little insane.
Our child did a couple practice tests for free on Khan Academy and then I got her the Official SATpractice test book. So about $20. She is a natural test taker so that is all she needed thankfully.
We purchased Princeton Review material for our son 5 years ago for $300…he barely touched it and and scored very well on SAT/ACT 1550/33. He’s graduating from GaTech this spring with a degree in AstroPhysics. Waste of $300.
My daughter, on the other hand, has terrible test anxiety, she needed more than self help books and/or videos. We hired an ACT specialist/PhD to prepare her for the ACT; $1,500 ($150/3hr x 10 sessions). Her first test before tutoring, she scored a 26, when she completed her 10 sessions she scored a 31: 34 English, 36 Reading, 27 Math & 26 Science. She has just been accepted to her dream school, the University of Georgia! Money well spent!
He has sessions all year long, sometimes 2 at a time, FULL of students prepping for tests. Students come from all over, even out of state to take his courses… we honestly didn’t believe the hype up front, and my daughter said the sessions were mind numbing and she didn’t feel she was “learning” anything. After hearing about other students success, she committed to to keep going. And the proof is in the pudding, or shall I say the test scores. Weigh your options and do what makes the most sense for your child, with support and encouragement.