PrepScholar Review: Are ACT and SAT Courses [2023] Helpful? (2023)

In this PrepScholar review (ACT and SAT), we'll dig into the pros and cons of this test prep company, compare it to leading competitors, and review the course's features.

We'll tackle some of your burning questions - is PrepScholar worth it, and will it help you prepare to score high on test day? Read on to find out!

About PrepScholar

Founded by a pair of Harvard grads, PrepScholar offers courses for multiple exams at the pre-college and graduate levels, not just the ACT and SAT. and3.2-5 star rating from BestCompany, PrepScholar is middling in terms of reviews from actual students who have taken the course—a fair, if underrated, ranking, in my estimation, based on the course characteristics we'll describe here.

PrepScholar Pricing Options

Basically, PrepScholar is in the middle rangecollege entrance examinationandBehaviorPrep its flagship "Totally Prep" plan (around $400) -- above some of the lowest-tier barebones DIY courses, but below top-tier ones like Kaplan. If there are other options, you will get perks but cost more (because these things happen so often in life).

To help you visualize your pricing options, here's a super handy chart we've put together for PrepScholar's essential online courses for the PSAT, SAT, and ACT:

As with most prep courses, the real premium comes from live instruction and one-on-one tutoring. Most ACT preppers don't necessarily need these services to significantly improve their scores, but if you have some extra cash to spare, help from a PrepScholar testing specialist may boost your score by a few points, which may be worth the investment.

PrepScholar Tutoring Options

All PrepScholar courses are online and completed at your own pace. This is fine for some, however, if you thrive on one-on-one time with a tutor, then you may want to consider their Lesson + Tutoring option:

PrepScholar Course Review

One of the best features of PrepScholar is generating personalized lessons for each student based on various factors such as:

• Area of ​​focus (mathematics, reading, or writing—or a combination of all three)
• Expected Score Improvement
• The hours you can commit each week

Before you start preparing for the test, PrepScholar has customized your test prep strategy based on the set of questions you asked when you registered.

Some of the questions they asked included:

• your dream school
• Your target score (1-36 for each section)
• anyextended stayYou can use (In the context of the ACT, these are only offered to students with documented disabilities that cause them to do things slower than others; the vast majority of test takers do not meet these requirements)
• The component of the test you struggle with the most

They also ask (presumably for marketing purposes) how you found out about PrepScholar, how likely you are to recommend the test prep service to a friend, etc.

Once you've signed up and settled in for thorough preparations, it's time to get moving. Below, we'll cover the actual course content, how the platform works, and the strengths and weaknesses of the PrepScholar program versus the competition.

PrepScholar course content

As the company keeps reminding you before and after purchasing the course, the course content is designed by professional education experts. Accordingly, verywell structured.

PrepScholar does provide good graphics to accompany the text, illustrating often complex material (especially in the science sections) that is otherwise difficult to explain using the limited medium of language alone.

At the end of each lesson, you will take a quiz to test your absorption of the material presented. Once you're done, you can access detailed explanations of the correct answer, as well as tips on how to find it if you're not sure (what your elementary school teacher used to call an "educated guess").

To summarize, the highlights of the PrepScholar course content are:

• clear theme
• Useful visual aids to accompany oral instruction
• After-class quizzes with detailed explanations of the correct answers

In addition to courses covering the actual material on the exam, PrepScholar also offers a number of "Strategy Courses" that cover every aspect of the strategy exam, from basics like "Preparing for Test Day" to more advanced topics like "Stress and Anxiety - Dealing with It." After scoring high on the test, you can even learn the best tips for applying to the schools of your choice.

These strategy lessons are especially helpful for those of us whose exams are more difficult than the actual material.Thanks to work published inpsychological researchexplain:

"Some students underperform on tests due to a lack of test-taking strategies or the use of poor strategies. These have both direct and indirect effects on student performance. These strategies directly help students to improve their test scores. Indirectly, the use of appropriate test-taking strategies affects other related but important factors, such as reducing test anxiety and improving students' attitudes toward testing."

Basically, this means how you take the test may be as important as what you know. So doing well on the ACT or SAT depends not only on familiarity with the material, but also on strong strategies for taking the test.

This is where PrepScholar really stands out from other test prep companies that either fail to emphasize the importance of sound test-taking strategies to success or ignore them entirely.

PrepScholar Question Bank

All of PrepScholar's courses, from the easiest to the most exotic, feature a massive library of over 7,000 practice questions.

One of the handiest features I've appreciated most along the way is the quiz builder.

How Quiz Builder Works:

• Select the subject area broken down by the four subjects tested (English, Mathematics, Reading and Science)
• Select number of questions (5 or 10)
• Answer the questions within the allotted time frame (a counter in the corner keeps track of how well you did on time)
• review your performance
• Get detailed explanations for each answer, including why the correct answer is actually correct, as well as test-taking tips to help you pinpoint the right answer when you're not sure (again, master the "educated guess" game)

As you browse the content, PrepScholar properly indexes any incorrect answers into the "Incorrect Answers" tab on the platform. There, you can go back and see the questions you got wrong, and more importantly, when the same type of query pops up in a real test, you can understand why you got them wrong to avoid similar mistakes.

Preparatory Scholars Video

For the more visually oriented among us, each lesson has its own video.

These are usually PowerPoint-style videos with text, charts, graphs, etc., narrated by an instructor - over time these videos can get a little tedious and not particularly stimulating, but they work through plenty of useful questions The example does the job for you. A detailed explanation of what will be encountered in the actual test and how to arrive at the correct answer.

Of course, the video for each lesson is accompanied by the text below, so if you prefer to take lessons at your own pace, you don't need to rely on the videos.

PrepScholar Customization

PrepScholar does a decent job of customizing its approach to help you prepare for the exam. As we've discussed before, freshmen must fill out a questionnaire that asks which test areas they're most interested in, their goal score, and more.

Additionally, the next step in the onboarding process is a diagnostic test to assess your current readiness.

After completing the 60-question timed diagnostic exam, you'll select your planned actual test date, watch a short introductory video, and enter exactly how much time you plan to devote to studying.

While the amount of information PrepScholar asks may seem like too much information (which, honestly, is kind of annoying; why do you need to know what my study schedule is planned for this week, Mom?), it turns out it can help keep you on target if you're prone to procrastination (you know who you are), your learning goals. Regular reminders of study time via text message are especially useful.

Of course, if self-discipline is a skill you acquired at a young age, you probably don't need the structure and level of customization that PrepScholar offers.

So, after you've cleared all the hurdles, PrepScholar generates a personalized study plan based on all the information you've provided, as well as the results of diagnostic tests.

PrepScholar Platform Review

The platform is intuitive and user-friendly. When you log into the interface, you'll notice that it's divided into the following sections:

• Dashboard
• Raiders
• progress
• incorrect answer
• quiz generator

Under the "Progress" tab, you can easily keep track of all the lessons you've completed, organized by topic and subject - for example, "Pronouns" under the "English" banner and "Experimental Design" under the "Science" banner.

In the Progress tab, you can also track your assessed skill level and your scores on practice tests at the end of each lesson.

We previously discussed the Strategy, Progress, Wrong Answers, and Quiz Builder sections of the platform, and their respective benefits of being well-prepared, all useful.

PrepScholar Availability

When you've reviewed multiple online prep programs like I have, you have a strong sense of usability. While it might not rank as high for usability as some elite prep programs, PrepScholar does well here, at least in the middle.

In addition to an intuitive layout, the platform also comes with a Help section that contains almost all the answers to common and troubleshooting questions you may have during your preparation.

If you can't find the answer you need, you can submit a help request and a staff member will get back to you as soon as possible(usually quite timely).

In terms of aesthetics, the platform looks comfortable. As we mentioned before, the design is smooth and easy to navigate.

PrepScholar app

One big downside to PrepScholar (for some) is that, unlike many of its competitors, the company doesn't have a proprietary mobile app for on-the-go learning.

Having said that, in my experience, the most engaging, stimulating, and effective test prep sessions happen when I am engrossed at my desk on my laptop, so it's not a huge loss to me (maybe It shouldn't be you). Nevertheless, it is 21^Yingshicentury and 21^Yingshi-century digital boys and girls really like using their phones for just about anything, so I understand the appeal of apps.If a mobile app is what you're in the market for, you might want to look elsewhere.

PrepScholar Content Access Period

For all courses except the Complete Premium course, you will enjoy access for a full year. For an extra $200 on top of the standard price tag of $397,You can upgrade from Complete Prep to Complete Premium courses for an additional year of content access (for a total of two years).

If you have spare time before the exam, or just want the extra time to fully prepare, the Complete Premium course might be worth it. However, the vast majority of preparers should have plenty of time to enjoy the standard one-year visit period.

Preparatory Counseling

As an institution founded by Harvard graduates, PrepScholarsell its top-notch tutorshard. Among the many outstanding characteristics of its mentors are:

• Experienced test prep teachers with hands-on teaching experience
• Unique teaching materials developed in-house
• Stay abreast of the latest SAT changes, trends, and more for accurate, targeted lessons

Is there a score guarantee?

PrepScholar does offer an impressive score guarantee– Great news for those who want test prep companies to put their money where their mouth is when they make a commitment (and they all should). After all, what good is a preparatory course if it doesn't produce the results you hope to see with a higher score?

PrepScholar's guaranteed scores for the SAT and ACT are:

• SAT 160+ bonus points guaranteed
• ACT 4+ Bonus Points Guaranteed

PrepScholar Reviews by Real Students

As with most user-generated reviews around the web, whether positive or negative, you'd better take these PrepScholar reviews with a grain of salt: It's impossible to get the full backstory.

By definition, these PrepScholar reviews are subjective evaluations based on the experiences of the individual reviewers. The best way to get a real impression of the quality of any online product, including test prep programs, is to conduct extensive surveys of feedback from a variety of sources.

That caveat aside, here is a sample of PrepScholar reviews from around the web—the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Honfler is a big fan:

Reem E from Newark, NJ compares favorably with Princeton's SAT course, PrepScholar's main competitor:

Ann Pittman, on the other hand, had some problems communicating with the company and delivery of her book, and was backed up in her critique by another disgruntled customer/reviewer (note : No physical book is required for online courses, though, so you don't need to worry about shipping).

Another parent apparently enrolled his daughter in a PrepScholar tutoring program, with less than ideal results.

Who needs this course?

The PrepScholar program is ideal for students who:

• In addition to enriching their knowledge base, they also need to develop their test-taking strategies
• Preferably using visual learning (all lessons have video and graphic components)
• Want a score guarantee backed by a solid money-back promise
• Are new to SAT prep and need a baseline assessment (to assess strengths and weaknesses)

PrepScholar Course Selection

Here, we get into how PrepScholar compares to some other top ACT and SAT prep courses. Check out our full list of the best courses for 2023ACT coursesandSAT course.

PrepScholar and The Princeton Review

Princeton Review has more polished videos, better production (probably because of more money), and you get some paper books for every online course.

However, PrepScholar's in-depth question bank is undoubtedly superior to Princeton Review's, both in quality and quantity (and accompanying explanations).

Finally, the question of money: compared to the $397 price of PrepScholar's online course, the price is close to $1,000,The Princeton Review is significantly more expensive -- a premium that is unjustified given the quality of competition for each program.

PrepScholar and Kaplan

Once again, PrepScholar shines in this competition both in the quantity and quality of practice questions (7,100+ vs Kaplan's 1,000+). You can also get longer access terms (1 year vs Kaplan's 6 months) through PrepScholar.

However, with Kaplan, you also get a range of hard-copy physical books with your courses, which may appeal to some preppers who prefer the traditional paper feel. Kaplan creates high-quality prep books that also made our listThe Best ACT Prep Books2023.

As with previous competitions, PrepScholar is much more affordable than Kaplan's nearly double $699 price tag.

Read more about our thinkingKaplan vs PrepScholar ACT/SAT

PrepScholar and Khan Academy

In 2016, Khan Academy ignited the enthusiasm of the test prep communityPartnering with the College Board to Create Free SAT CoursesComplete 8 practice tests. If you want high-quality free SAT prep resources, look no further than Khan Academy.

That said, unlike PrepScholar’s ​​program, Khan Academy lacks any testing strategy—a huge black hole given the importance of such skills as we discussed earlier. Also, the reading and writing sections leave a lot to be desired and don't compare well to PrepScholar.

To learn more about Khan Academy, read our new articleIs Khan Academy Good for SAT Prep?？

PrepScholar yǔ Magoosh

Again, PrepScholar's question bank is way ahead of Magoosh's 1,750+ question bank. Additionally, you can take 10 practice tests with PrepScholar, compared to 3 with Magoosh.

At $129, Magoosh is much cheaper than PrepScholar. Also, Magoosh has a legitimate mobile app, while PrepScholar does not.

PrepScholar Reviews FAQ

Let's round up some frequently asked questions (FAQs) about PrepScholar that interested preppers frequently encounter.

The Bottom Line on PrepScholar

Make PrepScholar the centerpiece of your ACT/SAT/PSAT prep if you:

• Anxious about exams or having questions about them in general (PrepScholar offers an excellent remedy in their "Strategy Course")
• Want to tailor your approach to preparation based on your current proficiency level as assessed on a diagnostic exam (as opposed to a "one size fits all" plan)
• Emphasis on high-quality prep questions with thorough explanations
• Hard copy books that don't care about the physical
• Looking for a more affordable alternative to pricier competitors like Princeton Review or Kaplan