If you’ve been through or currently are in the college admission process, PrepScholar might sound familiar. Known for its SAT and ACT test preparatory programs, PrepScholar is also a one-stop shop for some of the most widely taken standardized tests, such as the PSAT, GRE, GMAT and TOEFL, as well as assistance with the process of college admissions.

PrepScholar Review

Founded by two Harvard graduates, Allen Cheng and Fred Zhang, PrepScholar sets itself apart in an already packed industry of test prep services by offering top-tiered instructors — PrepScholar only hires instructors who scored in the 99th percentile or higher on the test they teach — as well as highly customized study plans, and 100% money-back guarantee if the service doesn’t bring the results it promised. 

For every one of its programs, PrepScholar promises efficient study plans and results. It is so confident in its test prep programs that it even promises a specific score increase on every program.  

Courses are customized to each student. PrepScholar’s algorithm discovers the student’s strengths and weaknesses at the very start and throughout the program. PrepScholar technology designs an effective study plan so that students can improve upon their weaknesses and realize tangible results without wasting time on stuff they are already strong with.

PrepScholar initially personalizes your study plan based upon your performance on a short diagnostic test. Then as you progress your study plan is consistently updated based on your performance.

PrepScholar’s weekly reports, progress trackers, and customized feedback are designed to keep you honest about your study time and motivate you to make more progress. Sometimes, it is this gentle nudge that keeps you motivated to become a master in each topic section.

For those in need of either complete assistance or that extra boost to studying or preparing for college admissions, here is a list of every program offered by PrepScholar and a description of its important features.

SAT Prep

Best known for its SAT Prep program, PrepScholar offers a wide variety of SAT course options with high customization and expert-taught lessons. PrepScholar is also the only test prep program that guarantees its students a 160+ point improvement on their next SAT.

• Practice tests: 6 full-length practice tests 

• Free service: You can take a free diagnostic assessment, which calculates your skill level and determines your strong and weak points. 

• Customization: You can choose out of five different prep options. 
  • The most basic and popular option — the Complete SAT Online Prep — includes unlimited access to all online study materials and assistance, such as a customized curriculum, personal feedback from human instructors, and weekly reports that track your progress. 
  • Based on the results of your diagnostic assessment, PrepScholar’s scoring algorithm builds a custom curriculum that caters to your difficulty level.
  • The PrepScholar Classes option includes everything in the previous option plus online, expert-led class experience. 
  • The Complete + Tutoring includes everything in the Complete SAT Online Prep option plus hours of one-on-one tutoring session. 
  • The Complete Premium gives you access to everything in the Complete SAT Online Prep but for three years. 
  • Lastly, the Dual SAT + ACT includes prep tools for both the SAT and ACT. 

NOTE: For all of its services, not just limited to SAT Prep, Prepscholar builds a custom curriculum this way. 

All options last at least a year.

• Variety of content: Besides practice tests, you have access to over 7,100 practice questions with detailed answer explanations for every question, over 210 hours of content, over 700 problem-solving videos, 98 skill lessons with strategy videos, and live online classrooms and in-person tutors. 

• Price: PrepScholar’s SAT prep options start as low as $397 and go as high as $995+. Remember, PrepScholar offers a 100% money back guarantee if you don’t improve your score by 160 points or more. 

NOTE: PrepScholar offers some free resources, such as the 5-day free trials on all of its services and a few general guides on college admissions or test-taking, but the quality of resources you can get from free services is either too limited or insignificant compared to that of paid resources that you will most likely end up choosing to pay for the product. 

PSAT Prep

Available in two options, this service offers comprehensive prep programs for the PSAT, short for preliminary SAT, a standardized test targeting 10th and 11th graders in the United States and used to apply for National Merit scholarships or summer internships and programs. PrepScholar is also the only test prep program that guarantees its students a 150+ point improvement on their next PSAT.

• Practice tests: 2 practice tests 

• Free service: You can take a free diagnostic assessment, which calculates your skill level and determines your strong and weak points.

• Customization: You can choose out of two different prep options.
  • The most basic and popular option — the Complete PSAT Online Prep — includes unlimited access to all online study materials and assistance, such as a customized curriculum, personal feedback from human instructors, and weekly reports that track your progress. 
  • The Complete + Tutoring includes everything in the Complete PSAT Online Prep option plus hours of one-on-one tutoring session. 

• Variety of content: Besides practice tests, you have access to over  7,100 practice questions, over 210 hours of content, over 700 problem-solving videos, 98 skill lessons with strategy videos, and live online classrooms and in-person tutors. 

• Price: Starting as low as $397 and going as high as $995. Remember, PrepScholar offers a 100% money back guarantee if you don’t improve your score by 150 points or more.

ACT Prep

Similar to its SAT prep, the ACT Prep offers a wide variety of highly customizable options and top tiered instructors. PrepScholar guarantees its students a 4+ point improvement on their next ACT.

• Practice tests: 5 full-length practice tests

• Customization: You can choose out of five different prep options.
  • The most basic and popular option — the Complete ACT Online Prep — includes unlimited access to all online study materials and assistance, such as a customized curriculum, personal feedback from human instructors, and weekly reports that track your progress. 
  • The PrepScholar Classes option includes everything in the previous option plus online, expert-led class experience.
  • The Complete + Tutoring includes everything in the Complete ACT Online Prep option plus hours of one-on-one tutoring session. 
  • The Complete Premium gives you access to everything in the Complete ACT Online Prep, but for three years. 
  • Lastly, the Dual SAT + ACT includes prep tools for both the SAT and ACT. 

All options last at least a year.

• Variety of content: Besides practice tests, you have access to over 1,800 practice questions with detailed answer explanations for every question, over 60 hours of content, 70 skill lessons with strategy videos, and live online classrooms and in-person tutors. 

• Price: Starting as low as $397 and going as high as $995. Remember, PrepScholar offers a 100% money back guarantee if you don’t improve your score by 4 points or more.

GRE Prep

Available in three options, this service offers comprehensive prep programs for the GRE, short for Graduate Record Examination, a standardized test required for most graduate schools or graduate business schools in the United States. PrepScholar guarantees its students a 7+ point improvement on their next GRE.

• Practice tests: 2 computer adaptive, full-length practice tests. 

• Customization: You can choose out of three prep options.
  • The 5-day free trial option offers an adaptive diagnostic assessment, developed by Harvard Ph.D.s specializing in using machine learning to optimize learning. Backed up by the most advanced data science and sourcing from tens of millions of data points from real previous students, this assessment builds up the best study plan for you.
    • After taking the assessment, for five days, you will have access to over 150 hours of interactive lessons and strategies, a customized curriculum and individual progress tracker for key GRE skills. 
  • The best-selling option lasts for a year and gives you unlimited access to all online study materials for the GRE, such as interactive lessons, skill-based mini-lessons, and thousands of GRE practice questions. You will receive a customized curriculum, personal feedback from human instructors, and weekly reports that track your progress. 
  • The Lifetime option lasts for your lifetime and includes everything in the above option plus personalized scoring of 4 AWA writing essays. 

• Variety of content: Besides practice tests, you have access to over 2,300 practice questions with detailed answer explanations for every question, over 450 hours of content, 300 question vocab course and math cheat sheet and ultimate GRE Strategy and Grad School Admission Guides. 

• Price: Starting as low as $38 and going as high as $345. Remember, PrepScholar offers a 100% money back guarantee if you don’t improve your score by 7 points or more.

GMAT Prep

Also available in four options, this service offers comprehensive prep programs for the GMAT, short for Graduate Management Admission Test, a standardized test required for admission to graduate business programs all around the world. PrepScholar is also the only test prep program that guarantees its students a 60+ point improvement on their next GMAT.

• Practice tests: 4 computer adaptive, full-length practice tests. 

• Customization: You can choose out of five prep options.
  • The most basic Complete Customized Online GMAT Prep option offers a free adaptive diagnostic assessment, a customized curriculum, access to progress tracking tools and unlimited access to all online study materials. 
  • One of the three Tutoring Packages, the Monitored Automated Prep option includes one month access to everything in the above option plus 4 hours of 1-on-1 tutoring session and personal review and tips. 
  • One of the three Tutoring Packages, the Full Tutor-Led Complete Prep option includes three month access to everything in the first option plus 10 hours of 1-on-1 tutoring session, 5 Email-An-Expert Credits, which provides students with on-demand access to a GMAT expert 24-hours/day. 
  • Last of the three Tutoring Packages, the Maximum Tutoring Prep option includes unlimited access to everything in the first option plus 20 hours of 1-on-1 tutoring session, 10 Email-An-Expert Credits, 2018 GMAT Official Guide with more than 900 real questions and close personal guidance from a premium tutor. 
  • A relatively new program on the bloc, the MBA Admissions Consulting option offers a holistic student review by an expert consultant, who will help you file out business school applications. You can schedule your first consultation call for free. 

• Variety of content: Besides practice tests, you have access to over 1,200 practice questions with detailed answer explanations for every question, over 50 hours of content, and 1-on-1 tutoring sessions.
  • If you’re a group study type, PrepScholar also offers prep options with small group sessions, in which you are joined by other students and an expert tutor in live or online groups and have access to hundreds of real practice questions with detailed answer explanations. 

• Price: Starting as low as $259 and going as high as $3,399. Remember, PrepScholar offers a 100% money back guarantee if you don’t improve your score by 60 points or more. For any of the three Tutoring Packages, you will get a full refund if you’re not completely satisfied within an hour of your tutoring session. 

TOEFL Prep

This service offers comprehensive prep programs for the TOEFL, short for Test of English as a Foreign Language, a standardized language proficiency test required for non-native speakers wishing to enroll in English-speaking universities. PrepScholar guarantees its students a 15+ point improvement on their next TOEFL.

• Practice tests: Yes, but not specified

• Customization: You can choose out of three prep options.
  • The 5-day free trial option offers an adaptive diagnostic assessment. After taking the assessment, for five days, you will have access to over 150 hours of interactive lessons and videos, over 1,000 TOEFL practice questions, top 3,000 most frequently occurring vocabs, and vocabulary course with more than 20 lessons and 300 questions.  
  • The best-selling option lasts for a year and gives you unlimited access to everything in the above option plus a customized curriculum, personal feedback from human instructors, 1-on-1 speaking and writing reviews, which are graded and given feedback, and unlimited email support. 
  • The Master option lasts for your lifetime and includes everything in the above option. 

NOTE: For one-on-one speaking reviews, you get 12 chances to submit your voice recordings across all 6 speaking questions. And for one-on-one writing reviews, you get 4 chances to submit your writings on all 2 writing questions tested on the test.

• Variety of content: Besides practice tests and all the online materials listed above, you have access to the ultimate TOEFL strategy and school admission guides. 

• Price: Starting as low as $187 and going as high as $385. Remember, PrepScholar offers a 100% money back guarantee if you don’t improve your score by 15 points or more.

College Admissions

Lastly, PrepScholar offers programs to assist you with the very college admissions process itself to help you get into top-tier schools. 

• Customization: You can choose out of four options.
  • The Complete Admissions Package offers a holistic student review by a personal consultant, looking over both the student’s school and personal background and taking you through literally every possible point in the college admissions process.
    • Your personal consultant will help you strategize in selecting schools, get materials ready and negotiate financial aid, check due dates and help submit everything on time. 
    • You will receive full essay service for every school, full application review, recommendation letter strategy, interview prep, waitlist/rejection strategy and final school decision. Note that you have unlimited consulting time. 
  • The Full Essay Service option includes comprehensive life interview to brainstorm for compelling topics, drafting, unlimited essay revision and essay finalization. This option is best suited for completely beginning students who don’t know what colleges are looking for and what to write about.
  • The Essay Editing option includes unlimited essay revision and essay finalization. This option is best suited for those who already know what they want to write about, but need extra review by an expert consultant. 
  • The Grade 9-11 Complete Mentorship Package is for students who are not quite yet submitting their college applications, but are getting ready for the process. This 12-month college application plan includes a holistic student review by a consultant, who will help plan coursework, improve GPA, prepare for standardized tests, manage extracurricular, explore career options and plan summer activities.   

• Variety of content: Each of the four options offer highly customizable assistance with everything a high school student would need during and before his or her college admissions process. 

• Price: Starting as low as $195 and going as high as $6,895. Within 3 days of your first consulting session, if you don’t like it, you can get a full refund. 

NOTE: Essay services are priced by maximum word limit. For example, for the Full Essay Service, price starts from $595 for 0-650 word limit.

Conclusion

With all of its materials and services available online, PrepScholar is best suited for busy students who prefer studying on their own schedule, but need that extra push to not get lazy in the middle and stay on track until the test date. Also, PrepScholar is very good for beginning test takers because the program kindly lays out the entire road map to getting your reach score for you. 

If you’re either a busy or beginning student (or both!) getting ready for college, graduate school or any of the different tests PrepScholar teaches, check out PrepScholar today!