Student Performance

Pinnacle Prep is proud to be an industry leader in student performance:

• the average increase of Pinnacle Prep students is over 360 points per student
• 95% of Pinnacle Prep students increase 100 or more points on at least one section
• 93% of Pinnacle Prep students increase 200 or more total points
• 30% of Pinnacle Prep students achieve an increase of 200 or more points on at least one section
• 70% of Pinnacle Prep students increase 300 or more total points

Statistics are drawn from all Pinnacle Prep students over recent years (who did the majority of their homework, a minimum of 10 hours tutoring, and followed our recommended test plan) and are calculated by comparing the most recent test the student took prior to working with Pinnacle Prep to the last test the student took after working with Pinnacle Prep. Our results have been comparable on all tests, including the SAT, ACT, Subject Tests, and graduate school and high school entrance exams, such as the GRE, LSAT, MCAT, GMAT, SSAT, ISEE, and SHSAT.

Amount of Tutoring

One of the first trends we noticed with our students was that the number of hours of tutoring correlates to performance. Pinnacle Prep students who receive 50 or more hours of tutoring increase 437 points on average; those who receive 30-50 hours of tutoring increase an average over 370 points; and those who work between 10 and 30 hours average approximately 310 points. Here is a complete breakdown:

Pinnacle Prep has found that there are diminishing returns as students exceed 80 hours. Some of our top performers, numerous students who increased 530 to 700 points, had in the range of 60 hours of tutoring, but those with more than 70 do not show better results. Our sample size of students who received over 80 hours of tutoring is tiny, because we just don’t believe in doing that much tutoring, but we also have found that it’s not necessarily going to dramatically increase the student’s chances of reaching his/her best score.

Recommendations

Of course, every student is unique, so we arrange an initial session to introduce basic concepts and see how the student responds. From that initial session, we are able to construct a test plan (what tests to take, and when) that makes sense for the student and a preparation plan that will not interfere with academics or extra-curriculars. We also gain a sense of the student’s strengths, weaknesses, and personality, which helps us match a tutor who will be a good fit. We typically recommend programs in the 40-60 hour range that start prior to the PSAT and carry students through the ACT, SAT, and Subject Tests.