Kaplan review center to open on UCLA campus

Aptitude tests for graduate school may sour the excitement of the new academic year for some students.

But a new tutoring center on campus may help alleviate some of the pressure.

A Kaplan review center is the only test preparation company located on campus, said Jennifer Colin, the western territory director for Kaplan Test Prep. It will open Thursday on the ground floor of Lu Valle Commons.

Kaplan is a company that helps both college and post-graduate students prepare for standardized tests.

Students can take traditional classes for the MCAT and the LSAT, as well as the GRE and GMAT, which are tests for graduate school and business school, respectively.

A Kaplan test center in Westwood Village already offers test preparation classes during the year.

But the Associated Students UCLA Board of Directors thought it would be convenient for students to have a closer location on campus as well, said Rich Delia, chief financial officer for ASUCLA.

UCLA Extension will offer online test preparation classes for the standard graduate school test and on-campus courses for the business and law school tests this quarter, according to its website.

UCLA Extension’s service is typically cheaper than Kaplan’s, depending on the program. However, Kaplan traditionally offers classes for every test available, Colin added.

The new review center will offer four different test review options for both UCLA and non-UCLA students: one-on-one tutoring, interactive and non-interactive online classes, and classroom-based courses, or classes of up to 30 students, Colin said.

Kaplan is leasing a space on campus and pays rent, so the new review center will not cost UCLA any money, Delia said.

The center will also administer tests for students pursuing the dentistry, pharmaceutical and optometry fields.

When the computer lab in Lu Valle Commons moved out June 30 because its renting agreement expired, the Kaplan center signed a five-year lease and moved in, Delia said.

Kaplan’s classes generally cost from a few hundred to several thousand dollars, depending on time and class size, according to Colin.

Larger group classes generally cost less, while one-on-one tutoring is more expensive, she said.

Students who show financial need can apply for financial aid, such as scholarships offered through the company, Colin added.

For some students, the benefits of a structured test preparation class outweigh the monetary cost.

Suraj Patel, a fourth-year psychobiology student, said he would consider using Kaplan review classes for the MCAT because a Berkeley Review class helped him maintain his focus when studying for the MCAT last year.

He plans to take the test again to improve his score. Using two different test preparation companies may help him get a better score, he said.

“The more strategies that I have in hand, the better,” Patel said.

The addition of a new test prep center option could help students find a center that fits their learning style, said Alice Ho, the director of graduate mentoring and research programs at UCLA’s Academic Advancement Program who works to provide students with workshops and information about test preparation.

Ho said she encourages students to shop around to find the test preparation service that works for them best, saying that the wide range of test prep services can overwhelm a prospective test-taker.

“The more information they find out before making a commitment, the better,” she said.

And taking a test prep course is not necessary, she said. It depends on the comfort the student has with the material and the familiarity with the exam.

The new learning center will be open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and for scheduled evening and weekend classes as needed.