*Coming from the point of view of the daughter of this Yelp user* When I first began my private tutoring sessions with Allan from Princeton Review, I knew that this was different from any "boot camp" that claims to prepare me for the SAT. Rather than focus on rote memorization or waste away time with busy work, every lesson was spent with my tutor explaining how to understand the questions being asked and different techniques to attack each section of the test. Not only did Allan effectively prepare me for the exam, but he also made each lesson genuinely enjoyable. Allan is extremely easy to talk to and he definitely lightened the pressures of preparing for such a critical test for my academic future. Overall, there is absolutely nothing negative that I could say about the Princeton Review. Communication, punctuality, and resources were never an issue. Coming from my standpoint, this unique program can effectively help anyone attain their goal score for any exam. I would definitely recommend to anyone. read more

Registered for their free SAT strategy session. Ten minutes into session still no instructor and no announcement whatsoever. Then in the chat someone said session canceled due to unforeseen circumstances. So there's no backup teacher and they have no idea until 15 minutes after the supposed class start time that this wasn't going to happen! So unprofessional no way I'm signing up with this BS. read more

The SAT course seems to be designed to help students bring their scores up to the 1300s and it may well do a good job of that. Our group of students were scoring 1400s on test exams and were looking to increase scores into the 1500s. This program did not do that. Our children started out strong, but none of our children improved over the course of the program and that was not addressed by Princeton Review. I am feeling a bit embarrassed that I recommended this program to other parents because it is expensive and their children didn't get much out of it. That reminds me: I don't think I ever received the promised Amazon gift cards for referring other students. Not 100% sure of that though. I do think that the in-person class (which my child took) is better than their online class. read more

The services of the Princeton Review are a very mixed bagged. The SAT prep was helpful. My daughter did receive a significant boost in her scores. The On-Demand Essay review is completely worthless. You're just throwing away $60. Our reviewer gave very little feedback and missed numerous typos.You're better off hiring an editor off a site like Thumbtack to help with the essay. Full disclosure, I am a freelance editor myself, but I do not edit college essays since this is not my area of expertise. I can tell you from looking at my daughter's essay edit that the work of Princeton Review's editors is very amateur for the price they charge. I did an edit for grammar on the essay and found more than two dozen errors overlooked by Princeton Review. I assure you, you can find better quality at a better price if you do a little searching. Take the time to find someone who cares about your child's words. read more

Buyers beware!!! My son took the Princeton Review P-ACT exam through his high school to determine his level and which test would be better for him: ACT or SAT. He scored 27 on the ACT part of the test. We enrolled him to the ACT ultimate small group course in June 2015. On their first test on the first day, he scored 24, which is significantly lower than his previous score. So just by enrolling in the course, he already "lost" 3 points. The goal of that, we learned in hindsight, was to have his baseline score as low as possible, so they can later claim my son's ACT score did improve, when in fact, it did not. Long story short, he took the course, took the test, scored... you guessed it right, 27. Took the refresher course online, took the test a second time, got a 28. When I called to exercise my money back guarantee, Princeton Review claimed my son did improve his score by more than 3 points, and therefore we are not entitled for money back. Like we did not see that coming. So basically, it's the oldest trick in the book: we give you a really hard test as a baseline test, then we teach you nothing, you "improve" your score back to where you started, and we get to keep the $1500. Shame on you, Princeton Review. You have one very very upset customer. I will do whatever I can to convince others to never take your class ever again. read more

I found Princeton Review at a college fair in Arcadia one day and I heard Allan Pulido speak about the SAT there. From when he first started talking, I knew that he was different. He understood high school students and I immediately sought him out. He helped me one on one as I prepared for the SAT. He was understanding and knew how to get me to think about the SAT in a way that I could get. Allan was not only there for SAT support but also moral support. When I felt down about the SAT, he helped encouraged me. Princeton Review helped me prepare for my second take of the SAT by providing a FREE Online Refresher Course, which was helpful in my second take of the SAT. I loved my time with the Princeton Review and I found it extremely helpful. Also I highly recommend Allan Pulido. Just talk to him for a little bit and you'll see why he's different and helpful. read more

I learned so many tips in such a short amount of time. With three, one hour, lessons my sat math score improved a lot. Elizabeth was very supportive, kind, and helpful. If i need help in the future i will definitely be getting help from her again:) read more

Do NOT waste your money. This company will rip you off and make excuse after excuse. First off, they shorted the classes numerous times and outright cancelled one. They were supposed to make up the class but never did. The person they had teaching the class was just ok but did not have a good working knowledge of the SAT test. The worst part is they never gave us the results of her final practice test. When we called to try and get them the main office tried contacting the Irvine office and no one answered. We were told sorry but you probably won't get them. How is my daughter supposed to learn when she can't get her test results? I'd actually give them less than one star if that was possible. read more

Read the reviews and look how many people are disappointed about last minute cancellations of classes. I was informed 4 days before classes were to begin that classes were cancelled. This is obviously a recurring problem with this tutoring center. My advice: Go elsewhere.....you do not need the stress of this unreliable and unprofessional center read more

The Princeton Review for SAT is a SCAM. They are disingenuous in enticing you to a 1400+ SAT Score or money back guarantee. Once they charge your credit card; your money is gone. Whatever score you get regardless of your effort to getting every homework done and all classes attended, you are on your own and you won't see your money. read more

I registered my daughter for SAT class Jul-Aug 2015 in cypress. Received an email couple of days ago saying class will probably be cancelled and one of the options given is to take their private class paying $150 per hour, unfortunately we cannot afford it. As all other private classes have already started she has no option and is stressed as she is planning on taking the exam in October to avoid the new SAT. Extremely disappointing, now we are frantically looking for other SAT prep classes to suit her availabilty.Do not waist time go else where to avoid the stress and save your child's education. read more

For the MCAT: So I'm re-writing this review because I'm a bit disappointed with my 2nd experience with TPR. Physics teacher is ok, Chem and O.Chem teachers are probably the best and Bio is pretty good. I'm taking away a star because the worst section right now is CARS (critical analysis) because we basically haven't had a steady teacher since the beginning of the class and right now it's week 5. neither of the ones they have brought were very helpful in my opinion. They need to DRILL us with passages and more techniques that help with the short test time. All the online material is very helpful obviously but I wish the physics and CARS class/instructors were way more effective and interactive. Especially since these are the hardest sections (at least for me they are). There is also no in class section for the psych/socio part which I find really odd considering its a section on its own on the new mcat. Overall, the material is great and there's plenty practice material...but $2000 worth? Steep price for a class size of 20+. There is plenty of practice for me to do both online and with the textbooks/materials provided with the course so even if I don't get what is taught in class, it's easily self taught online. read more

I used the Princeton Review across from UC Irvine (at University Town Center) in order to prepare for the GRE. Everyone at Princeton Review was very professional and helpful. They made me feel comfortable and at ease. Heidi was my tutor and she did an excellent job through and through! She was flexible on meeting times/locations and explained everything very clearly so that I could understand the material. It is obvious that she has a lot of experience. I took the exam twice and my scores improved markedly as a result of Heidi's tutoring. My official scores were well above the requirements for admission to my graduate program of choice. I highly recommend this Princeton Review center and Heidi as a tutor. read more

Very disappointed with the courses they are dictated by students not credential teachers they do not have a system to reinforce the weakness areas so you waste your money and you never find out what areas you have to focus is better to use the money in a more personalize clases. read more

I have actually never taken a course here but was frantically looking everywhere for any free OAT (Optometry Admissions Test) exam. My test was a week away and I was desperate for any additional practice. I called the office and was greeted by Nicole. No OAT Practice Exams were given around that time. However, she offered to send me one of their OAT practice tests I can take/and time myself at home. Three days before the test, I took a picture of my answers and she personally scored my test and even sent me my OAT score report the day after. THANK YOU FOR YOUR GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE, Nicole! read more

I finally had decide to write a review on this tutoring service to tell people NOT to waste their money on this!! My son took their ACT class over the summer. His practice test score went down after this class about 4 points!! The highest score he was able to achieve at Princeton Review was 27!! I was really upset about it and ask about their money back guarantee promise. They told me that we need to take the real test and then if our score is as low as the the one from the practice test, they would let us to take the same USELESS class all over again!! You just can't go and take the ACT test if you know upfront that you will fail!!! Instead, we went to AR Academics! After just 3 group sessions there, my son's practice score went to 32!! His real ACT score after 1 months with AR academics was 32 as well!! So, it was not his ability but rather the tutoring service that was lousy! Class was really poorly organized.. On first day, when kids came to the class, nobody expected them! There was no teacher for 2 first classes. Then, they ran out and hired some student literally off the street to teach the class. When I asked Princeton's operations manager to send me some bio for the teacher, he refused to provide that information. Again, please, don't waste your money on them. read more

My son worked with Heidi at Princeton Review in preparation for the ACT. She was wonderful to work with. She helped him raise his score and was very flexible with his tight schedule. I have no problem recommending her and Princeton review. read more

This program is not trust worthy. I booked an SAT class for my daughter and they cancelled it shortly before the start date without notifying us. We called a day before the start date to ask about the exact location of the class and the customer service representative informed us very calmly and irresponsibly that the class has been canceled. I had to ask for a complete refund and look for another program in a very short time cause my daughter has her exam in August. So frustrated at such progress, they take all the money and give you nothing. read more

I think when it comes to MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) preparatory courses, The Princeton Review is gold standard. I work full-time and do not have much free time to prep for this test. Furthermore, I make way too much money to feel motivated enough to study for this exam on my own. I took the 7-10PM class in Irvine over the summer, and the instructors that I had were all wonderful: Biology: Neha was very knowledgeable and resourceful. She seemed to have an extreme type-A personality, which in my opinion, made her a perfect fit to teach the biology section. Physics: Aki was very knowledgeable and knew how to explain complicated topics. I have a degree in electrical engineering and a degree in chemical engineering, but was impressed with how he was able to explain some of the topics. General Chemistry: Lucas was extremely knowledgeable about chemistry and the MCAT. I appreciated his down-to-earth teaching style and insight on the MCAT. His experience prepping for the MCAT resonated with me. Organic Chemistry: Ameer was an awesome instructor, and I thought he did a very good job navigating the class in a very difficult subject. Critical Reading: Vik was very articulate and insightful. This guy's class was very enjoyable, but I stopped attending it half way through because I didn't need much help in this area. Psychology/Sociology: The classes were conducted online. The Princeton Review really needs to refine and improve the classes for this section. I personally did not gain much from their online psy/soc classes. In addition to all that I stated, the books and online resources provided were all vital in my preparation for the MCAT. The course was expensive, but I think it was worth the money. read more

Cyrus Norwood in Austin TX is amazing -- he was so patient and helpful over the phone in helping me find a devise plan for my own testing aspirations. Would highly recommend Princeton for their customer support and expertise. read more

I just started my MCAT prep course two days ago and have had a TERRIBLE experience. I ordered my MCAT course on April 25th. I received a confirmation email that stated that the prep books would arrive in 5-7 days (so May 3rd at the latest). It is now May 22nd and I still haven't received my books. I called the costumer service number TWICE in two days and both times was sent to voicemail. I left two messages voicing my concerns and gave a phone number and email so that they could get back to me. I never heard back. On the third day I finally was able to actually talk to someone. She was't helpful AT ALL. I explained to her that my books were 3 weeks late and requested that they be overnighted to me. She said this wasn't possible and told me to "try to be patient" and she "hopes" they would arrive by my next lesson. I called back today and had a similar experience. I told them that if I don't get my books by the end of the week that I would cancel my course subscription and give Kaplan a try instead. They just sort of shrugged that off and told me that my books should arrive by my next class on the 28th. When I asked them to email me some sort of confirmation/ tracking number they told me that because they use a third party shipper they don't have access to that. So basically they want me to trust that they will get my books to me by the 28th... I trusted them in April when they said 5-7 business days but clearly that wasn't true. Also their server was down ALL day yesterday so I wasn't able to do any studying. No books AND no server! Tech issues happen, I get it, but when you only have 13 weeks to study for the MCAT every single day matters!!! read more

Miss lee was an outstanding teacher! She made learning achievable and helped me improve my SAT scores by 300 points! Thank you so much for helping me and my journey to college! read more

I had Alvin as my tutor and we worked together for about two months to prepare for my ACT. I came out of the tutoring much more confident and wasn't as intimidated as I was before I started tutoring. With the practice tests and Alvin's help I could see my work progressively get better. He was an awesome tutor! read more

Had private tutoring. My son's already very respectable ACT score of 29 went up 4 points to an impressive 33! Very satisfied and we will recommend The Princeton Review program to everyone who asks if there was anything we did to help our child excel! read more

We used Princeton review and would not use them again. They are very over priced and really seem insensitive about how much you are spending if you need additional training. It's all about getting you to spend more and not what's best for your child. Try Elite! read more

After taking the GRE for the first time, studying avidly, and not getting my desired score, I was looking for something extra to boost me up. I purchased an in-person tutoring package from PR. I was not contacted by their team for a week, and the first time I was contacted they asked me to buy their other product "homework help". As a college grad I'm not in the market for this product, so it was irrelevant and frustrating for this to be my first contact with them. Once I finally was put in touch with someone about my tutoring, I was told that no tutors were in my area and I would have to wait 3 months and drive 30+ miles to see a tutor. They said my only other option was to get an online tutor. PR essentially allowed me to purchase a service not available to me. I live in a big metro city, so I can only imagine what it's like in a small city -- guarantee you there are no tutors in your area, but PR will still take your money! In terms of the materials provided, their online portal is FULL of faults. There are answers stated as correct but they are clearly wrong. There are mislabeled graphs which force you to get the wrong answer. There are even "graph problems" which have no graphs at all to refer to! My online tutor even noticed that the online portal graded a practice test incorrectly. The "PR manual" is a paperback book full of practice problems, but no solutions. So you can use the problems to practice and have no idea if you got it right. The only people with the solutions are your tutor, so if you want the solutions to the 350+ page book, you'll need to buy 10's of tutoring hours to go through the whole thing. One of the most disheartening parts of the experience was the comments received on my writing. I was really looking forward to constructive criticism to help make my writing better. Most of the comments were repetitive, and were never really personalized to my work. I wish they highlighted areas of my work which related to their comments (i.e. a misspelling or awkward phrase). Further, I got a very upsetting comment on one piece. They stated, "Better luck next time!" on a piece which I received a 4 on. This is approximately a 60th percentile score, and they are indicating that I should be upset i got such a score. Perhaps I am proud of myself for the 4 I received. Ultimately, the other scorers were much kinder, and I just felt very disheartened when this reader indicated my score was inadequate. Overall, I DO NOT recommend this product especially if you live in a small city (as there's guaranteed no tutors available for you). I really wish they would have an online feature which searches your area and ensures there's an IN-PERSON service available, BEFORE taking my money. I got a great score this second time around, and attribute it solely on my own hard work. read more

DON'T waist your money. This organization is very unprofessional. The training my daughter attended was canceled at the convenient location (her High School) so we had to travel 20 min. to another High School. This school had major construction going on, so the noise was very distracting, and bathrooms were closed. She tried to get help from the instructor, who had no clue where the bathrooms were and did not seek to resolve this. (4 hours without a bathroom is not reasonable). When she made me aware of this, I went to the school office and resolved the problem in 2 minutes. Whenever my daughter approached the instructors with issues, they usually did not know the answer and did nothing to get an answer. The instructors were not professional and some were young college students that did not know how to handle any situation that was not scripted for them. For this kind of money, I expected more of the instructors! When I contacted the Princeton Review office in Irvine, all they did was make excuses and asked me what I wanted them to do. I told them it was irresponsible for them to hold this type of expensive course at a location under construction, when there are so many neighboring high schools that were available and not under construction. They again made excuses and said there was nothing they could do about it. I also mentioned how unprofessional their instructors were, they said they would speak with them, but we never saw any change. My daughter's SAT score was improved by only 100 points, NOT worth the cost of admission. My daughter said that she felt with all the distractions and the information she received it was a waist of her time and our money. Bottom line, this is a big waist of money, use the Khan Academy which is free, or find a more professional organization or get a tutor. read more

Tutoring at Princeton Review is amazing- my tutor, Ms. Stein, is extremely patient and helpful. She explains each mistake I make carefully and even answers my emails when I ask her questions outside of class time. I would definitely recommend this institute. read more

I am a student who worked with the Princeton Review in order to improve my SAT score. I bought private tutoring sessions with Brian who helped me bring up my score significantly! I just got back my official score report for the SAT, and I am happy to say that I reached my goal, thanks to Brian! He was a patient and very knowledgeable teacher who taught me all of the tricks in the book, making it easier to take the test. He was always on time during our sessions and was a fantastic teacher who is easy to get along with and work with. I highly recommend anyone who is looking for a tutor to help them boost up their SAT score to work with Brian! You won't regret it, and your score will most definitely improve. read more

Brian NGUYEN of Princeton Review, was ranked the best tutor my daughter has ever worked with, and our other tutors are generally PhD candidates. We had private sessions with him to prepare her for the ACT exam, and her results both improved and were great. His attitude was always positive, patient and supportive and he ended each session with a special treat for the whole family. I know he also offers review classes, but for us, the convenience of in-home tutoring, especially with Brian, was well worth the cost. I can't offer high enough praise. read more

I am extremely appreciative of Princeton Review and specifically David McKenna. The time and commitment that Mr. McKenna put into my son's preparation for the ACT was absolutely above and beyond. Mr. McKenna had worked with my older son and he was able to greatly increase his score. My second son has had difficulty with standardized tests and we were a little concerned about the ACT. From the very beginning Mr. McKenna worked on mental preparation along with specific test taking strategies and my son was able to greatly increase his score. I'm certain it was Mr. McKenna's ability to teach specific strategies however, it was also his encouragement and willingness to work on increasing my son's confidence in his own capabilities. Due to his encouragement many doors have been opened up for my son and I will always think of Mr. McKenna and value the time he spent with my son. David Mckenna is a very special person and we will always be greatly appreciative of all of his hard work and dedication most of all his belief in his students. As parents my husband and I learned a valuable lesson from Mr. Mckenna, if you believe in kids they can do anything! Thank you David! read more

I had the unique opportunity to tutor for the "oppressed children of south Orange County" for two years. Frankly, their services are completely overpriced. Their "strategies" for taking the SAT are just gimmicks. If I had to work for their sales department, I couldn't possibly look at the parents in the face when quoting prices. On the other end of the spectrum, the great majority of the students I have tutored are spoiled and lazy, and could easily pass the SAT if they picked up a book now and again, and their parents are entitled neurotics. Their "training" for tutors isn't so much about helping the students learn the material either, as it is just a sales pitch, and they will throw out their tutors to the dogs, rather than back them up. read more

The salespeople at PR were very informative, candid and professional. The representative made a great impression. The staff had to grade a few tests and they met all expectations on that. We went with a private tutor and found him to be professional, courteous, always on time and very effective. He gave our High School student the coaching, strategies and advice to conquer the SAT test. The results after 10 lessons were good. Now we have all the tools, access to PR offices and staff and the plan to take the results to a higher level on round two. We think the private tutor route is ideal and recommend PR. read more

Alvin, my tutor, was the best and I would definitely recommend him. He helped me raise my score from a 29 to a 33. Also, he's super cool guy and was very professional! read more

My son had a fabulous experience with his tutor, Nicole. She had a great ability to communicate and teach my son the required information for his test. Nicole was easily accessible to me as a mother and gave updates as needed. I highly, highly recommend Princeton Review!!!! read more

Unfortunately, after I've taken the GRE officially, my math score is poorer than my practice test score before instruction. It is also lower than when I took the official test a year ago without any prep. Math instruction from PR is not only inadequate, but in my case, detrimental to my score. I feel as if I have to "unlearn" their methods and reprogram my brain to get on the right track again. read more

I am extremely happy with the SAT preparation my daughter Ivanka received from Heidi Holton. Heidi was patient, kind, and very effective in preparing Ivanka for her test. From the initial school practice examination to her final SAT, official test, Ivanka's score increased more than 300 points. With a score of 2270, we feel confident that Ivanka will get into one of the schools of her choice, and we are grateful for the part Heidi played in getting to this point. read more

We hired Brian Nguyen as my son's tutor. I wrote an earlier review and just got my sons test scores. He went from a 30 in English to a 36 and in reading from a 24 to a 30! His overall score was a 34 up three points from his first test which was a 31! He really is awesome!!! Thank you Brian!! read more

We had an absolutely terrific experience with Leah Cohn from Princeton Review. After spending a significant amount of time and money with another ACT prep tutor we were very concerned that our daughter would not achieve her ACT goal. Leah's work with our daughter was very efficient and very focused, most importantly it was done in a very low stress environment. Thanks to Leah, she achieved her goal. I would not hesitate to recommend Leah and Princeton Review again. read more

My son and I attended a talk given by a Princeton review guy at University High School in Irvine.. This guy left a very bad message. He said vocabulary is not that important. He even give one example that one kid only spent 6 hours study SAT and got good grade. I don't know why this guy talked this way. Now my son used this guy's word as excuse of not study vocabulary or preparing for SAT. I knew this guy may not mean that, but kid choose the part they like. And this guy's talk did not leave any good impact to my son. read more