Hey Tutors, Why Don't You Offer Both SAT® & ACT® Prep?
Updated on May 23, 2023
Once upon a time, the choice between the SAT® and ACT® was largely a regional divide. Over the past decade or so, however, both tests have seen increases in registrations and the geographic disparities have noticeably diminished.
What this means for test-prep professionals is that you should be offering support services for both tests to best serve your local and online market to maximize your potential business.
Offering Clients the Best Fit
Depending on students’ strengths and weaknesses, choosing between the ACT® and SAT® can prove to be an important decision.
There are factors, like timing, calculator use, and science content, that are handled differently depending on the test a student is taking. Tutors can be instrumental in identifying which option is a student’s optimal opportunity for growth and success.
That said, when your test-prep options are limited to one test or the other, it is unlikely that you would steer students toward the test you don’t support. However, if your business is equally prepared to help students succeed on either test, you can offer your clients guidance that is both helpful and unbiased.
On the other hand, if you refuse to offer tutoring for one test or the other, then you may leave some clients wondering "Why not both?"
If you're overtly favoring one test over the other without providing any support for your opinion, then it can be a real credibility-buster. Lucky for you, we have put together an easy-to-use resource that helps tutors direct students to the right test for them. Click the link below to download your FREE copy!
Twice the Opportunities for Success
Despite the differences outlined above, these days the SAT® and ACT® have come to have more things in common than in years past. For test takers and tutors, this means a lot of the preparation done for one test translates to the other with only a few purposeful tweaks.
This can prove to be a major advantage for test takers working to improve their scores and the tutoring services that are able to support them in doing so: two tests means twice the testing opportunities.
For example, when application deadlines start getting closer, students may need (or want) more chances to improve their score than either the SAT® or ACT® make available separately. Having the ability to tutor students toward either test creates increased scheduling and preparatory flexibility thanks to additional test dates.
Outflank the Competition
Depending on your local test-prep market, this may be an excellent opportunity to differentiate your tutoring by offering services that your competition cannot match. If local students tend to opt for the ACT® more often than the SAT®, you should still offer test-prep courses for both exams anyway. Carving out that niche will more than make up for the lower demand. You may find that your new offering generates leads for both tests, helping you to grow your business by serving clients whose Google searches had previously taken them wide of niche.
Quality Test-Prep Curriculum Simplifies the Process
If recent trends prove anything, it is that students are becoming much less region-locked in their test selection. Offering SAT® and ACT® tutoring allows you to position yourself as the comprehensive test-prep tutoring provider. It also enables you to show potential clients that you care enough to provide quality test-prep instruction for both the SAT® and the ACT®.
When selecting test-prep curriculum (or evaluating your current tools), opt for a system that can be tailored to both the SAT® and the ACT®. This cuts down on training time for test-prep tutors, keeps your curricular tools consistent, and creates a familiar workflow for students who wind up preparing for both tests.
Tutor Training Materials Make Test-Prep Experts
Adding test prep into your tutoring portfolio requires some important legwork. Thankfully, adding additional test-prep options should be an easier process. Most tutors who can tutor one test are perfectly capable of tutoring the other. Still, they'll need to familiarize themselves with the material on the new exam, examine the differences between the two, and take advantage of support resources to help them address any questions they're not immediately prepared to solve on the fly.
That's why we've put together ample FREE training resources to help your tutors get up to speed on both the SAT® and ACT®.
Schedule a FREE demo to see how Clear Choice Prep’s custom-branded, differentiated, and easy-to-use test-prep tools can help transform your company into an SAT® and ACT® Double Threat.
