If you’re planning to take the ACT in 2027, choosing a test date is one of the first decisions you’ll need to make. You’ll want enough time to prepare, a schedule that works with school and other commitments, and results available before your college or scholarship deadlines. Below, you’ll find the 2027 ACT test dates and registration deadlines, followed by advice on choosing a date and finding a prep course…

A typical student takes a three-hour practice SAT on Saturday morning and spends about fifteen minutes reviewing it before moving on to something else. That ratio is backwards. The practice test itself is almost the least valuable part of the process. The review is where learning actually happens, and shortchanging the review is the single biggest reason students take dozens of practice tests across months of prep without seeing their…

Let’s be fair to elite colleges. The network, the reputation, and the people you meet there can make a real difference. There’s nothing foolish about wanting that experience. Prep Expert® founder Dr. Shaan Patel knows the appeal. He also knows how easily families start expecting an acceptance letter to settle questions it cannot answer. Will you build a career you like? Will you be able to afford the choices you…

Bad programs rarely look bad. They look reasonable, take the money, and surface as a problem only once the test window has closed. The test prep industry has a trust problem that most families only recognize after the money is spent. It is not that families fall for obvious scams. It is that mediocre programs look reasonable from outside. Professional website, testimonials, prices in the normal band, a name you…

If you want to study two subjects in college, you may not have to choose between them. A double major or dual degree can let you pursue both, but the requirements can lead to very different college experiences. A double major generally means earning one bachelor’s degree with two majors. A dual degree means earning two separate degrees.  The route you choose will affect which academic requirements you must satisfy…

The SAT may be digital now, but that does not mean you can take it on any device you have handy. The digital SAT is administered through College Board’s Bluebook testing app, and College Board has specific rules about which computers and tablets can run it. There are also separate rules covering phones, watches, headphones, calculators, and other electronics you might normally carry. Knowing those rules before test day can…

Once a family has decided that test prep is worth investing in, the next question is which format to choose. Group class or one-on-one tutoring. These two options are usually framed as competitors, as if there’s a universal right answer about which one is better. There isn’t. Both formats can produce excellent score gains, and both have students who thrive in them and students who don’t. The question isn’t which…

You paid for the prep course. You cleared Saturday morning for a practice test. Now your teenager has missed an assignment, and you are about to email the instructor. For Prep Expert® founder Dr. Shaan Patel, that last step deserves a pause. Asked whether parents should be coaches, managers, or bystanders, Shaan challenged the categories. He has seen highly involved parents help and hurt. He has seen the same from…

DISCLOSURE: This article is written by the founder of Prep Expert®, a test prep company, and discusses what families should spend on test prep. The student reviews quoted are from Prep Expert® courses. The University of Alabama publishes exactly what an out-of-state student with a 3.5 GPA receives automatically, by SAT score, with no separate application. A 1330 to 1350 earns $15,000 a year. A 1360 earns $24,000. Ten points…

“I was the valedictorian of my high school and I scored a 1760 the first time I took the SAT.” That is how Prep Expert® founder Dr. Shaan Patel answered the question of whether he was always a strong test-taker. For context, while today’s SAT uses a 1600-point scale, that score was earned on the test’s previous 2400-point scale. In other words, it wasn’t a bad score, but it was…