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Have any of you taken up a job as a Kaplan tutor/teacher for the DAT? Please tell me about your experiences.
Kaplan Teacher/Tutor job
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Yes I taught the DAT after my first take (20aa/19ts/24pat), taught 3 classes and one tutoring and retook it myself (22aa/21ts/23pat). I can say that actually teaching it helps you even more ;-)
PM me with specific questions and I'll answer them
PM me with specific questions and I'll answer them
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i LOVE being a kaplan teacher!!!!! i really believe in the materials cause they worked for me....
CONS:
-it is quite a bit of work though b/c it forces you to learn the material even better (which is good in many ways too) so that you can teach it
-a LOT of work and dedication (esp if you really want to help ur students and be a good teacher) aka prepping the TEL 🙂
PROS:
-it's personally rewarding to help students understand material and get that "i get it now" look
-it pays well AND it's very flexible....
-i felt like my ds interviewers were really impressed by it
CONS:
-it is quite a bit of work though b/c it forces you to learn the material even better (which is good in many ways too) so that you can teach it
-a LOT of work and dedication (esp if you really want to help ur students and be a good teacher) aka prepping the TEL 🙂
PROS:
-it's personally rewarding to help students understand material and get that "i get it now" look
-it pays well AND it's very flexible....
-i felt like my ds interviewers were really impressed by it
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I'm applying now. I have to do an audition in a week and a half to show my teaching skills or whatever. It has to be a "how-to" lesson. Any ideas anyone?
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Teaching for Kaplan blows. Talking 3 hrs straight's a challenge. Water helps a bit, but I wasn't genetically blessed with water fountain-like salivation (which is probably a good thing). Pay's kinda low. They pay you minimal for preparing for lectures. The material's just okay. The PAT could be much, much better. There are so many techniques out there, and Kaplan only touches on a few. The best perk of teaching for Kaplan.... I get 15% off my wireless bill. I still get the discount even thou I don't teach for them anymore. Yea!
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Teaching for Kaplan is great. The first time you teach is the hardest because you're still learning how to teach and full on prepping for the first time. But the more you do it, the easier and more fun it gets and you start enjoying the class and your students more. I passed up on teaching the class that is starting this weekend, and I'm kind of regretting it now.
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How much do they pay at start? I have audition on Feb 11... but I work full time as well. For me it is time vs money: if they pay decent, I would take it.. if not - I could concentrate more on my full time job instead.
Thanks!
Thanks!
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Haha my audition is the day before yours. I'll let you know how it goes!
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PM response I sent to someone that might be of some help to you guys:
They aim for all 20s and above to be top 90%, but if your printout shows you were top 90% in each it won't be a problem. I had taught the ACT/SAT there for a few months before taking the DAT so my manager gave me a little more leeway in that respect.
The interview is more like a audition. You have to give a presentation on teaching something, I choose "How to Stay Alive in the Woods". Make it fun, be outgoing and personable, and don't get flustered and you should be fine. There is a 4-session training that you have to pass. They make you prep sections of lessons and critique you. Your first class is very nerveracking. After my first class (8 weeks) I got in a grove, knew some jokes that worked and where, and the answers to common questions. I also knew the ways that seemed to work for explaining things. The dress code is slack, basically they want you to look better than the students, which isn't hard, but I dressed business casual, button up shirt and nice slacks. I think teachers that wore cargoes and a sloppy Abercrombie shirt looked unprofessional and what they taught wasn't taken as seriously. NOTE: Your class sessions CAN be alot of fun! Each of my classes had a great time except when trying to teach the damn PAT.
Pay was $15/hr for the first class, with $7/hr for any work outside of teaching. During the first class that outside teaching is ALOT. Almost as many hours as you actually teach you'll spend preparing to teach. The first time you teach a session unprepared, you'll make sure you never do it again. After your first class they bump you to $18/hr because there is much less outside of class work, since once you make a lesson plan once you really just review it each time. My first time I had 8 hours teaching a week with 8 hours preparation, after that it was 8 hour teaching and 2-3 hours preparation.
Doesn't pay the bills, but any extra cash is nice, plus it keeps you in the mindset for the DAT, especially nice if you want to retake like I did. You'll be more prepared after teaching 3 classes, and answering all the different questions that come up that you'll be money if you decide to retake.
I enjoyed it alot. Some days not so much, like when trying to teach the PAT and Math, but what job is perfect? I liked that I was teaching college students my age instead of high schoolers whose parents enrolled them in SAT classes and didn't want to be there. Most students are there because they want to get into dental school, so they take it seriously (but they expect you to be on your game and know your stuff for the same reasons). 3 of my students will be my classmates next year, I got to interview with them, so that was kind of a cool thing too.
Hope that helps, good luck! 👍
They aim for all 20s and above to be top 90%, but if your printout shows you were top 90% in each it won't be a problem. I had taught the ACT/SAT there for a few months before taking the DAT so my manager gave me a little more leeway in that respect.
The interview is more like a audition. You have to give a presentation on teaching something, I choose "How to Stay Alive in the Woods". Make it fun, be outgoing and personable, and don't get flustered and you should be fine. There is a 4-session training that you have to pass. They make you prep sections of lessons and critique you. Your first class is very nerveracking. After my first class (8 weeks) I got in a grove, knew some jokes that worked and where, and the answers to common questions. I also knew the ways that seemed to work for explaining things. The dress code is slack, basically they want you to look better than the students, which isn't hard, but I dressed business casual, button up shirt and nice slacks. I think teachers that wore cargoes and a sloppy Abercrombie shirt looked unprofessional and what they taught wasn't taken as seriously. NOTE: Your class sessions CAN be alot of fun! Each of my classes had a great time except when trying to teach the damn PAT.
Pay was $15/hr for the first class, with $7/hr for any work outside of teaching. During the first class that outside teaching is ALOT. Almost as many hours as you actually teach you'll spend preparing to teach. The first time you teach a session unprepared, you'll make sure you never do it again. After your first class they bump you to $18/hr because there is much less outside of class work, since once you make a lesson plan once you really just review it each time. My first time I had 8 hours teaching a week with 8 hours preparation, after that it was 8 hour teaching and 2-3 hours preparation.
Doesn't pay the bills, but any extra cash is nice, plus it keeps you in the mindset for the DAT, especially nice if you want to retake like I did. You'll be more prepared after teaching 3 classes, and answering all the different questions that come up that you'll be money if you decide to retake.
I enjoyed it alot. Some days not so much, like when trying to teach the PAT and Math, but what job is perfect? I liked that I was teaching college students my age instead of high schoolers whose parents enrolled them in SAT classes and didn't want to be there. Most students are there because they want to get into dental school, so they take it seriously (but they expect you to be on your game and know your stuff for the same reasons). 3 of my students will be my classmates next year, I got to interview with them, so that was kind of a cool thing too.
Hope that helps, good luck! 👍
Last edited:
something you are interested in and can talk about on the top of your head.
i chose a specific variant of olympic lifting.
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It varies by experience. They tell us we are not allowed to discuss it with other instructors.
