princeton review vs. kaplan courses

[lynnier79]

im curious if people have strong opinions about these courses. if one is better than the other, in what ways, and whether that has to do with the location of the course, or the structure, materials, emphasis etc. im trying to decide if im going to take a prep course, an if so, which one.

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[ajnak182]

lynnier79,

I'm just finishing up the PR course and think that it provides a really good level of preparation. The instructors for the course know their stuff and the homeworks really have made the test much more manageable. My brother finished the Kaplan course last year and didn't like it very much. After looking over what I've been doing and the fact that PR allows you to study with their materials outside of the course center, he seems to think that the PR course is a stronger program. Hope this helps

AJ

 

[ScoobySnack]

Maybe this will help answer your question. I don't know if TPR is still doing this, if so they are probably a lot more discreet about it.
From www.thesmokinggun.com:

APRIL 7--Claiming that a major test preparation firm has been illegally "tapping" the biannual Medical College Admission Test, a consortium of the nation's medical schools and teaching hospitals has filed a federal lawsuit charging the Manhattan-based Princeton Review with copyright infringement, fraud, and misappropriation of trade secrets.

The Association of American Medical Colleges, in a March 21 complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., alleged that Princeton Review officials regularly send a platoon of "tappers" to take the test "in order to memorize confidential MCAT questions." The complaint contends that those questions were then compiled into a confidential "tap report" that was circulated to Princeton Review officials and instructors of the publicly-held company's MCAT test prep course (which costs enrollees $1400).

According to the federal complaint, AAMC officials obtained a copy of the prep firm's tap report for the April 2002 MCAT (the test is also given each August). The internal Princeton Review document included a remarkable 178 of the test's 221 questions. The next MCAT is scheduled for April 26.

Claiming that Princeton Review distributed questions "which AAMC plans to use on future forms of the MCAT," the medical schools organization charged that the company's actions "compromised" the April and August 2002 tests as well as prior exams. The AAMC noted that while the non-profit group itself sells practice material, the MCAT questions included "have been retired." AAMC represents the nation's 126 medical schools and 400 teaching hospitals.

In its lawsuit--a key excerpt of which you'll find below--AAMC charged that any Princeton Review employee who "tapped" the MCAT "made a knowingly false statement" when certifying on the test answer sheet that they agreed not to memorize or try to reconstruct test questions, In addition, test takers are required to verify that they were taking the MCAT for the sole purpose of "preparing to enroll in a health professions school."

 

[ajnak182]

Yeah, they're still doing it, according to the instructors of my course. I wonder how detrimental TPR's actions really are to the MCAT? The issue which I think is more noteworthy is the fact that the prep course costs over $1000, an amount which any low income applicant likely isn't able to afford. As far as I know, TPR and does not offer any sort of need-based scholarships for their courses, and I am unsure if Kaplan or any other review courses offers the same. From my experience, the course has truly helped boost my chances for a strong MCAT score. Those who are unable to take it due to monetary reasons, therefore, seem to be at yet one more disadvantage in the whole med school admission process. Just my opinion, but I feel that AAMC's willingness to pursue litigation and their incessant bitching might be better spent on other, larger issues.


AJ