Ivy leaguers help locals with ACT prep

Laura Biersteker of Grayslake remembers well what it felt like to take the ACT exam – a test colleges and universities use to determine a high school student’s ability to complete college-level work.

The 20-year-old, who will be a junior engineer at Vanderbilt University in the fall, took the test just a few years ago – scoring a 32 – and said it can be a stressful experience for those not prepared.

Now, the 2009 Carmel Catholic High School graduate has teamed up with a 2010 Carmel grad to teach an ACT prep course with the Revolution Prep Ivy Insiders program for the Grayslake and Mundelein areas.

What sets the Ivy Insiders apart from other test prep programs is the age and caliber of the instructors, said Nicki Cohen, 21, of Highland Park, who manages the 26 programs available in the Chicago region.

“Ivy Insiders really started as a new form of test prep in the sense that the teachers would be different,” Cohen said, noting that she was an instructor for the program before becoming a regional manager. “The teachers would no longer be middle-aged, retired … the instructors really serve as mentors. At least in my experience, I found that being close in age to the students allowed us to have a close relationship with these students where they seem to want to do better.”

Biersteker agreed.

“My co-manager and I, we just recently graduated from high school,” she said. “We’re undergrads at some of the top colleges in the nation, so we can relate to the students and give them advice on how to do the ACT and … pretty much help them out with any questions they have.”

The test prep class meets for three hours twice a week, where Biersteker and Blair Carlson, 19, of Barrington, share their expertise on how to study for the ACT exam.

Then, every Saturday for five weeks, the high school students take a practice test, and Biersteker and Carlson grade them.

“I’ve been telling the kids over and over again, I know the biggest problem for me in the science section was I ran out of time, so I tell the kids, pace yourself accordingly,” Biersteker said.

The advice the instructors dish out works, too. One of Biersteker’s students was having trouble with the science portion of the ACT. After a private tutoring session with Biersteker, the girl’s score improved eight points in the science portion of the next practice exam, Biersteker said.

In fact, Ivy Insiders sees an average ACT score improvement of 4.4 points, Cohen said.

Sometimes Biersteker and Carlson – who is attending Wake Forest University – review material their students have forgotten, such as algebraic equations and other formulas that may help them on the test. Other times, their advice exceeds test material.

“I think they’re getting tips and ... mentorship from someone who will actually listen – people their own age,” Carlson said, adding that she has helped students prepare their college resumes. “I think it makes a big difference hearing this stuff from someone who just took [the ACT]. Standardized testing has changed a lot the last 10 years.”

Want to know more?

A new Revolution Prep Ivy Insiders ACT prep course for the Grayslake/Mundelein areas will begin Monday, July 25. Ivy Insiders also offers SAT prep courses. To register or find other courses in the Lake County area, visit www.revolutionprep.com.