For SAT, it's pay and prep

Parents willing to spend big money to compete in college admissions race

Sarah Watson of Bedford works on a problem during an SAT preparation class at the Chyten Educational Services center in Lexington. (Erik Jacobs for The Boston Globe)

Arlington High School junior Kristina Crowley said high-priced SAT prep courses have become all but required in her world. Almost all of her friends are taking something similar to the Chyten prep course she was part of on a recent Sunday afternoon.

"It's stressful thinking you only have so many chances to do well, and if you don't, it could really hurt your chances of going somewhere you like," she said during a break from the class, which on this day dealt with such topics as the perils of perfect tense.

As she looks at competitive schools like Clemson University and Boston College, she said she feels that a prep course is necessary to keep her on a level playing field with other applicants, who will largely be doing the same.

Despite the flagging economy, thanks to students like Crowley, the test preparation and college counseling industry seems to be going strong.

In addition to teaching students how to take standardized tests, the results of which are considered a key ingredient to getting into a top college, many companies offer packages covering the entire admissions process - from deciding where to apply, to picking essay topics and preparing for interviews, even to deciding which school to ultimately choose.

Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions is seeing growth of nearly 200 percent this year in its admissions consulting services in Greater Boston, after hiring a full-time director to respond to the rising demand, a company official said.

"This kind of investment is the last thing to go" in hard economic times, said Anthony Manley, Kaplan's general manager for precollege programs. "In this environment, boosting test scores has become even more important, since higher scores can mean the difference in the amount of merit-based scholarships and financial aid awarded to the student."

Reports from private counselors also indicate boom times, said Mark Sklarow, executive director of the Independent Educational Consultants Association, which has more than 700 members.

"We're a little surprised because we are hearing from our members that demand has remained very strong," he said. "When the economy turns bad, people are sort of doubling down on education."

But as applicants try to gain an edge, the pressure intensifies. Students who attend competitive high schools are vying with classmates to take advantage of the increasing array of admissions services. As students purchase more and more help, classmates feel they must buy the same services just to stay competitive.

"In our school it's seen as something you're supposed to do," said Stephen Hitzrot, counseling department chairman at Acton-Boxborough Regional High School. "For some reason I think there's the thought that if you're going to pay big money for it, it's got to be good."

He said there are more and more test preparation companies all the time, and these days he gets three to four calls a week from such services asking to come in and make presentations about what they offer. The school doesn't promote any one company, said Hitzrot, but provides a list of options. The school's website offers links to Kaplan, Princeton Review, and some free online SAT prep resources.

College preparation pressure applies to parents as well, according to Hitzrot.

"There's a lot of pressure amongst each other, the mom and dad networks out there, 'Which one are you using,' not 'Are you using?,' " he said.

Debbie Crowley, Kristina's mother, said her daughter needs the preparation course largely to learn to manage anxiety around test-taking, but she also tries to de-emphasize test prep.

"I try to not put too much pressure on her for all this SAT stuff because I don't feel one test should determine a child's future," said Crowley.

Like mother, like daughter. Kristina has been working on an essay at school that makes an argument for why the SAT should not count as much as it does.

"It's really just a test of who's prepared, and to be prepared you have to pay for it," said Kristina. "It's really just like a game."

Debbie Crowley said she doesn't plan to hire a college counselor but will use the one hour of college counseling provided in her Chyten SAT package to help her daughter pick the right school.

Chyten Educational Services started off providing test-preparation courses but has expanded into college counseling, said Neil Chyten, the company's founder and chief executive. This is the first year, he said, that application assistance has been offered at all of Chyten's franchise centers, which are scattered across eight states.

The company's history says a lot about where the demand lies for test preparation and other college help. The first center was in Newton, followed by Wellesley, Lexington, and Concord, some of the most affluent towns in the state, boasting some of its best schools.

Business is increasing despite the poor economy, Chyten said. With money tight, he said, parents are more concerned than ever about making sure their children find the right college fit on the first try. At Chyten, one year of unlimited college counseling, not including test-preparation courses, costs $4,900.

"In comparison to what they're about to spend on college, it's minuscule," said Chyten, who tries to separate his company from others by requiring instructors to have master's or doctoral degrees.

Gil J. Villanueva, dean of admissions at Brandeis University, said he's keenly aware of the Type A behavior that goes into the admissions competition.

"If the neighbor is working with a private counselor, and we're not, and we attend the same high school, then we have to go ahead and participate in the arms race," he said.

Brandeis doesn't only want students from affluent suburbs, he said; in its effort to have a diverse student body, the college recruits low-income students and children of immigrants.

When looking at SAT scores, Villanueva said, Brandeis takes into consideration that low-income students probably don't have access to high-priced preparation services.

"Students in resource-poor areas tend not to score as well as those in resource-rich areas," said Villanueva. "We have to be sensitive to that."

But there are signs that parents are starting to think harder before plunking down their money on an expensive test-prep program or college counseling.

Michael London is president and chief executive of College Coach, a company founded in Newton that uses former college admissions officers to guide students through the application process. Comprehensive assistance, including unlimited access to a counselor via phone, e-mail, and in-person meetings, costs $3,699 for a high school senior and $4,199 for a junior.

He said his business has had more new customers this year, but they signed up a little later than usual.

"To equate it to a retailer, they bought all their toys right before Christmas," said London.

Diane Alten's son, a Newton South High School senior, is in the throes of applying to college, but the Newton mother is already worrying about her ninth-grade daughter.

Her son took SAT-preparation classes, but Alten wants to get even more help for her daughter before she enters the suburban arms race of college admissions.

"I think it's good to start with a coach early who can encourage her to join clubs and that sort of thing," said Alten. "I absolutely think I better call now."

Alten said although she thinks the preparation courses give wealthier students an unfair advantage on the SATs, in her community there's little choice for students applying to colleges in the Northeast.

"They only want a certain number of students from Newton," she said. "It's tough because there are so many kids applying to those schools."

Lisa Kocian can be reached at 508-820-4231 or lkocian@ globe.com.