About our Courses
Thank you for your interest in our SAT / ACT / PSAT prep courses. The below information is provided in order to assist you in determining which of our courses are right for you.
GENERAL COURSE SUMMARIES
All of our Comprehensive Prep courses cover the same material and simultaneously prepare students for the SAT, ACT and PSAT exams. Each course offers over 67 hours of in-depth preparation; additionally, once per month, we will offer an optional Zoom-based extra Q&A session in the evening where students can ask for clarification or further explanation on any lessons from the course. You can view the schedules and reserve your space in any of our courses on our Schedules/Registration page.
For the 2021-22 academic year, we currently have two courses scheduled: our Summer/Fall course (which began in mid-July in preparation for the October 2021 SAT, ACT and PSAT exams) and our Fall/Winter course (which will begin on September 5 in preparation for the February 2022 ACT and March 2022 SAT exams).
The tuition for all of our 2021-22 SAT/ACT preparation courses is $1395. All students will be required to have a scientific or graphing calculator and to purchase the most recent versions of two books: "The Official ACT Prep Guide" and "The Official SAT Study Guide".
There are currently two options for attending classes: (1) in person at The 305 Club (at 8770 SW 131 Street, near The Falls) AND (2) remotely through Zoom (which allows for distance learning from anywhere in the country). Students/parents can choose which of the 2 formats they feel most comfortable with. The 305 Club is a very large space with various COVID-19 precautions in place that allows students to comfortably 6 feet apart. The Zoom option allows both local and out-of-town students who view the class remotely to still hear/see everything clearly and to participate & interact with the instructor just as if they were attending in person. If a student is unable to attend class on a particular date through either method of attendance, he/she can arrange to view a makeup video of the missed class for $10. Note that even once the pandemic situation in Florida is under control as per medical experts, we still plan to offer both an in-person (either at The 305 Club or at the Dadeland Hampton Inn) and a Zoom attendance option, so both local and out-of-town students will still be able to take the course.
COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS
First, an important note: Unlike 30 years ago, most students now take the SAT and/or ACT 2 - 4 times (sometimes more), taking advantage of the widespread use of “super-scoring”. For example, if the student takes the SAT exam in June and scores a 660 in the verbal sections and a 400 in the math section, and then that same student takes the SAT again in October and scores a 620 in the verbal section and a 670 in the math section, most schools (and scholarships such as the Florida Bright Futures scholarships) will combine the high verbal score (660) from June and the high math score (670) from October, leading to a 1330 score, which, beginning with the Class of 2021, has been the scoring level necessary for the highest level of the Bright Futures scholarships.
For students who will be in, or about to enter, 12th grade when they take our course, our Summer/Fall course is ideally designed. The course will prepare students for the October SAT and ACT exams; both should be admissible for all college deadlines, including early-admission deadlines. Some students may also choose to take the SAT in August and/or to take the ACT in September (two decisions we support and encourage), but their training won't be completed until the October exam dates. Our Fall/Winter course is a great option for seniors if (a) your schedule prevents you from joining the Summer/Fall course or you are enrolling after several Summer/Fall classes have already met, and (b) you are either applying to colleges with application deadlines that allow for Spring test dates or you are still trying to reach score levels that will make you eligible for scholarships such as the Florida Bright Futures scholarships (ALL tests taken through to the end of June of one's senior year are applicable toward Bright Futures scholarships).
For students who will be in, or about to enter, 11th grade when they take our course, all of our courses are excellent choices. We recommend that 11th grade students should plan to sit for at least one SAT exam and at least one ACT exam in the first half of their junior year, and at least one SAT exam and at least one ACT exam in the second half of their junior year. While neither the SAT nor the ACT is inherently more easy or more difficult than the other, some students will find, after they have taken both the SAT and ACT toward the end of their training, that they will be scoring significantly and consistently better on one test than on the other. For students enrolled in the Summer/Fall course or the Fall/Winter course, if they wish to further raise their scores after the course has been completed, students can continue training in the second half of their junior year toward both exams or toward the test on which they are strongest; they can then retake the test(s) in the spring. If students from any of our courses still feel they would like to further improve their scores after their junior year has been completed, they will still have at the very least the first half of their senior year to do so.
For students who will be in, or about to enter, 9th or 10th grade when they take our course and who wish to get an early start on their SAT and ACT preparation, all of our Comprehensive Preparation courses will provide full training. Freshmen and sophomores who are taking our course should plan to take the SAT and ACT exams immediately after the course has been completed, while the material is fresh. Read the discussion for upcoming juniors (in red, above) for further guidance regarding the course options.
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Since our courses sometimes reach their enrollment limits well in advance of their starting dates, we recommend reserving your seats as soon as you decide you would like to enroll. We accept $50 non-refundable deposits in order to secure a space in any of our programs. Those deposits will be applied toward the course tuition and will lock in a seat for whichever course you are selecting.
To guarantee a seat by reserving your space now, you can remit payment (either a $50 deposit or the full tuition) in one of three ways:
(1) By making a direct-from-bank payment through Zelle. Using the Zelle app, simply send the payment to Michele Rothkopf at the email address drjeff@higherstandards.biz.
(2) Through credit card or bank withdrawal via PayPal. On our Schedules/Registration page, simply open the drop-down window beneath the course schedule you are interested in and select your preferred option.
(3) By sending a check, cash or money order through the United States Postal Service. Send us an email at drjeff@higherstandards.biz if you'd like to use USPS and we'll send you our mailing address.
Regardless of the method of payment, make sure to include a note with the payment (or in a separate e-mail to drjeff@higherstandards.biz) that provides both the student's and parents' names, the student's and parents' contact phone numbers and e-mail addresses, and a note indicating the course into which you are enrolling.
At the time of enrollment, please also mail or e-mail copies of all previous SAT, PSAT, ACT and PreACT exams so that we have the most complete picture of the student’s scoring history.
If you are an out-of-town student who will be attending through Zoom, make sure to also let us know your mailing address so that we can ship your course manual to you. Note that there is a $15 additional charge to cover the cost of shipping the manual and it may take at least 4 business days to arrive. We can also arrange expedited shipping; cost will be determined based on shipping costs.
The balance of the course tuition will be due 2 - 3 weeks before the course begins. If you are enrolling within 2 weeks of the start date for a course, please remit the full tuition at the time of enrollment.
If you have questions you need to first ask -- about the course, about payment, about the exams, or about anything else -- you can email Dr. Rothkopf at drjeff@higherstandards.biz or you can call Michele at 305-969-2012; either one of us will be happy to answer any additional questions you may have.
A few weeks before the course begins -- or within two days of receiving your course payment, if within two weeks of the start date -- you will receive a set of around 10 e-mails providing a lot of information (regarding course schedules, makeup videos, directions to the course location, extended time testing, test registration, payment and more). Since we communicate mainly via e-mail, make sure that your e-mail account is set to receive drjeff@higherstandards.biz as a friendly e-mail address.
Again, thank you so much for your interest in Higher Standards for your test prep. We look forward to working with your family!
Sincerely,
Dr. & Mrs. Jeff & Michele Rothkopf
GENERAL COURSE SUMMARIES
All of our Comprehensive Prep courses cover the same material and simultaneously prepare students for the SAT, ACT and PSAT exams. Each course offers over 67 hours of in-depth preparation; additionally, once per month, we will offer an optional Zoom-based extra Q&A session in the evening where students can ask for clarification or further explanation on any lessons from the course. You can view the schedules and reserve your space in any of our courses on our Schedules/Registration page.
For the 2021-22 academic year, we currently have two courses scheduled: our Summer/Fall course (which began in mid-July in preparation for the October 2021 SAT, ACT and PSAT exams) and our Fall/Winter course (which will begin on September 5 in preparation for the February 2022 ACT and March 2022 SAT exams).
The tuition for all of our 2021-22 SAT/ACT preparation courses is $1395. All students will be required to have a scientific or graphing calculator and to purchase the most recent versions of two books: "The Official ACT Prep Guide" and "The Official SAT Study Guide".
There are currently two options for attending classes: (1) in person at The 305 Club (at 8770 SW 131 Street, near The Falls) AND (2) remotely through Zoom (which allows for distance learning from anywhere in the country). Students/parents can choose which of the 2 formats they feel most comfortable with. The 305 Club is a very large space with various COVID-19 precautions in place that allows students to comfortably 6 feet apart. The Zoom option allows both local and out-of-town students who view the class remotely to still hear/see everything clearly and to participate & interact with the instructor just as if they were attending in person. If a student is unable to attend class on a particular date through either method of attendance, he/she can arrange to view a makeup video of the missed class for $10. Note that even once the pandemic situation in Florida is under control as per medical experts, we still plan to offer both an in-person (either at The 305 Club or at the Dadeland Hampton Inn) and a Zoom attendance option, so both local and out-of-town students will still be able to take the course.
COURSE RECOMMENDATIONS
First, an important note: Unlike 30 years ago, most students now take the SAT and/or ACT 2 - 4 times (sometimes more), taking advantage of the widespread use of “super-scoring”. For example, if the student takes the SAT exam in June and scores a 660 in the verbal sections and a 400 in the math section, and then that same student takes the SAT again in October and scores a 620 in the verbal section and a 670 in the math section, most schools (and scholarships such as the Florida Bright Futures scholarships) will combine the high verbal score (660) from June and the high math score (670) from October, leading to a 1330 score, which, beginning with the Class of 2021, has been the scoring level necessary for the highest level of the Bright Futures scholarships.
For students who will be in, or about to enter, 12th grade when they take our course, our Summer/Fall course is ideally designed. The course will prepare students for the October SAT and ACT exams; both should be admissible for all college deadlines, including early-admission deadlines. Some students may also choose to take the SAT in August and/or to take the ACT in September (two decisions we support and encourage), but their training won't be completed until the October exam dates. Our Fall/Winter course is a great option for seniors if (a) your schedule prevents you from joining the Summer/Fall course or you are enrolling after several Summer/Fall classes have already met, and (b) you are either applying to colleges with application deadlines that allow for Spring test dates or you are still trying to reach score levels that will make you eligible for scholarships such as the Florida Bright Futures scholarships (ALL tests taken through to the end of June of one's senior year are applicable toward Bright Futures scholarships).
For students who will be in, or about to enter, 11th grade when they take our course, all of our courses are excellent choices. We recommend that 11th grade students should plan to sit for at least one SAT exam and at least one ACT exam in the first half of their junior year, and at least one SAT exam and at least one ACT exam in the second half of their junior year. While neither the SAT nor the ACT is inherently more easy or more difficult than the other, some students will find, after they have taken both the SAT and ACT toward the end of their training, that they will be scoring significantly and consistently better on one test than on the other. For students enrolled in the Summer/Fall course or the Fall/Winter course, if they wish to further raise their scores after the course has been completed, students can continue training in the second half of their junior year toward both exams or toward the test on which they are strongest; they can then retake the test(s) in the spring. If students from any of our courses still feel they would like to further improve their scores after their junior year has been completed, they will still have at the very least the first half of their senior year to do so.
For students who will be in, or about to enter, 9th or 10th grade when they take our course and who wish to get an early start on their SAT and ACT preparation, all of our Comprehensive Preparation courses will provide full training. Freshmen and sophomores who are taking our course should plan to take the SAT and ACT exams immediately after the course has been completed, while the material is fresh. Read the discussion for upcoming juniors (in red, above) for further guidance regarding the course options.
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Since our courses sometimes reach their enrollment limits well in advance of their starting dates, we recommend reserving your seats as soon as you decide you would like to enroll. We accept $50 non-refundable deposits in order to secure a space in any of our programs. Those deposits will be applied toward the course tuition and will lock in a seat for whichever course you are selecting.
To guarantee a seat by reserving your space now, you can remit payment (either a $50 deposit or the full tuition) in one of three ways:
(1) By making a direct-from-bank payment through Zelle. Using the Zelle app, simply send the payment to Michele Rothkopf at the email address drjeff@higherstandards.biz.
(2) Through credit card or bank withdrawal via PayPal. On our Schedules/Registration page, simply open the drop-down window beneath the course schedule you are interested in and select your preferred option.
(3) By sending a check, cash or money order through the United States Postal Service. Send us an email at drjeff@higherstandards.biz if you'd like to use USPS and we'll send you our mailing address.
Regardless of the method of payment, make sure to include a note with the payment (or in a separate e-mail to drjeff@higherstandards.biz) that provides both the student's and parents' names, the student's and parents' contact phone numbers and e-mail addresses, and a note indicating the course into which you are enrolling.
At the time of enrollment, please also mail or e-mail copies of all previous SAT, PSAT, ACT and PreACT exams so that we have the most complete picture of the student’s scoring history.
If you are an out-of-town student who will be attending through Zoom, make sure to also let us know your mailing address so that we can ship your course manual to you. Note that there is a $15 additional charge to cover the cost of shipping the manual and it may take at least 4 business days to arrive. We can also arrange expedited shipping; cost will be determined based on shipping costs.
The balance of the course tuition will be due 2 - 3 weeks before the course begins. If you are enrolling within 2 weeks of the start date for a course, please remit the full tuition at the time of enrollment.
If you have questions you need to first ask -- about the course, about payment, about the exams, or about anything else -- you can email Dr. Rothkopf at drjeff@higherstandards.biz or you can call Michele at 305-969-2012; either one of us will be happy to answer any additional questions you may have.
A few weeks before the course begins -- or within two days of receiving your course payment, if within two weeks of the start date -- you will receive a set of around 10 e-mails providing a lot of information (regarding course schedules, makeup videos, directions to the course location, extended time testing, test registration, payment and more). Since we communicate mainly via e-mail, make sure that your e-mail account is set to receive drjeff@higherstandards.biz as a friendly e-mail address.
Again, thank you so much for your interest in Higher Standards for your test prep. We look forward to working with your family!
Sincerely,
Dr. & Mrs. Jeff & Michele Rothkopf