Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC)

Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 917.822.8190
Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanLSATPrep

New York, NY (April 8, 2020) – The following statement about the Law School Admission Council’s announcement to offer an online, remotely proctored version of the LSAT called the LSAT-Flex in May so that test takers can safely sit for the exam at home during the COVID-19 pandemic comes from Jeff Thomas, executive director of admissions programs, Kaplan Test Prep:

“Creating a version of the LSAT that aspiring lawyers can take from the safety of their own homes is a win for test takers, many of whom had their admissions timelines disrupted because of COVID-19-related test cancellations in April. This makes an uncertain and stressful situation a lot more manageable. Our advice to students is to take the LSAT-Flex if they qualify, especially if they are planning to apply for enrollment in the fall 2020 semester. It seems likely that some parts of the country will still be hard hit by COVID-19 this summer, making it unlikely that normal test administrations can take place for a few months. The good news is that the format of LSAT-Flex is the same as LSAC’s new digital practice tool, so this will not be in a format with which students are unfamiliar.”

Candidates currently registered for the cancelled April 2020 exam will be automatically registered to take the LSAT-Flex, unless they choose otherwise. The test maker says it may make other LSAT-Flex test dates available this spring and summer if the situation warrants the cancellation of other test administrations currently on the calendar, but the May date is only for test takers who were scheduled for April’s test date.

LSAT-Flex will include one section each of Reading Comprehension, Analytical Reasoning, and Logical Reasoning; there will be no second Logical Reasoning section or experimental section, as there usually are. The scoring scale of 120 to 180 will remain the same.

For more details, visit the Law School Admission Council’s LSAT-Flex information page. 

To speak with an LSAT expert at Kaplan, contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 917.822.8190.

LSAT® is a registered trademark of the Law School Admission Council, Inc. which does not review or endorse specific test preparation materials or services.

About Kaplan Test Prep

Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 200 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school. Among those tests are the SAT®, PSAT®, ACT®, GRE®, GMAT®, LSAT®, and MCAT®. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.

# # #

Above The Law: “At-Home LSAT Is Coming Next Month”

The ABA Journal: “A remote LSAT is scheduled for May because of coronavirus”

The Daily Trojan (University of Southern California): “Hypercompetitive pre-health academic culture is not conducive to fostering compassionate physicians”

Law.com: “At-Home LSAT Set to Debut Next Month Amid COVID-19 Pandemic”

Inside Higher Ed: “Will They Return?”

College Confidential: “Most High School Parents Concerned Their Children Will Fall Behind Amid School Closures”

Log on at 1 PM ET, Tuesday, March 31 at https://www.kaptest.com/live/events

Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC)
Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 917.822.8190

New York, NY (March 27, 2020) – You have 100 patients in your waiting room, all with complaints. The incidents of influenza A outstrips those of COVID-19, but infection rates are on the rise. Your clinic was only provided 25 kits for COVID-19, so who gets tested? These are the hard questions doctors are making every day on the frontlines.

With third and fourth year medical students sidelined from clinical rotations due to the COVID-19 outbreak, i-Human Patients by Kaplan, a leader in cloud-based, interactive patient encounter simulations for medical and nursing professionals, will host an interactive, live online event at 1 PM ET on Tuesday, March 31, to demonstrate how a doctor might diagnose a patient showing signs of COVID-19. 

The event is geared towards doctors in training, from pre-meds to fourth year medical students, as well as healthcare professionals who make diagnoses, such as physician assistants and nurse practitioner students. During the event, Dr. Judy Kalinyak, MD, PhD, vice president and director of clinical simulations, i-Human Patients by Kaplan, will introduce attendees to a virtual patient who is showing symptoms of COVID-19, and play out a full exam—from patient history all the way through to diagnosis. Dr. Kalinyak will interact with the event attendees, who are encouraged to suggest what to ask the patient to help identify if he actually has the virus, which is now affecting millions of people across the globe and has dramatically unsettled the world’s economy.

“Now with virtual patient simulation, we can train new students and hone the skills of practicing clinicians on how to diagnose new diseases rapidly and effectively without the risk of exposure,” said Dr. Kalinyak.

While doctors and nurses are in the trenches helping patients infected with COVID-19, medical school students are heeding the call to action too. Some of these physicians in training, for example, have created infographics and shareable videos to educate the public about the pandemic, while others have held mask drives for local hospitals. Recognizing the emergency, at least one medical school wants its students practicing even before the semester is over. NYU’s Grossman School of Medicine this week announced that it plans to allow senior students to graduate early in response to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s “directive to get more physicians into the health system more quickly,” the school said in a statement. And there could be a lot more where that came from. Last week, the Association of American Medical Colleges recommended that medical students end contact with patients for at least two weeks, freeing up potentially 90,000 aspiring doctors for the time being.

For more information about the event or to speak with Dr. Kalinyak, contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 917.822.8190.

To pre-register, visit https://shop.kaptest.com/i/covidcase.

About i-Human Patients by Kaplan

i-Human Patients (www.i-human.com), part of Kaplan, Inc. is dedicated to enabling active e-learning in healthcare to promote the delivery of high quality, cost-effective care, and to ensure an adequate supply of healthcare providers fully trained in patient assessment and diagnostic reasoning.

# # #

Also: Fewer than Half Are Confident in their Ability to Manage Their Child’s Learning at Home

Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC)
Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 917.822.8190
Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanSATACT

New York, NY (March 26, 2020) – A majority (62 percent) of parents of high school students say they are concerned that school closures because of COVID-19 will cause their child to fall behind in their academic career, according to a recent Kaplan nationwide survey*. The survey also finds that less than half (48 percent) of the parents surveyed are confident that they can manage their child’s learning at home, given the support and information they currently have.

One study finds that as of March 25, almost every state has closed their schools because of COVID-19, affecting at least 55.1 million students. 

The Kaplan survey also finds that a majority of high school parents are also thinking about a series of other COVID-19-related issues that may impact their children:

• 61 percent say they are concerned about their child’s mental well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic
• 71 percent express concern that their child will be distracted from their schoolwork by social media apps and video games
• A majority are concerned about the effects of social distancing, with 57 percent saying they are worried about their child’s ability to get sufficient socializing and fun time with peers
• Additionally, 54 percent say they are concerned about their child’s ability to get sufficient physical activity and exercise during the COVID-19 pandemic

“What we are seeing across the United States right now is an unprecedented situation, with parents, students, and schools all trying to adjust to ‘the new normal’ and figure out how to best navigate a series of social and academic challenges they’ve never anticipated having to tackle,” said Dennis Yim, director of academics, Kaplan Test Prep. “We know that many parents are in the new situation of either working from home or looking for a job because they were laid off, and also making sure their child is productive with their school work. It’s only natural that parents are expressing this level of concern for their child’s well being in a host of areas. This is a learning process for everyone involved and we are confident that as the weeks go by, everyone will be making adjustments to make things easier and more manageable. In the meantime, we encourage parents to lean on each other and learn from one another. Everyone is doing the best they can.”

To help keep families going through the college admissions process on track, Kaplan recently launched a series of no-cost study resources, including a free online SAT prep course. For more information, visit http://www.kaptest.com/study/pre-college/. 

For more information about Kaplan’s survey results, contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 917.822.8190.

*Based on the results of a nationwide survey conducted by email of 304 parents of high school students, between March 19 and March 20. 

About Kaplan Test Prep

Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 200 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school. Among those tests are the SAT®, PSAT®, ACT®, GRE®, GMAT®, LSAT®, and MCAT®. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.

# # #

NBC – Hartford, CT: “Coronavirus Cancels College Entrance Exams, Leaving Students in Limbo”

Poets & Quants: “The At-Home GMAT: What To Expect”

Above The Law: “Changing The Law School Admissions Game: The GRE Is Now Available To Take At Home”

Education Week: “Idled High School Students Aren’t Getting Much Homework Yet, Survey Finds”

Also: Less than Half Say Their Schools Have Provided Their Children With Homework Assignments

Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC)

Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 917.822.8190
Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanSATACT

New York, NY (March 23, 2020) – Parents of high school students across the United States are bullish that schools closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic will reopen relatively quickly, according to a new Kaplan survey*. Of the parents surveyed, 33 percent think high schools will reopen at the start of the regularly scheduled fall semester; 30 percent think they will reopen before the current school year is over; 20 percent believe they will reopen over the summer; 4 percent think they will start up again within a few months after the regularly scheduled 2020-2021 year begins; two percent say in January 2021 or after; and 11 percent say they don’t know.

According to one study, as of March 21, 46 states had decided to close their schools because of the COVID-19 crisis, affecting at least 53 million students.

Overall, 77 percent of parents say their child’s high school has done a good job of communicating with them during the COVID-19 crisis. But when it comes to providing guidance as to what their child should actually be doing at home, that percentage was lower. While 67 percent of parents believe their high school has done a good job of providing the support their child needs to continue their learning from home, the range of support offered varies greatly across schools:

• Less than half (43 percent) say their school has provided their child with homework assignments
• 37 percent say their school provided them with an online/virtual learning environment
• 28 percent say they have been provided with online tutorials
• 27 percent said they were provided with laptops or tablets
• 25 percent say they were provided with online study tools like the Khan Academy or Quizlet
• 20 percent report that their school recommended that their children read certain chapters in textbooks
• 18 percent say the high school has organized virtual study sessions with classmates
• 15 percent say their high school is not requiring any work while closed
• 8 percent report that their high school has provided stress management resources

In another survey result, nearly seven in 10 parents (69 percent) are confident that if their child’s high school switched to a virtual classroom environment for the rest of the year, their child has the necessary skills to succeed. 

“Given the grim news we’ve been hearing lately about statewide shelter in place orders and the closures of all non-essential places of business, it may be surprising that so many parents of high school students are relatively optimistic that their children will be back within the walls of their school again so soon,” said Dennis Yim, director of academics, Kaplan Test Prep. “No doubt that every parent wants what’s best for their child and thinking positively is important, but it’s also quite possible that what many are calling ‘the new normal’ may be here for longer than many anticipate. It’s important that schools remain in close contact with both parents and students to provide guidance and support about how to continue learning. It seems likely that as the weeks go by, we may see even more guidance from schools in terms of how their students can keep up with their studies. Likewise, parents will have to consider what the best path forward may be for their children learning outside the traditional classroom, for the time being.”

For more information about Kaplan’s survey results, contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 917.822.8190.

*Based on the results of a nationwide survey conducted by email of 320 parents of high school students, between March 19 and March 20. 

About Kaplan Test Prep

Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 200 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school. Among those tests are the SAT®, PSAT®, ACT®, GRE®, GMAT®, LSAT®, and MCAT®. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.

# # #