EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF PRE-MEDICAL PROGRAMS

Expert on: MCAT; medical school admissions process; careers in health

Eric Chiu is the executive director of pre-medical programs for Kaplan Test Prep, managing the company’s MCAT business, including marketing, program development, and delivery. A veteran Kaplan instructor, Eric has over a decade of experience teaching MCAT, LSAT, GRE, and GMAT preparatory courses and has presented to tens of thousands of students on topics related to test preparation and the admissions process. Eric has also overseen the development of Kaplan’s MCAT 2015 program, a revolutionary new approach to MCAT preparation, including the launch of a comprehensive Science Review video library and live, elective programming via the MCAT Channel. Eric holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park.

The Chicago Tribune: “Davich: Do colleges look at prospective students’ social media?”

DIRECTOR OF ACADEMICS

Expert on: Test prep best practices; preparing for the SAT, ACT, and GRE; graduate school admissions process; college admissions process

As director of academics, Dennis Yim is a veteran Kaplan instructor with nearly 15 years of teaching experience. He is a veritable highly-rated test prep coach who has helped over 10,000 students achieve their best scores on exams like the SAT and ACT. He enjoys helping them on their journey from their first class to test day, with confidence, and reach their college and graduate school admission goals. With passion and dedication, Dennis provides all the support he can to his students.

Co-Founder, Kaplan Labs 

Expert on: Future of Work, Bridging the Millennial/Digital Native worker divide, Workforce Engagement, New Economy Skills Training (NEST) issues, coding careers, education Bootcamp model, expanding diversity in tech sector

In this capacity, Tarlin works with a team operating under a Lean/Agile methodology with an explicit focus of testing applications and services in new growth markets. Tarlin is hyper focused on delving into the opportunities and issues that arise from operating in teams that have a growing generational mix and a mix of remote vs. in person workers.

Previously, Tarlin was in charge of sales, marketing and corporate training for sister Kaplan Test Prep company Metis. Metis is a leading provider of data science skills training for individuals and businesses. Tarlin first joined Kaplan Test Prep in 2004 as the Director of Service and Operations for Kaplan’s Customer Care Center before leaving in 2007 as the Executive Director of Sales, Marketing and National Operations for the Medical Licensing division. Tarlin holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and an AB in Economics from Harvard College.

JD Journal: “Survey Shows Most Law Grads Think Two Years Enough”

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Tipping The Scales: “How Law Grads Would Reduce Tuition” 

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

Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538 Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanLSATPrep

New York, NY (May 11, 2015) — Some law school graduates want to use a machete when it comes to law schools’ spending practices in order to keep tuition in check, while many pre-law students prefer a more delicate approach, according to two separate Kaplan surveys*. Here’s how the two groups would approach the vexing issue that has long-term implications for all involved:

• Reduce Law School to Two Years: A healthy majority (56%) of law school graduates want to see law school condensed from three years to two years; 34% of prospective 1L’s think this is a good idea too.
• Online Classes: 39% of law school grads think that delivering legal education through an online format is a good way to lower tuition, as this would likely cut back on money law schools spend on real estate. Only 13% of pre-laws students favor this approach. Currently, the American Bar Association only allows accredited law schools to offer up to 15 credit hours via distance learning; this was upped from just 12 hours last year.
• “Flat” tuition: 29% of law school graduates would like to see all merit-based scholarships eliminated and instead use that money to lower tuition for everyone. Only 17% of pre-laws favor this approach.
• Enrolling More Students: 14% of recent law school graduates say they’d favor admitting more students to pump up revenue, compared to nearly twice as many pre-law students (27%) who favor this method.
• Lower professor salaries: Law instructors may not like this one. Over a quarter (27%) of law school graduates want to cut professors’ salaries; just 7% of pre-law students approve of this tactic.

“Having been through the grinder for the past three years, it’s not too surprising that law school graduates want to see the law school experience reduced from three years to two years,” said Jeff Thomas, executive director of pre-law programs, Kaplan Test Prep. “The reality is that while some schools have accelerated programs, students still have to take the same number of credit hours, per American Bar Association rules. Shorter yes, but more intense too. The same applies to online or distance learning — what law schools can do in this area is strictly regulated by the American Bar Association. While change is coming in both areas, straying from the ways things have been normally done in legal education is generally slow going.”

According to American Bar Association data, in the most recently recorded year of 2013  average tuition at a public law school was $23,879 per year for in-state residents and $36,859 per year for non-state residents. The average tuition at private law schools was considerably more, at $41,984 per year.

For more information about Kaplan Test Prep’s survey, please contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 212.453.7538.

*293 law school graduates who took a bar review course with Kaplan participated in this February 2015 e-survey; 819 pre-law students who took an LSAT course with Kaplan participated in this September 2014 e-survey.

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 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as professional licensing exams for attorneys, physicians and nurses.  Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services. Additionally, Kaplan operates new economy skills training (NEST) bootcamps designed to provide immersive training in skills that are in high demand in today’s job market and prepare participants for hire.

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Survey shows 80% of bar review students support a nationwide UBE

Press Contacts: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7548
Twitter: @KapTestNews

New York, NY (May 6, 2015) — New York State’s decision to adopt the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) in July 2016 may shake up the legal education landscape — providing newly licensed New York lawyers with greater licensure portability, according to Kaplan Bar Review. New York becomes the 16th state — and largest by far — to adopt the UBE, which is essentially a national licensing exam for would be practicing attorneys to practice law across multiple states.  Last year, 15,200 aspiring lawyers took the New York bar exam – more than any other state in the country. The Empire State’s adoption of the UBE will nearly triple the current number of UBE bar takers from about 8,000 to about 23,000, based on 2014 statistics.

Data shows strong support for such a move from law school grads, as a 2013 Kaplan survey of 700 bar review students showed that 80% support a UBE adopted by all U.S. jurisdictions.

“Our research shows that many aspiring lawyers will welcome New York’s adoption of the Uniform Bar Exam, as it provides a more uniform experience for test takers and allows them greater career mobility,” said Steve Marietti, vice president and general manager, Kaplan Bar Review.  “It’s also likely to prompt other states to make the jump.  However, given unique issues that many jurisdictions face, we expect many will maintain their state-specific bar exams.” Marietti noted that candidates for the New York bar will have to pass a 50-question multiple choice test on New York specific laws.

“Given our experience preparing students for the UBE and with its implementation in other states, we’re looking forward to helping New York students tackle the UBE next summer,” said Marietti.

To schedule an interview with a legal education expert at Kaplan, please contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 212.453.7538.

About Kaplan Bar Review

Kaplan Bar Review (www.kaplanbarreview.com) provides full-service bar review programs in 51 jurisdictions (all 50 states and Washington, DC). Additionally, Kaplan Bar Review offers supplemental preparation for the Multistate Bar Exam (MBE).

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