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Test Prep

The SAT and ACT are not designed for student success. They are long, mentally (and often physically) exhausting, and written unlike any other tests students have taken. Their purpose is not simply to gauge what students know, but to sort them along a standard bell curve. It is imperative, then, to understand the tests’ content, tricks, and style, and to know how to attack them with effective strategies.

01

Individual Prep

This is Mountains to Sea’s core and most popular prep option. Over the course of 10 two-hour sessions, students will receive individualized, specific instruction based on their strengths and weaknesses. They will learn and practice strategies, review key content, and track their progress weekly. 

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Best for: Students who want the most personalized instruction and a more flexible schedule. Individual prep can be in-person or virtual.

02

Small-Group Prep

This program, for groups of two to five students, offers the same benefits as individual prep—nearly individual instruction, weekly strategy practice and progress-monitoring—with a lower cost and the opportunity to work with friends.

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Best for: Groups of students on similar academic levels who know one another and seek nearly one-on-one attention at a lower price than individual prep. Small-group prep can be in-person or virtual.

03

School-Year Course

Mountains to Sea’s classroom courses are the most cost-effective in the area. Meeting weekly for six to eight weeks at a local university, classes of 10 to 20 students will learn and practice strategies, review key content, and track their progress under the guidance of a seasoned educator and test-prep specialist. Classes feature a mix of whole-class, small-group, and individual activities. See the Course Schedule tab for more information

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Best for: Students who need an introduction to test prep with structured practice and progress-tracking, with a lower cost and familiar setting. Classes are also a good review option for those who have done test prep before.

04

Crash Course

Mountains to Sea’s crash courses, which take place a week or so before the test, are intensive, jampacked classes that are designed to cover as much as possible in four hours: strategies, content, and test background. They move quickly and represent the most efficient way to cover a lot of material in little time. See the Course Schedule tab for more information and the full schedule.

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Best for: Students who seek all of the strategies in a condensed time frame or those who need a review just before the test. 

05

Summer Course

Summer courses, meeting for three hours a day across one week, feature all of the same strategies and practice as the school-year courses but during the summer, which is often the only down time students have to devote to test prep in their increasingly busy lives.

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Best for: Students who seek the same benefits as the school-year courses—strategies, structured practice, and progress-monitoring in a familiar classroom environment—in the summer months.

For pricing and availability, contact Mr. Harms below!

College Consulting

Applying to college can be a stressful, complex process. It doesn’t have to be. Leaning on his background as a professional journalist, Mr. Harms helps high-school students to successfully navigate college applications—with expert guidance on developing their “story,” writing essays, crafting their extracurricular activities list, formulating a testing plan, asking for recommendation letters, and more—from start to submission. All college consulting services, with the exception of College Application Boot Camp, can be in-person or virtual.

Tier I

Mountains to Sea’s full package of college consulting, including:

  • an initial meeting to organize applications and formulate a plan to complete them

  • frequent, hands-on guidance planning, writing, and editing essays and completing other application components

  • unlimited texts, calls, and emails for any questions about applications

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Best for: Students who feel lost in the process and need frequent guidance completing applications, from start to submission.

Tier II

This package includes all of the components of Tier I, with fewer essay and application edits and weekly rather than unlimited contact.

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Best for: Students who feel relatively confident approaching college applications but would still benefit from guidance completing them.

Essay-only

An initial consultation to determine which and how many essays students will need to write, and then frequent, hands-on guidance planning, writing, and editing them.

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Best for: Students who feel confident completing other application components but need help planning, writing, and editing essays—the most important things they’ll write to date.

College Application Boot Camp

A one-week course at the end of summer break designed to help rising seniors complete college essays and other application components. Boot Camp includes:

  • daily brainstorming, revising, and editing of students' personal and supplemental essays

  • in-depth discussion and completion of other application components

  • nightly editing of and feedback on essays from a professional writer and editor 

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Best for: Rising seniors who want to eliminate the stress and burden of applying to college before the chaos of school begins.

Academic Tutoring

For students who need help bolstering their GPA in a competitive college landscape, Mountains to Sea is proud to offer academic tutoring in many subjects. All tutors are certified teachers, and sessions can be in-person or virtual.

Subjects offered

  • Spanish (all levels)

  • English (all levels)

  • Math

    • Algebra​

    • Geometry

    • Statistics

    • Pre-Calculus

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