ACI Institute

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
Are college prep courses worth the money? It depends on where you go, what it cost, and whether or not the individual you spend it on is worth the investment.
Our daughter Jordan has been going to ACI for three (3) consecutive years and the positive results are tangible, as previously reported. She got straight A’s for all of her classes in her sophomore year and was ranked # 3 out of 700+ students for that grade level in her high school.
During the «Summer of 2015», she took their Calculus AB course [Calculus BC wasn’t offered at that time.] and also their SAT «Ivy level» classes to prepare her for the upcoming challenges beginning in the Fall. She continues to get straight A’s in all of her classes [including Calculus BC] and is not struggling in that math class, as many of her peers are. This was accomplished while taking a total of four (4) AP classes and also being active in sports, plus volunteering for noteworthy school service organizations and clubs. She took the SAT for the 1^st time in October [and scored 1940, which is an excellent score for a 16 y/​o junior]. Rather than settling for that, Jordan continued her lessons at ACI and improved her score to 2010 for the test given in December. Most students/​families might say that’s good enough. However, Jordan is optimistic that she can do even better, because of the excellent tutoring from ACI. Her positive instructors were encouraging and gave valuable strategy lessons to continue improvement. Jordan will take the SAT in January 2016 [the last test before the format changes in March].
To other parents and students considering ACI, you have to be honest with yourselves. If the student is a «diamond in the rough», then I’m confident that ACI can help polish them into something more brilliant. [In plain English, if you’re a «B» student or better, ACI can help you to become an «A» to «A+» student. On the other hand, if you’re a «C» student or less, there are reasons for your grades. If you’re unmotivated to study or don’t attend their classes or don’t do ACI’s homework, then you will probably waste your parents’ money. So, don’t blame ACI for your failures and/​or unrealistic expectations.]
Thank you to Mr. Andrew Kuo, President of ACI — Alhambra for your insightful advice and counseling. And, our family would also like to thank a few of the front office staff members that have treated us like family and encouraged Jordan to attend and succeed: Thomas [for his thoughtfulness of saving copies of the complimentary daily newspapers for my wife, without us even asking for this favor], Chelsea [for her cheerful greetings and current teaching of SAT Math lessons], and to Vicki [for her consistent delivery of excellent customer service and positive attitude]. Last, but not least, a sincere thank you to their qualified and dedicated instructors at ACI who take their jobs seriously. Accordingly, children who really want to learn will have the best chance in that regard.

This place is mainly indeed focused on your money rather than your education. The only benefit is that it forces you to prepare for the SAT (honestly, most people can study for the SAT– it’s just difficult to do so with procrastination and such). But if you must pay the $ 2k+ for their classes, then do so. Many students in the classes, even in their supposed «Ivy league class,» are mediocre and will just slow down the class if you capable of scoring 1900+ by yourself (remember this is the supposed Ivy class).

This place doesn’t even deserve 1 star… they’re just absolutely terrible and unprofessional. They don’t really care if their students learn or not… all they want is your money so be prepared to drop big bucks that doesn’t bring results. I came here for class once and I will never return. They don’t care if students understand or not. I’m the type of person that needs some time for info to sink in and if you’re like me don’t go because well the teachers speed through everything and they don’t care if you get or not.

I began in summer of 2013 and just ended in fall of 2013, and I have to say, I am glad I went here. My SAT score improved by almost 300 points when I thought I would never reach my goal for a good score! Though they do give a lot of homework, it is worth the effort. The teachers I had were very kind and knew their field very very well. Any question I had about a problem in math or in english, they were there to help and always clarified the solution for me. (Don’t be afraid to speak to the teachers!) The staff was awesome and friendly and I enjoyed having conversations with them; I will dearly miss them. I will also miss this place and the people I have met here. This place seriously helps improve your academic scores with the right amount of support too.

ACI has quality teachers. Shout out to Mr. Perreault and Mr. Tony! Yes, ACI gives ALOT of hw, but its really up to you as to whether you are willing to put work into improving your scores. I remember I came to ACI with a 900 diagnostic test score and on my actual SAT i scored a 1980!

If I could rate ACI 0 stars, I would. I remember the first day I went to ACI. The first thing they asked for was money. My Dad paid and then they discussed what class I wanted. I also remember not wanting to go anymore when it was only 3 weeks in, but they told us we couldn’t get a refund. Then fast forward another 3 weeks, they contacted my Dad saying that we did not pay full price. There was a whole thing about the money, and finally my Dad set them straight and showed them proof of payment. ACI Institute is a very unorganized place. Now, I’ll tell you why I wanted to leave after 3 weeks.
On my first day there, I told them that I would like to improve on my mathematics. I was then placed into one and was scheduled to return next week. I’m not sure if ACI is a everyday thing for other students, but my classes were on every Saturday for a few months. Every Saturday morning, I had to take about 4 long hours of the SAT test. I believe there was a small 20 minute break between SAT testing and class time. I thought class time was horrible! Class time was from about 11 am to 8 pm with two tiny breaks in between. The professor I had was an old joyful man. He was the one to favorite the students that nitpicks at every little thing– these are the students who I call the smartasses. I thought he was an awful, rude, disrespectful person, but overall an okay teacher. Why do I think that? Well, I was the student who wasn’t doing very well in school, but was willing to improve. The professor didn’t even give me a chance! Everything was about grades, grades, grades. If he thought you were doing well, you will be his pet and will help you more. If he thought you had bad grades, he will ignore you, ask you questions in a pity voice, and belittle you. I remember him saying, «You should do well on the SAT next week! You know, you wouldn’t want to go to a community college!» The whole class roared in laughter like it was the funniest joke they ever heard! I was not impressed.
The people at ACI Institute would assign tons of homework where the teacher wouldn’t teach anything step-​by-​step. It was hard for me to learn because the math they teach was at a higher level than I was learning at school. I thought ACI Institute was to tutor me, not give me a ridiculous mountain of math homework that was impossible to finish. I don’t sit on my ass all day figuring out math problems I’ve never learned before. I never looked forward going to these classes.
The teachers SUCK, the staffs are MONEY-​LOVING BASTARDS, the counselors are RUDE, and the atmosphere of the whole thing was uncomfortable. I do not recommend this place.
Oh, I just visited your website and found out the name of this professor I mentioned. John Perrault– I want to give you a big fuck you to the face.

I don’t know anyone who particularly likes going to after school programs but if I had to choose one, it’d most def be ACI. I was talking to my mom the other day and I was telling her how much of a difference ACI made in my academic career. Honestly, you can’t just breeze through learning, but because I worked hard at ACI, with the immense help of their teachers and faculty, I was therefore able to breeze through elementary and high school.
The staff and teachers are friendly and more than happy to help. They’re only strict with people who are annoying and loud, lol. I like that they do that because there are some kids there who really need some discipline. This might sound weird but you can tell ACI truly cares about your education and even your health, haha. They give you coffee and iced tea and food (for free) so you won’t be too hungry or tired.
ACI really isn’t what everyone claims! Keep an open mind. It’s a great environment to learn in. I know this because I learned a lot.

The classes are pretty helpful, but the receptionists who help out there are so helpful, especially the two tall female ones. They always have a smile on their face that brightens up my day. I have never experienced better service ever in my whole life. The good morning hellos warm my heart, and I would definitely recommend going to ACI Institute; it will change your life for the better and you’ll never look back.

What is this place…
I remember i use to come here, my parents paid so much $ and i got detention because i was doing my school homework and did not have enough time to finish my ACI homework. So ACI homework is more important than school?

Came here for SAT school for two years. The quality of the teacher matters more than anything else, and I was fortunate to get 2 out of 4 good teachers (1 in math and 1 in verbal, on alternate years).
They do give you a lot of materials to study (more words than the Princeton Review, and more practice problems to practice). However, a lot of their materials are developed at a degree of difficulty that makes the desired score improvement minimal. Often times, the types of questions in a homework problem set are at a level that isn’t tested on the SAT.
The learning environment is not highly interactive and disciplinary rules are strict. The stuffy atmosphere makes it hard to comprehend and learn.