Today we’d like to introduce you to Patrick Choi.
Patrick, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Five years ago, I was in Cambridge wrapping up my graduate degrees thinking I would eventually get into a career in consulting or biotech in the city. Then my girlfriend at that time got a new job she was really excited about. It was in San Diego and far from where we considered home, but we decided to give it two or three years so she can work on that job while I write my thesis in warmer weather. Unbeknown to me, that move opened up a whole new chapter of my career and life and turned me into a hard-core fan of this city. My then girlfriend is now my wife; we go hiking, go to the beach, and do all the outdoor activities that my toddler son is growing up taking for granted as a ‘born and raised’ San Diegan; also born in the city was my company, Kyo Standard Test Prep.
Although I have been professionally tutoring for a large tutoring company since 1999, I never thought of building my own business to advance that career. That view started to change with the move to San Diego. While working for the large test preparation company in New York, Boston, and Asia, I gained tremendous experience covering various aspects of the operation and garnered a very loyal following of students and families, but I was also discouraged to see how things were run and taught in the highly structured and often formulaic way that made it difficult for students and tutors to succeed. Upon arriving in San Diego, I took on some freelance tutoring work, and without the constraint I used to have in a large organization, I was able to implement my approach. The feedback I got from students was overwhelming. So, it got me to think about what else I can do to put the things I’ve been wanting to try into good work. I had the experience tutoring and running tutoring operations, I’ve written several books on the SAT, TOEFL, and SAT Biology that are widely used by tutors and students, I know how to hire and train tutors, so why not? With the idea of testing the water, I started Kyo Standard, and by the beginning of this year, we had over 20 tutors guiding high school and college students through the test prep process from San Diego to the Middle East and South Africa.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It’s been quite a journey with a lot of lessons along the way! It is part of the growing pain that big and small challenges will arise as the business takes shape, and we will constantly need to figure out ways to overcome them. The latest example of random challenges is that not too long after we significantly ramped up our operations and were scheduled for a two-city presentation in Canada and a four-city presentation in Asia, Covid-19 hit and put all those plans on hold. Although we had already been very comfortable and proficient working with international students virtually, the reality of social distancing is making us now pivot even more heavily into the online space and potentially target an even wider audience than we had before.
Kyo Standard Test Prep – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are a boutique test preparation company that provide support to students on a wide range of subjects, covering high school and college entrance exams (SSAT/ISEE, HSPT, SHSAT, SAT/ACT, AP, and high school academics), and graduate entrance exams (GRE, GMAT, LSAT, and MCAT).
I am most proud of how we support our students as they graduate into empowered individuals through their journey. I find it tremendously rewarding to help realize their potential, connecting with them, and seeing them motivated by their own progress. We only hire individuals that share similar energy and passion. Over the years we’ve become the go-to company for a diverse group of hard-working students with large aspirations, including students who initially did not come in with a strong academic background and students who would otherwise not have the resource to hire premium tutors. While working with students by planning and managing test preparation efficiently, our students are able to utilize their time to achieve more. Currently, we have students who are published, worked with international organizations or development projects in some of the most underserved part of the world, succeed in athletics (4 D1 football player and 1 D1 Rower), and excel in professional settings.
At the end of the day, a standardized test is such an incomplete evaluation of an individual’s potential that also happens to be manageable for most people to score well in, and I would hate to see anyone denied opportunities to advance their education just because their test score does not meet the cut.
What sets us apart is our proprietary teaching pedagogy that I have built on years of experience as well as our excellent tutors. Our plan is informed by the student’s performance, which is dissected under a framework of Content-Strategy-Pacing. For instance, some students have a hard time answering SAT questions related to factoring. Instead of loading them up with exercises on factoring in the hope that nonstop practice makes perfect, we distinguish and understand why they stumble. Is it because they need a better understanding of the content or do they need improvement on strategy. Each of our tutors is not only academically successful, but they also have to undergo extensive and systematic training with me on our tutoring approach. I am proud that the feedback we get from students often highlight how engaging and effective our collaborations are.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We are currently testing a One-on-One/Classroom hybrid course. Our course will incorporate a classroom with multiple students, but the students will also have to meet with their instructor for a private tutorial weekly. This is aligned with our principle that one-on-one is an effective way to teach. This will allow us to see more students. My Content Development team and I have been working on an SAT Practice questions book. In order to do this, we’ve had to work through every aspect of the SAT. Understand not only the structure, but also how to write like the SAT writers. I believe we figured it out.
Contact Info:
- Address: Kyo Standard Test Prep
8996 Miramar Road
Suite 304 San Diego, CA 92126 - Website: kyostandard.com
- Phone: 858-617-8615
- Email: info@kyostandard.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kyostandard/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kyostandardtestprep/
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