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Hear What Students and Families Say
Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of working with wonderful students and families. Their words offer a glimpse into the encouragement, honest feedback, and individual attention I bring to my work.
Some testimonials reflect my earlier work in SAT/ACT preparation as well as college essays and applications. Due to growing demand, I now focus exclusively on college essay coaching and no longer offer SAT/ACT preparation.
What Families Say
Nicole Shoohed
Student, Milken Community High School
Joy not only taught me excellent techniques that enabled me to receive a high score on the SAT (2160), but she was also always so positive and encouraging. She was also so helpful with my college essays and my college application process. She conducted constructive brainstorming sessions during which we discovered my unique stories for my college essays (who I really am versus just a resume). She helped me understand the college admissions process as a whole and what colleges really look for.
Erica Rozbruch
Student, Campbell Hall, Studio City
Joy is an amazing SAT tutor and college counselor. She helped me immensely through the entire process by raising my SAT score by almost 300 points and helping me write the perfect college essay. She has a great personality and really cares about each person she works with; she is so encouraging throughout the entire process and she made everything seem so easy. I could have not done this without Joy.
Tamara Hirsch
Student, Buckley School
Most high-school students dread studying for the SATs and applying to college. I did at first, but having found Joy, I used these two conventionally dreaded chores to my benefit. Joy not only relieved an infinite amount of stress with her compassion, but she also helped me to find my voice and gain self-confidence. Joy is one of the most intelligent and genuinely sweet people I know, and I am so thankful for her valuable SAT lessons and priceless college essay advice!
Ally Romano
Student, Campbell Hall, Studio City
Joy has been the biggest help. She is so sweet, intelligent and helpful. Without her, this process would have been so much more difficult. I can’t imagine going through the process of test prep and college essays with anyone but her.
Cody Schott
Student, Harvard West Lake
I was never one to buy into the tutoring process, but Joy changed that all very quickly. I did poorly by my standards on my first SAT, especially in critical reading. After one session, my critical reading score was already up 80 points. My score ended up jumping up 240 points in total. She covered everything, including grammar and vocabulary, and I still think about her grammar rules now when I write essays for school. I would seriously recommend Joy to anyone. She is so easy to connect with, and more importantly, she really understands how to go about the SAT.
Rhonda Rand, MD
Parent, Buckley and Campbell Hall
Joy tutored both of my daughters for the SAT and was nothing short of wonderful. Scores increased about 300 points for both girls and both were admitted into their #1 school. Joy was always professional and supportive through this process. Joy gave them homework and practice tests and always went over them in a very constructive manner. She also helped them with the ‘tricks’ of standardized tests and how to write the perfect SAT essay as well. I am so grateful we found Joy and will actually be looking forward to starting the process for my son soon!
Esther Renzer
Parent, Shalhevet School
You are AMAZING and we are very grateful to you for mentoring and motivating our daughter.
Melissa Linn
Parent, Lycée International de Los Angeles
Without your help in the past, my daughter may not have made it through high school and college....seriously! Kevin is in his 2nd year [in college] and loves it! You definitely made an impact in all of our lives.
Michael Lipp
Student, Milken Community High School, Studio City
Joy is AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME!!! I was so blessed to have come across Joy as a tutor. Through positive reinforcement, technique assistance, and skill reinforcement, Joy was able to help me improve my SAT score almost 400 points!!! I couldn’t be happier with my results and strongly feel that anyone who would use Joy as a tutor would improve beyond their expectations (I did- a lot). Thank you so much for all of your help as a tutor. Your upbeat teaching style made me look forward to our study sessions, and I couldn’t have gotten where I am without you!!!
Noah Ickowitz
Student, Milken Community High School, Sherman Oaks
I really learned so much in the tutoring sessions with Joy. I went from someone who was never good at standardized testing with a 1710 on the PSATs to a 2250 on the SATs because of the tips that I learned from Joy. I stuck to the methods that we went over, and during the test I focused, and it came just as easily as when I would do problems at home. I always felt that with SAT companies my friends would take a thousand practice tests and have so much work, but with Joy I felt that I just had a reasonable amount of work and nothing was busy work. I would recommend Joy as a tutor to anyone. I know I would never have been able to go up 540 points without her help. Thank you for everything!
Susan Kay
Parent, Milken
Joy Jacobson recently worked with my son for two months assisting him with preparation for the ACT Test. Last spring, my son participated in a small group tutoring class with a well-known SAT/ACT prep company and then had several private sessions with this same company. Neither the six-week prep class he attended nor the private sessions he received were as effective as his first lesson with Joy. She is a warm, patient, caring and upbeat tutor who understands teenagers and knows how to motivate them to succeed. My son is hard to win over and after one session, my son asked me if I would make arrangements to have Joy help him prepare for the fall ACT. Joy is invested in helping each of her students achieve their fullest potential and through her work with my son, he gained the skills and confidence to improve his test score quite dramatically.
Lana Melman
Parent, Campbell Hall, Studio City
As a tutor, Joy is patient, flexible and effective. She adapted her teaching style to suit my son and kept him motivated and confident. She really knows her stuff. His test scores were spectacular.
Michelle Hagopian
Student, Rose and Alex Pilibos, Los Angeles
Joy is really motivating and always positive. She came to every session in a great mood and inspired me to do my best. I always felt confident during our sessions and on test days. Joy is also very organized and patient. She helped me with all my standardized tests and my writing skills. She is a amazing tutor!
Ryan Coleman
Student, Campbell Hall, Studio City
By working with Joy, I’ve been able to significantly raise my ACT test taking abilities. The way Joy teaches was perfect for the way I learn. She taught me the techniques and helped me utilize my personal strengths. Some parts of the test became a breeze for me. Working with Joy was an amazing experience and something I will always remember.
Tess Kenahan
Student, John Marshall High School, Studio City
Joy is an excellent teacher; she is extremely helpful, understanding, and patient. Her tactics are not just instructional but very useful in simplifying the SAT.
Leah Leinweber
Student, Westridge School, Pasadena
After working with Joy, I learned that the SAT is not unconquerable. I learned that it is a very predictable test. Joy taught me not only to have confidence in myself but also how to take advantage of the SAT’s predictability. I was very happy with my scores!!
Libby Goldstein
Student, Hamilton High School, Culver City
Joy helped me immensely. She took away all my SAT phobias and helped me greatly raise my SAT scores.
Arielle Bluman
Student, Campbell Hall, Studio City
I hate test taking, but I always look forward to Joy’s inspirational comments and positive outlook every time I see her. She makes the SAT and ACT so much more enjoyable and fun.
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