The entrance to Suite 302 and Bulldog Tutors.
Bulldog Tutors offers expert SAT, ACT, SSAT and other test prep and subject tutoring in its suite of classrooms and learning spaces in New Haven, as well as in a second location in Guilford on the Connecticut shoreline.
Preparing for exams whose scores help determine whether top colleges and universities will accept a student is a likely topic of discussion as families with students in middle school and high school gather for the holidays.
Families of high-achieving students—especially amid the ongoing college admissions scandal—are likely aware of the value of test prep, as well as proper college admissions counseling.
The Bulldog test prep model is unique and has achieved proven results by offering experienced tutors from Yale University who all scored in the top 1 percent on all the tests they teach.
Brooks, one of Bulldog’s tutors.
What students and families may not understand are the logistics of bringing students to Bulldog Tutors. So we decided to present a primer on the ease of accessing our New Haven office, as well as the nearby arts, culture and lifestyle enrichment available to parents while students are in prep sessions.
Below we cover the process for students, the ease of connecting for parents, and the logistics of accessing the Bulldog Tutors office, located at 142 Temple St. Suite 302, in downtown New Haven. (We’ll do the same for our Guilford office in an upcoming blog post.)
What Connecting With Bulldog in New Haven Is Like for Students
Bulldog Tutors’ SAT and ACT test prep classroom.
While Bulldog offers subject tutoring and prep for all admissions tests from the SSAT for secondary school and the LSAT and MCAT for law school and medical school, respectively, let’s focus on the SAT and ACT.
Families access Bulldog’s services primarily in one of two ways—group classes or private tutoring. Semi-private tutoring for small groups of students who attend school together is also available, for example.
Group test prep classes run for 10 sessions at 2.5 hours per session, typically on Saturday. A group class for students taking the SAT in December is in progress. The next SAT class will begin Jan. 18 and is timed to prepare students to excel on the March SAT exam.
Bulldog will set up a formal ACT prep class if there’s demand from enough students planning to take that college admissions test, next offered in February and April, 2020.
See the Bulldog Post on Differences Between the SAT and ACT
Bulldog Tutors’ Lead Academic Coordinator Madison Masters.
Private and semi-private test prep sessions at Bulldog Tutors are typically one hour to 90 minutes, and occasionally run for two hours, depending on the needs of students and families as they apportion the sessions over a sufficient time frame for the prep to be optimally effective.
Individual prep and tutoring sessions are continually taking place at Bulldog, but group classes are only held in conjunction with the cycle of admissions tests.
While the group sessions tend to be at a fixed time—3 p.m. on Saturday is an example—parents and families have broad leeway in scheduling individual sessions. Tutors are generally available all week from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., with some tutors happy to stay until 9 p.m. to make things easy for working parents.
The office is always staffed on weekends, with test prep scheduling worked out between families and Madison Masters, Bulldog’s Lead Academic Coordinator. The Director of Admissions Consulting is Jessica Magro, who was admitted to all five Ivy League schools to which she applied.
The first step in the test prep process involves taking a full-length diagnostic test to assess students’ preparedness and then putting together the action plan. The best time to start the process is three months before the actual SAT or ACT date.
The diagnostics for all tests are offered on alternating Saturdays in the New Haven office at 10 a.m. “We analyze your results, and I usually get back to you by Tuesday,” Madison says.
The building at 142 Temple St. in New Haven where Bulldog Tutors is located.
She advises families on issues such as whether a student should focus on one area of weakness, or is missing a set of necessary skills, as well as outlining what the student needs in terms of frequency and duration of test prep.
“We take your schedule and ask what fits for you,” says Madison, who then selects a tutor who represents a good fit for a particular student and also fits the family’s preferred schedule.
The prep process includes an ongoing series of diagnostics, generally once a month and then every other week as the actual test date approaches. “We check in after every diagnostic test to make sure things are going well and make adjustments to your student’s plan,” Madison says.
For additional information or to begin the process, reach out to Madison by email at [email protected] or call the New Haven office at (203) 562-1000.
What Connecting With Bulldog in New Haven Is Like for Parents
Bulldog Tutors’ reception desk.
Parents are always welcome to wait in Bulldog Tutors’ reception area, but it’s better for students—and ultimately more fulfilling for parents—if they leave the building and explore downtown and the amenities surrounding the Yale campus.
“It helps make them realize this is serious by letting them know you’ll be gone for the next hour,” Madison says. “It helps them grasp that they are independently responsible for their work.”
Having an hour or two free in New Haven offers plenty of time to visit one of Yale’s world-class art museums, have a coffee or a bite to eat in any number of great spots, or do some shopping.
Below are some of the options within easy walking distance of Bulldog Tutors:
Museums
Yale Center for British Art
Yale University Art Gallery
Yale School of Architecture Gallery
Coffee & Baked Goods
Midpoint Coffee Brewers
Blue State Coffee
Atticus Bookstore Café
Book Trader Café
Starbucks
Panera Bread
B-Natural Café
G Café Bakery
Sweet Mary’s-New Haven
Claire’s Corner Copia
Dining (steps away from Bulldog Tutors)
Olives & Oil (Italian fare)
Mecha Noodle Bar
Cask Republic (craft beer)
Prime 16 (burgers & craft beer)
Temple Grill
Shopping
If you need a nice bottle of wine to bring home, a terrific shop called The Wine Thief is literally across the street from Bulldog.
For other shopping resources, head to The Shops at Yale website and explore.
The Logistics of Accessing Bulldog Tutors
Temple Plaza, a gathering space and shortcut to College Street, and the Crown Street Parking Garage spiral.
The Crown Street Garage is right around the corner from Bulldog Tutors offices at 142 Temple St Suite 302. Diagonally across the street is the Temple Street Garage.
The Park New Haven website not only offers details on many other parking options but it also provides the scoop on dining deals and much more.
At $4 an hour, the parking is affordable.
142 Temple Street is next to Olives & Oil at the corner of Temple and Crown streets.
About Bulldog Tutors
With offices in New Haven and Guilford, Bulldog Tutors provides the highest quality private tutoring, test prep, and college admissions counseling in Connecticut. Bulldog’s Ivy League-educated tutors have achieved top scores on every exam that they teach and take a personalized approach to instruction that targets students’ weaknesses and helps them succeed on admissions tests and in subjects where they may have been under-served by traditional educational settings.
The New Haven office is located at 142 Temple Street, 3rd Floor, and the Guilford office, which may be reached at (203) 423-0592, is located at 2257 Boston Post Road, Suite B.
For additional information, call the New Haven office at (203) 562-1000, or see the Bulldog Tutor website, bulldogtutors.com.