⚖️ Honest Comparison

Prep Expert vs Boosted Brains: ACT Coaching Compared

Boosted Brains is the better fit if your student wants 1-on-1 ACT coaching with daily personalized practice, async coach messaging, and a 4–8 week finish line. Prep Expert is the better fit if your student wants a self-paced or live online video course built around perfect-score teaching methodology.

Both companies were founded by perfect-score test-takers. The delivery models are different though: group video courses vs 1-on-1 sprint coaching produce different results in different situations. Here's the side-by-side.

By Carson Weekley · Founder, Boosted Brains · Perfect 36 ACT Updated May 2026

Book a Free ACT Gameplan Call →

Looking for a Prep Expert alternative for ACT prep? Here's the side-by-side.

	Prep Expert	Boosted Brains
Pricing model	Per-course pricing across self-paced and live online tiers; promotional discounts common	Flat program fee tied to current score, target score, and timeline
Primary format	Self-paced video courses and live online classes	1-on-1 sprint coaching, 100% personalized to one student's diagnostic
Personalization	Same video curriculum or live class structure for every student in the cohort	Every drill targets the specific question types this student misses
Daily commitment	Class schedule plus homework; self-paced students set their own	About an hour a day on average, scaled up or down based on the student's schedule and goals
Coach support between sessions	Email/Q&A; limited 1-on-1 access in group formats	Daily async messaging, students get answers the same day
Coach credentials	Instructors include perfect-score teachers; founder Shaan Patel scored a perfect SAT	Every coach scored 34+ on the ACT (most 35–36); founder Carson Weekley scored a perfect 36 over a dozen times
Tests covered	ACT, SAT	ACT (plus college advising as a related service)
Score guarantee	Score-improvement guarantee on most paid courses (terms vary)	4-point improvement guarantee with refund
Typical timeline	Multi-week courses (~6 weeks live) or self-paced on the student's schedule	4–8 week sprints, designed around a specific test date
Best for	Self-directed students who learn well from video instruction	Students who want personalized strategy, daily feedback, and a clear finish line

✅ Where They Win

When Prep Expert Is the Better Choice

Prep Expert is a real prep brand with real strengths in specific situations:

Your student learns well from video instruction. If they prefer watching curated video lessons over working through targeted drills, a video course can be a clean entry point, especially at the introductory level.
You want the lowest-friction way to start. A self-paced video course is one of the lowest-commitment ways to expose your student to perfect-score test-taking methodology.
Your student also needs SAT prep. Prep Expert covers both. We focus on the ACT.

🎯 Where We Win

When Boosted Brains Is the Better Choice

If any of these describe your student, sprint coaching will outperform a video or live-online course.

Your student needs daily personalization, not a fixed curriculum. Video courses can't adapt to which 3–5 question types are actually costing your specific student points. Sprint coaching does, every day.
You want async coach messaging instead of waiting until the next class. Misunderstandings caught the same day don't compound into bad habits for a week.
The test date is 4–8 weeks away. Sprint methodology is built around test dates. Self-paced courses don't have that urgency built in.
Your student is plateaued at a 28–32. This is where targeted 1-on-1 coaching produces the cleanest wins. Generic content review can't move that range; advanced strategy and careless-error elimination can.
You need accountability, not just access to content. A video course you bought but didn't finish doesn't help anyone. Daily coach check-ins make sure the practice actually happens.

30 → 35

Meredith

8–10 weeks · $234,264 full ride at University of Kentucky

Meredith already had a strong 30 but hit a plateau after taking a big-name generic prep course that taught the same content to all students regardless of skill level. Courses at that level don't work because 30+ scorers don't need basic content review. They need advanced, targeted strategies to eliminate the small number of mistakes keeping them from elite scores.

Coach Neha surgically identified the specific question types and sections where she was still losing points, worked on advanced timing strategies, and targeted the hardest question types that separate 30-scorers from 35-scorers.

Final score: 35 (99th percentile). Full-ride scholarship plus housing stipend at University of Kentucky, worth $234,264 over four years. Five points literally saved her family over $200,000.

22 → 30

Ava

6 weeks · $88,421 scholarship at SMU · Dream school

Ava was a 4.0 student who took straight A's in AP classes but struggled with standardized testing. She initially thought "tests just weren't for her." Math: missing tons of long word problems. Reading: falling into the ACT's classic trap of spending too long on passages and running out of time on questions.

We completely revamped her reading approach: less time reading the passages, more time finding details later. We focused exclusively on the specific question types costing her the most. She had to take a small step backwards on reading initially to take a massive leap forward.

Final score: 30 (Math: 29, Reading: 34). $88,421 scholarship at SMU, her dream school. From "standardized tests aren't for me" to dream-school acceptance with a major scholarship in six weeks.

Ready to see what a personalized ACT gameplan would look like for your student?

Book a Free Gameplan Call →

Slack conversation showing Isabella sharing her ACT score improvement from 30 to 34 with Carson after coaching

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Isabella 30 → 34

View conversation transcript

Carson: Hey Isabella — I've heard that scores are starting to come out now, let me know when you see yours 🤞

Isabella: Hey Carson I just got mine, I got a 34!

Carson: That's awesome @Isabella, congrats on hitting the top end of what you were shooting for!! You worked so hard over the last few weeks — I'm so happy it all paid off for ya 🎉

Slack conversation showing Otto sharing his ACT score improvement from 24 to 29 with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Otto 24 → 29

View conversation transcript

Otto: So so happy with that. Combined English and writing score was a 32 basically. Math and science were alright. Really appreciate everything. You said you wanted to set up a zoom to talk about it right?

Carson: Let's go Otto, that's awesome!!! From 24 → 29 is an awesome outcome!

Text message conversation showing Skylar sharing her ACT July 2024 score results with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Skylar 27 → 35

View conversation transcript

Skylar: [shares ACT score report — July 2024 test, 35 composite, with 34 on at least one subscore] They're out! Everything worked out just like you said. Thank you so much for all your help!

Carson: Dang Skylar, that's awesome—I'm so glad you were able to get there!! 35 is huge!!

Carson: Hope you have some plans to celebrate 🎊

Slack conversation showing Allison sharing her ACT score improvement from 31 to 35 with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Allison 31 → 35

View conversation transcript

Allison: I got my score just now! THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'm so thankful and happy!!

Carson: LETS GOOO!!!!! Huge congrats to you @Allison for putting in all the hard work over the last few weeks!! 35 is incredible! Now you never have to think about the ACT again 🎉

Slack conversation showing Georgia sharing her ACT score improvement from 32 to 35 with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Georgia 32 → 35

View conversation transcript

Georgia: Today was a wild ride, but I'm happy I've gotten it over with. :D

Carson: Wow, I'm glad you feel pretty good about it overall! It's not easy to take a test like that when you're not feeling 100%. We'll definitely check back and see how it went.

Carson: Hey Georgia — I've heard that scores are starting to come out now, let me know when you see yours 🤞

Georgia: Just got mine!!! 35 Composite — 35 English, 35 Math (surprisingly!!), 34 Reading, 34 Science.

Carson: Hey @Georgia — that's great!! For going into the test under the weather, that's a truly impressive score for you! Congrats on the hard work paying off!

Email from Camden's mom to Carson sharing Camden's 30 composite, 32 superscore, and $96,000 total Alabama scholarship

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Camden 25 → 32

View conversation transcript

Camden's Mom (email): Hi Carson — She got her July test results the day before we left to move her into Bama, and she scored a 30! We were thrilled. That bumped her up to $24,000 per year with her merit scholarship, plus the other scholarships she received. She also earned a 32 superscore (too bad Bama doesn't accept superscores)! Such amazing results — thank you for all your guidance. Thanks again — your methodology truly works!

Outcome: $24,000/year × 4 years = $96,000 total scholarship at the University of Alabama.

Slack conversation showing Ryder Register sharing his ACT superscore improvement from 24 to 33 with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Ryder 24 → 33

View conversation transcript

Ryder: Just got my score back, 32 for the test, but increased my super score to a 33.

Carson: Love it! Good improvements everywhere except that darn English section lol. Superscore of 33 is awesome though — major congrats to ya! From 24 all the way to 33.

Slack conversation showing Carter sharing his ACT score improvement from 23 to 30 in 6 weeks with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Carter 23 → 30

View conversation transcript

Carter: Hey Carson I got mine yesterday. I got a 30!

Carson: Hey @Carter — that's awesome, congrats!! We got the top end of our goal!! Time to celebrate and take the foot off the gas for a little bit 🎉 From a 23 just 6 weeks ago to a 30.

Carter: [shares score image — Composite 30: Math 29, Science 31, English 32, Reading 27]

Text message conversation showing Aadhya sharing her perfect 36 ACT composite score with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Aadhya 36

View conversation transcript

Aadhya: I got a 36 composite and a 35 in science!! [shares score image — Composite 36: Math 36, Science 35, English 35, Reading 36]

Aadhya: Thank you so much for all your help.

Carson: That's awesome Aadhya — big congratulations to you!! All your hard work paid off; now you get to celebrate 🎉

Text message conversation showing Ava sharing her $88,000 SMU scholarship and Honors Program acceptance with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Ava 22 → 30

View conversation transcript

Ava: Hey Carson, sorry for taking so long to respond, it's been a busy few days, but my acceptance letter from SMU came in the mail the other day!! I earned a scholarship of $80,000! And with a couple other stipends, I'll get over $88,000 total. And today, I just got my acceptance into their Honors Program too! I was originally going to consider my other acceptances, but now I'm definitely going to SMU. Thanks again for all your help on the ACT and the application process, my parents and I are so happy!

Carson: That's awesome Ava! You already had some time to celebrate the ACT score, now you can really take a breather and enjoy yourself 🎉 Congrats on all the hard work paying off, you're going to do great in Dallas! Now David has a high bar to shoot for — older sister sets the standard 😂

Text message conversation showing Morgan's mom Lisa sharing Morgan's 32 ACT composite with Carson

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Morgan 27 → 32

View conversation transcript

Carson: Maybe they're just double-checking because they're surprised at how well she did!

Lisa (Morgan's Mom): OMG love that way of thinking 😂😂😂

Lisa (Morgan's Mom): Scores came in! She has a 32 composite!! woohoo! We'll take it!!! A thousand thank yous, Carson!!!!

Carson: That's awesome, I'm so proud of her!! Time to de-stress a little bit now 😂

Slack conversation showing Cameron's ACT score improvement to a 34 composite, with Carson and Neha congratulating him

Verified Result

Actual student coaching channel

Cameron 28 → 34

View conversation transcript

Carson: Let's go @Cameron!! That's so awesome, congratulations on all your hard work paying off! I'll always love your attitude of 'I'm willing to do as much work as it takes'. That's something that absolutely sets you apart from most students. You earned that 34! [score: Composite 34, Math 31 (Feb 26), Science 31 (Dec 25), English 34 (Feb 26), Reading 36 (Feb 26)]

Neha (Coach): @Cameron Congrats on this amazing score!!! You've worked so hard to earn this and you deserve every bit of it. Seriously, I'm beyond proud!! 😭😭😭

Cameron: Thank you guys so much for everything! It is greatly appreciated!

$24,000/year

University of Alabama

A 30 on the ACT automatically qualifies an out-of-state student for $24,000 per year, or $96,000 over four years. No essay. Just hit the score.

Full tuition4 years

Florida Bright Futures

Florida residents at a 24 get 75% tuition at any public state school. At a 29, it's full tuition. Robert went 21 to 29 with us and got a full ride to UCF.

$88,421total

SMU (Ava 22 → 30)

Ava came to us at a 22 thinking standardized tests "weren't for her." She finished at a 30 and unlocked $88,421 at her dream school. Six weeks of work.

$60,000total

Auburn (Brown 24 → 34)

Brown came to us after a group ACT class stalled her at 24. She finished at 34 and unlocked $60,000 in scholarship money on top of admission.

$134,000total

Marquette (Mia 25 → 33)

Mia's previous tutor spoon-fed answers that didn't stick. 10 weeks with us. 25 to 33. Accepted to 10 of 10 schools she applied to.

$234,264full ride

University of Kentucky (Meredith 30 → 35)

Meredith plateaued at 30 after a generic premium prep course. Targeted coaching took her to a 35, a full ride plus housing stipend over four years.

Each ACT point is worth roughly $10,000 in scholarship value on average. A 5-point swing routinely unlocks $50,000+ in tuition. The fee for any prep program is a small fraction of that math.

Want our team to map out the scholarship math for your student's situation?

Get Your ACT Gameplan →

Is Boosted Brains a direct Prep Expert competitor?

Both of us prep students for the ACT and have founders with perfect-score credentials, so on the surface, yes. Prep Expert offers self-paced video courses and live online courses across the ACT and SAT, taught primarily by Shaan Patel and his instructors. We focus on the ACT (with a smaller college advising arm) and deliver it as 1-on-1 sprint coaching with daily personalized practice, async coach messaging, and a 4-8 week sprint built around a specific test date.

Prep Expert's video course covers the material. Why would 1-on-1 coaching produce different results?

Watching a video course teaches the content. It can't tell your specific student which 3-5 question types are actually losing them points, and it can't change the practice plan when your student improves. Sprint coaching starts with a diagnostic, builds a daily personalized to-do list, and updates the targeting weekly. Meredith plateaued at 30 after a generic premium online course. Targeted 1-on-1 coaching took her to 35 and a $234,264 full ride.

Both founders scored perfect on the test. Doesn't that make Prep Expert just as credible?

Both companies have credible founder stories. The difference is what the founder credentials actually translate to in delivery. Prep Expert's perfect-score insight is delivered through video lessons watched by everyone in the cohort. Our insight is delivered through 1-on-1 coaching from a team where every coach scored 34+, and Carson personally trains all of them on the same playbook he used to score 36 more than a dozen times.

Prep Expert offers live online classes. Isn't that effectively the same as live coaching?

Not quite. A live online class is taught to a group at the average pace of the room. Live 1-on-1 coaching is taught to one student at the pace of that student's specific weak spots. If your child is already strong in one area and weak in another, a group class wastes hours on what they already know. Sprint coaching doesn't.

How much does Boosted Brains cost compared to Prep Expert?

Prep Expert prices its self-paced and live courses separately, and rates vary by product tier and any active promotions. We charge a flat program fee based on your student's current score, target score, timeline, and how much coaching support they need. On the call we'll give you an exact quote and a realistic point target.

What if my student already finished Prep Expert and hit a plateau?

Common pattern. Online video courses are great at teaching content, but past a certain score (usually around 28-30) the gains come from advanced timing strategy, careless-error elimination, and targeted drills on specific hard question types. That's where sprint coaching earns its keep. Meredith and Allison both broke plateaus from the high 20s and low 30s into the elite range that way.

Will sprint coaching work for a student already in the high 30s aiming for 35 or 36?

Yes. That range is actually one of our specialties. Carson scored 36 more than a dozen times. Coach Allison went 31 to 35 with us. Meredith went 30 to 35. Generic content courses can't move that range because the missing skills are advanced, not foundational.

What's the best next step if we're comparing Prep Expert and Boosted Brains?

Book a free call with our team. We'll review your student's current score, target schools and scholarship thresholds, and test date. If sprint coaching is the right fit, we'll show you exactly what the plan looks like. If Prep Expert or another option fits better, we'll say so. About a quarter of the families we talk to don't end up working with us because the timing or fit isn't right.

🎯 Your Next Step

Work With a Coach Who Scored a Perfect 36

If sprint coaching is the right fit for your student, the call will save you weeks of research. If it isn't, we'll tell you what is.

Book Your Free ACT Gameplan Call →

Carson Weekley

Founder, Boosted Brains · Perfect 36 ACT (13+ times)

Carson is the Founder of Boosted Brains, where he and a team of dozens of coaches help students earn life-changing ACT score improvements. He scored a perfect 36 on the ACT more than a dozen times, was admitted to MIT and the University of Chicago, and unlocked over $500,000 in scholarship offers before leaving an investment-banking career to build Boosted Brains. He's worked with 3,500+ families and personally trained every coach on the team.

Prep Expert vs Boosted Brains: ACT Coaching Compared

Prep Expert vs Boosted Brains at a Glance

When Prep Expert Is the Better Choice

When Boosted Brains Is the Better Choice

Two Students Who Broke Through After Premium Online Courses Stalled

Meredith

Ava

Real score improvements, straight from Slack

What an ACT Score Actually Costs and Earns

Prep Expert vs Boosted Brains: Frequently Asked Questions

Work With a Coach Who Scored a Perfect 36