Slave wages for the educated - Instructor Kaplan Employee Review

2.0
Dec 1, 2009
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

On average, the smartest colleagues you will probably ever have outside of higher education, R&D, or law firm. Good place to develop presentation and speaking skills. Kaplan's methods really do WORK for students who have good teachers and practice. Good immediate supervisors.

Cons

Detestable pay and raise structure, lopsided contracts, ridiculous expectations for the part time workers. Public school teachers are underpaid enough, but if one breaks down their salary by actual hours worked, it still far exceeds Kaplan wages (sometimes even by 2-3x as much). You will easily produce anywhere from 10 - 30x your wages in profit for the company, or even higher. In order to be a good teacher, prep is necessary, and paid at minimum wage, as is the time you spend answering student questions by E-mail outside of class. Let's face it: the instructors do the REAL work. When students pay for Kaplan courses, they're paying for quality instruction. Quizbank and the books are only a small part of the cost, as evident from the retail price for those things separately. I'm not saying that managers and administrators don't deserve good pay themselves, but it's a lot more challenging to be on your feet delivering quality lessons at full focus in front of a diverse group while keeping their attention for hours at a time, than it is to do computer work at a desk and take phone calls.

Explore other reviews about Kaplan

5.0
Jun 3, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Genuinely supportive community, lots of opportunity

Cons

Compensation could be higher across the board

3.0
Jun 2, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Remote and flexible. Good culture from higher up but team morale is down.

Cons

Turning more salesy than helping students. Too much focus on hitting budget.

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