LTG Exam Prep Platform Raises $3M In Series A Round To Develop SAT, More Test Apps

Whether it’s the SAT or the GMAT, studying for standardized tests hasn’t changed a great deal. The test prep market, valued at $861 million, is led by companies like Kaplan Test Prep and The Princeton Review, who require students to cling to their heavy test prep textbooks.

But as more and more people spend time on the internet through their mobile devices, LTG Exam Prep Platform, a startup out of MIT, believes the most effective way to study for standardized tests is through these devices we carry around everywhere.

The Boston-based company, founded in 2012 with its iOS app, launched its Android app last week and just raised $3 million from Tal Education Group, Atlas Venture, Jamie McCourt, Yongjin Group and Zhen Fund.

There are several GMAT self-study apps out there, like GMAT Connect, or GMAT Practice for Dummies that provide flashcards and practice quizzes, like LTG’s Prep4GMAT app. Most of these apps focus on helping you memorize rules and vocabulary.

But LTG’s selling point is its patented Label Study Method, a text-processing module that highlights words in practice questions to the concepts being tested. Elad Shoushan, CEO of LTG Exam Prep Platform, says highlighting the words teaches students to recognize patterns through visual cues and keywords.

The app also pinpoints the areas the user needs improvement in, and if a user needs more help, they can access a tutor marketplace, where they can reach out to certified tutors around the world in real time.

With this new round of investment, the company plans to develop more test prep apps with proprietary algorithms to make personalized study courses for each user. An app for the SAT is in development.

It certainly is easier carrying the contents of a test prep book in your smartphone and it’s good to see more companies like Terascore or StudyBlue focusing on smartphones and web apps, which most students actively engage, to help them study for standardized tests outside of the classroom.