Est. 1999 · Kerrisdale, Vancouver
Ivy Academy is a K–12 tutoring centre in Kerrisdale. We prepare students for the SAT, SSAT, AP and IELTS, and guide families through university admissions in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K.
What we teach
Every student starts with a diagnostic. What we teach after that depends on what the diagnostic shows — not on which class happens to be running.
Reading & Writing and Math for the adaptive digital format, with full-length practice under real timing.
Middle Level and Upper Level preparation for entry to independent and boarding schools.
Advanced Placement subject coaching and IELTS preparation for university entry and language requirements.
Application strategy, essays and deadlines for Canadian, American and British universities.
How we work
A student who is losing points on inference questions needs something different from one who is running out of time. We find out which it is first.
Most of our families speak Korean or Mandarin at home. Lessons run in English; conversations about your child's progress can happen in whichever language is easier.
Ivy Academy opened in Kerrisdale in 1999. We have watched the SAT change format twice and the admissions landscape change more than that.
There is no charge for the first conversation. Tell us your child's grade and what you are aiming for, and we will tell you honestly what the gap looks like.
Programs
Placement follows a diagnostic, not a grade level. A strong Grade 8 student may sit in an Upper Level SSAT group; a Grade 11 student may need to rebuild reading before touching a practice test.
Grades 9–12
The SAT is now adaptive: the second module of each section is chosen by how the first went. That changes how a student should pace themselves, and it changes what practice is worth doing.
Grades 5–11
For families applying to independent day and boarding schools. Middle Level covers Grades 5–7; Upper Level covers Grades 8–11 and is a noticeably harder test, particularly in vocabulary.
Grades 10–12
Subject coaching timed to the May exams, for students taking AP courses at school or sitting exams independently. Subjects offered depend on the term — please ask.
Grade 10 and up
Academic IELTS preparation across all four bands, for university language requirements and immigration purposes. Speaking is practised one to one.
Grades 11–12
Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom each reward a different application. We help families build a realistic school list, plan the timeline backwards from the deadlines, and work through the essays.
July – August
Concentrated SAT and SSAT courses over the summer break, when students have the hours to make real progress rather than maintaining. Places are limited and fill early.
Kindergarten – Grade 8
After-school English and Math through our Reading Town Kerrisdale programme — reading, writing and arithmetic built steadily, years before any test is on the horizon.
That is what the diagnostic is for. Tell us the grade and the goal and we will place your child properly.
About
Ivy Academy opened on Yew Street in 1999 and has been preparing Vancouver students ever since — for the SAT and SSAT, for AP exams and IELTS, and for the university applications that follow.
Most of the families who come to us speak Korean or Mandarin at home. They are usually navigating an admissions system that works differently from the one they grew up with, and they want a straight answer about where their child actually stands. That is the conversation we try to have.
We start with a diagnostic, every time. It tells us whether a student is losing marks to knowledge, to timing, or to reading — three problems that look identical on a score report and need completely different work.
Groups are kept small enough that a teacher can see each student's paper. Where a student needs one-to-one time, they get it.
Alongside Ivy Academy we run Reading Town Kerrisdale, which handles elementary and middle school English and Math. Many families start there in Grade 3 and finish with us in Grade 12.
We are building Ivy Path Education, an online extension of the academy, so that students can carry on with structured lessons at home between sessions. Ask us if you would like to know more.
Getting Started
There is no application process. Call or write, and we will find a time for the assessment.
Tell us your child's grade, the test or subject you have in mind, and roughly when you need to be ready.
Your child sits a proper timed assessment at the centre. It takes one session.
We show you what the assessment found, what the realistic target is, and how many weeks it will take.
Your child joins the group or one-to-one schedule that fits, and we report on progress as you go.
Fees depend on the programme, the group size and the number of hours per week, so we quote after the assessment rather than before. We will always tell you the full cost of a course up front, with no registration fee added later.
We are open Monday to Friday from 1:00 to 8:00 pm, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Summer intensives run through July and August. Please call for the timetable of a particular course.
Contact
We are on Yew Street in Kerrisdale, a few minutes from the 41st Avenue shops.
Results
Offers received by Ivy Academy students between 2019 and 2026. Students are listed by first name and last initial. Many received several offers; all are shown.
| Student | Secondary school | Offers received |
|---|---|---|
| Justin H. | St. George's | Yale · Stanford · Brown · UC Berkeley · UCLA · Dartmouth |
| Bryan M. | St. George's | Dartmouth (Early) |
| Stella L. | York House | Dartmouth · USC · UBC · U of Toronto |
| Edward T. | St. George's | NYU (Early) |
| Khoi D. | St. George's | Western — Ivey Business School |
| Irene L. | Collingwood | St Andrews — Medicine (UK) |
| Valerie K. | Cushing Academy (US) | Case Western · U of Pittsburgh · UIC |
| Michelle L. | South Burnaby | UC Davis · UBC · U of Toronto |
| Student | Secondary school | Offers received |
|---|---|---|
| Ole H. | St. George's | Johns Hopkins · UIUC |
| Olivia W. | Crofton House | Carnegie Mellon |
| Angela T. | York House | Columbia · UC Santa Barbara |
| Justine T. | York House | NYU · UC San Diego · UC Irvine |
| Markus L. | St. George's | NYU · U of Toronto · UBC |
| Lucas T. | Magee | NYU |
| Becky N. | Sentinel | Purdue (Pharmacy) · UC San Diego · UIC |
| Jay H. | St. George's | UC Irvine · UBC |
| Imaree D. | St. George's | Queen's · Western |
| Melissa X. | Point Grey | UBC (Eng) · U of Toronto (Eng) |
| Ethan L. | Point Grey | UBC Engineering |
| Joshua B. | Eric Hamber | UBC · McGill |
| Student | Secondary school | Offers received |
|---|---|---|
| Dustin W. | Lord Byng | Cornell |
| David Y. | Lord Byng | Carnegie Mellon |
| Tomson L. | St. George's | St Andrews — Medicine (UK) |
| Anne H. | Point Grey | NYU |
| Haoming X. | U-Hill | NYU (Early) |
| Nicole L. | Little Flower Academy | UC San Diego · Georgia Tech · Boston U · U of Toronto · UBC · Waterloo |
| Novyanna T. | Crofton House | UC San Diego (Computer Eng) · UC Irvine (CS) |
| Doris L. | Point Grey | UC San Diego · Waterloo · UBC (Sauder) · Western (Ivey) |
| Justin Y. | St. George's | U of Toronto · Western (Ivey) |
| Jora D. | St. George's | U of Toronto · UBC · Queen's (Life Science) |
| Marcus P. | Vancouver College | U of Toronto · UBC · Waterloo |
| Brandon Y. | Lord Byng | U of Toronto · UBC · Waterloo |
| Zachary P. | Vancouver College | U of Toronto · UBC |
| Jiho L. | Point Grey | UBC (Eng) · U of Toronto (Eng) |
| Student | Secondary school | Offers received |
|---|---|---|
| Bryce W. | St. George's | Stanford |
| Jamin F. | St. George's | Columbia |
| Christina K. | Seoul International School | Columbia |
| Jerry X. | St. George's | Cornell (Early) |
| Carnell Z. | St. George's | Cornell (Early) |
| San L. | St. George's | Cornell |
| Risa S. | York House | UC Berkeley |
| Run G. | Sentinel | Carnegie Mellon |
| Jason R. | Lord Byng | Imperial College London |
| Martin H. | Magee | Emory |
| Cherise T. | Point Grey | USC |
| Bryan Z. | St. John's | USC |
| Kush R. | St. George's | Northeastern |
| Chris L. | Point Grey | William & Mary |
| Student | Secondary school | Offers received |
|---|---|---|
| Phillip X. | St. George's | Harvard |
| Vivian Z. | West Point Grey Academy | Harvard |
| Kevin L. | St. George's | Yale |
| Annabelle J. | Lord Byng | Princeton |
| Jonathan S. | Vancouver College | U of Pennsylvania |
| Jessica C. | York House | Columbia |
| Allen L. | St. George's | Cornell |
| Jerry X. | St. George's | Cornell |
| Eunice P. | Crofton House | Caltech |
| Katherine Z. | Crofton House | Duke |
| Bonnie W. | Collingwood | Carnegie Mellon |
| Amelia T. | Crofton House | UC Berkeley |
| Ashley K. | Handsworth | UCLA |
| Tony L. | St. George's | UCLA |
| Yolanne L. | Crofton House | Georgia Tech |
| Linda D. | Crofton House | Pomona College |
| Anna S. | Kitsilano | NYU |
| Elena C. | Point Grey | NYU |
| Chloe W. | Crofton House | U of Hong Kong |
Ivy Academy and Reading Town have placed more than 300 students in independent schools since 2005.
| Student | School admitted to |
|---|---|
| Kairoi C. | St. George's School |
| Elmer W. | St. George's School |
| Yiwei S. | St. George's School |
| Chris M. | St. George's School · Vancouver College |
| Mark Z. | St. George's School · Fay School (US) |
| Yoyo Z. | York House School |
| Anastasia M. | York House School · Little Flower Academy |
| Jin S. | Little Flower Academy |
| Vicky K. | Cushing Academy (US) |
| Daniel L. | Fay School (US) |
Results reflect students who studied at Ivy Academy. Admission depends on many factors beyond preparation, and past results are not a guarantee of future outcomes.
There is no charge for the first conversation. Tell us your child's grade and what you are aiming for, and we will tell you honestly what the gap looks like.
Private Schools
Each school runs its own intake grades, entrance exam and calendar. Below is how the six schools our families apply to most often are structured.
Dates change every year. Treat the deadlines below as a guide to how each school works, and confirm the current year's dates with the school before you plan. We keep track of them for the families we work with.
Boys · Kindergarten – Grade 12
| Main intake | K (36) · Gr 4 (16) · Gr 6 (20) · Gr 8 (45–55) |
|---|---|
| Entrance exam | K–Gr 3 in-house · Gr 4–5 Elementary SSAT · Gr 6–8 Middle Level SSAT · Gr 9+ Upper Level SSAT |
| Process | Application → group assessment → interview → exam → decision (mid-Feb to early March) |
| Deadline | Nov 1 for K and Gr 4–11 · Jan 31 for Gr 1–3 |
Junior Kindergarten – Grade 12
| Main intake | JK (25) · SK (15) · Gr 6 (26) · Gr 8 (44) |
|---|---|
| Entrance exam | JK–Gr 7 in-house · Gr 8 Middle Level SSAT plus in-house · Gr 9+ Upper Level SSAT |
| Deadline | Late Nov for JK, SK, Gr 6, Gr 8 · Jan 31 for other grades |
| Note | Gr 8 applicants sit the in-house exam in January. SSAT scores due early February; decisions in February. |
Junior Kindergarten – Grade 12
| Main intake | JK · SK · Gr 5 · Gr 8 |
|---|---|
| Entrance exam | JK–Gr 7 in-house · Gr 8 Middle Level SSAT plus character skills snapshot · Gr 9+ Upper Level SSAT |
| Deadline | Early Nov for JK, SK and Gr 8 · Early Dec for Gr 5 · Jan 31 for other grades |
| Note | Canadian citizens and permanent residents only. Gr 8 applicants submit SSAT scores by mid-November. |
Co-ed · Junior Kindergarten – Grade 12
| Main intake | JK · SK · Gr 1 · Gr 8 |
|---|---|
| Entrance exam | JK–Gr 1 readiness test · Gr 2–7 in-house (reading, writing, math) · Gr 8–12 SSAT plus snapshot |
| Deadline | Late Oct for JK, SK, Gr 1 · Early Nov for Gr 2–7 · Nov 1 for Gr 8–12, SSAT by early Dec |
Co-ed · IB World School · Junior Kindergarten – Grade 12
| Main intake | JK (28) · K (4) · Gr 1 · Gr 4 |
|---|---|
| Entrance exam | JK–Gr 7 in-house · Gr 8 Middle Level SSAT · Gr 9–11 Upper Level SSAT |
| Deadline | Nov 1 for JK and K · Nov 15 for Gr 1 and 4 · Dec 1 for Gr 11 and non-intake years |
| Note | Applicants to Grade 8 and above should have prior experience learning French or Mandarin. |
Co-ed · West Vancouver · Junior Kindergarten – Grade 12
| Main intake | JK (32) · K (28) · Gr 3 (20) · Gr 8 (25) |
|---|---|
| Entrance exam | JK–Gr 7 in-house · Gr 8 and up in-house · International applicants from Gr 4 need SSAT or MAP |
| Deadline | Dec 1 |
More than 300 students have gone from our classrooms into independent schools since 2005. Tell us which school you are aiming for and which grade, and we will tell you what the preparation looks like.
Our Teachers
Our teachers are subject specialists, not generalists. Several have been with Ivy Academy for more than a decade.
SAT Head Teacher · UK Admissions
Online onlySSAT & SAT · US Admissions
English & French
English & AP Literature
Math, Physics & Economics
Math, Physics & Chemistry
In person preferred