Barun Academic Center

Barun helped me get almost a perfect SAT score (¹⁵⁸⁰⁄₁₆₀₀) back in the day. Admittedly, it was about 16 years ago in the year of our lord 1999 – 2000, but the results still stick out in my failing old man memory. I also achieved a perfect score in SAT II Writing ⁸⁰⁰⁄₈₀₀ and a pretty high math score after a few months here.
Did we like it as kids? Absolutely not – I wished I was at home playing video games instead of being hounded by Yuri to do this or that. Even with an ear-​to-​ear grin, we all thought she was evil. And good test scores did not automagically admit me to the Ivy League or make me a successful person. Could I have found test score success elsewhere or on my own? Maybe. But when so many things in life don’t do what’s advertised on the tin, it’s refreshing to think back to Barun Academy and feel good that (my parents) got value for their money.

Let me start off by saying that I was asked to write a review years ago when my youngest brother went for tutoring but kept putting it off for various reasons. This in no way influences my review. I actually mention it because it just goes to show how much Yurie really cares about each student. After so many years, she still remembered who I was. (And to be fair, I don’t think they had a Unilocal page when I went).
I’ve graduate college a few years back so my memory of the SAT prep is a little hazy. But that might be a good thing because it just goes to show that the classes really aren’t that bad. I remember there was a LOT of homework and things to do but in the end that’s why you’re going there. Preparing for the SATs is basically just practice, practice, practice and Barun pretty much forces you to do this. And you know, what? Their methods actually worked. I took several SAT prep courses before (at least 3 I believe) and while they helped a little, I got stuck at around 1700 – 1800. Barun pushed me up past the 2100 score and that was really want I really needed.
Barun also offers other classes. I took their personal statement writing class and it was super helpful in getting those college admission papers finished early. The class helps you realize what those letters are for and how to best make yourself appear like a viable and interesting candidate to universities. They definitely help you bring out your own voice and personality in your writing.
I will say one last thing about Yurie. She was an awesome and sweet woman who always patiently waited for my parents (usually my dad) to pick me up. I was that kid who was (almost) always the last person to leave because we lived pretty far away and my parents were usually busy. She didn’t seem to mind much having to wait up to 45 minutes for someone to pick me up. And it was always really nice talking to her. Yuri is truly dedicated to teaching children.

Barun was the perfect place for me to go for SAT prep. I knew that I would never be able to get myself to study on my own, and other SAT prep places did not give me as many tools to succeed. Yuri was great at motivating me to continue working hard week after week. She gave us countless practice problems and vocab words to study and they were incredibly helpful on the actual exam. The endless hours of SAT prep paid off, and helped me improve my score by nearly 800 points. I ended up only missing one question on the SAT in the Critical Reading section, and I couldn’t have done it without Barun.

So this review is long overdue. Just to inform all of you guys who are interested in Barun for the SAT prep, it is very hard and grueling, but it is effective!
I came in during my sophomore year summer in high school and took the practice test. I scored around a 1400 – 1500. I don’t really remember. However, my score that I submitted to colleges was 2180. This is a huge jump of over 600 points. Without Barun academy, I would have been way too lazy to study vocab words, grammar, and math problems. The thing about the SAT, you can practice it! The more you practice the better your score will be. I know tons of smart people who could only score 1900 – 2000 by studying on their own. This is a decent score but if they would have went to Barun, they would have easily got into the 2200 – 2300 range, without a doubt.
Yes the course is basically summer long, but it isn’t too bad. Sign up with a few friends and it’s pretty fun actually. Just make sure you do your homework and study the vocab because if you don’t then the Prep course won’t be as effective. And if you study hard enough then your junior year summer you can just chill out and relax and never have to worry about the SATs again!
So overall I definitely recommend the SAT prep course simply because it worked for me! And I was one of the average students in the class. They expect you to at least score a 2100 on the SAT. My sister who also took the course scored a 2340! I’m pretty sure she scored a 1600 – 1700 on the first practice test.
Now, I go to UC Berkeley and she goes to Stanford so it ended up working for us. Talk to Yuri. She knows what she is doing. She sends people to top rank universities like nobody else. Cheers

For the past ten years, my three children have been enrolled in various summer classes at Barun Academy. The programs never disappoint us because they provided help and insight towards the rigor of the upcoming coursework. All three children have done very well thanks to the extra help from Barun. It is definitely money well spent. Yuri is very well versed with all aspects of education and has a lot of tips to help our kids get ahead of the pack in a very competitive Irvine environment. Yuri’s energy and genuine passion permeates through her work. She really cares about these kids at Barun. Our sincere thanks to Yuri and Barun Academy.

I took several classes here and it really helped me in school. Before going to high school, I took an English class during the summer. We read books and wrote essays, just like we would do in school. If I didn’t take that summer class, then I would have struggled a lot in my English class.
Also Yuri, the director, is very helpful and honest. She would counsel me what classes I should take and how to prepare for college. She also helped me write my personal statements for my applications. She also cares a lot about her students. She knows every students’ names and asks how we are doing. I know if I need any advise or help I could always go to her for help.

Barun is exactly what the typical Irvine student needs to pull ahead of the pack and become confident in his or her studies. My daughter took writing and math when she was in first grade, and her skills improved by leaps and bounds. I personally really appreciated Yuri, the director. She was very approachable and was very hands-​on with the students. I could tell that she cared about the students. All tutoring services are an extra expense, but when you’re in a cutthroat school district like IUSD, you have to do everything you can to help your kids stay on course and hopefully, pull ahead. I thought Barun did that for my child and I’m signing her up for the summer session.

Don’t like the teachers.

I spent many weekends here preparing for SATs. Even though Yuri imposes a dictatorship on her institution, it worked. The studious ones saw their scores climb steadily and will definitely tell you Barun made a difference. Yes it’s expensive, but what tutoring center isn’t? I challenge you to find one that won’t try to suck the money out of you. They’re trying to do a business, not charity work. If you want to save the money, stay at the after school programs at your school.
Yuri’s really cool and will take extra time out of her class hours to help her students. She offered to critique our college admission essays and it wasn’t during class times either. I had randomly phoned in to see if she had time to read mine, and by the time I got there a line had formed already. Even though she charges a s*** load, you can tell she genuinely cares about her students. She read our essays in the lobby and gave us one on one advice. How many tutoring center will do that? Yuri is extremely well educated, something you’ll realize as soon as you speak with her.

My first experience at Barun started when I was in 9^th grade. When my mom brought me to the dim lit ‘prison,’ the dungeon like appearance of the place seemed to melt away after I saw Yuri, the self proclaimed principal of Barun Academy. Her bright cheery personality sucked us into her tutoring service.
She put on a façade of being an extremely well educated, experienced tutor; she gaudily-​almost in a bragging manner– hung up Ivy League flags in the foyer-​as if SHE would be our one way ticket to a brighter future!
Anyway, my mom payed the whopping 600 $ for the writing class I wanted to attend in order to help my English grade; the classes were a nightmare. The teacher basically read off the same Spark Note analysis of the books-​Nectar in a Sieve, Pigs in Heaven, etc– that were part of the curriculum; I personally found this word for word oration of the teacher’s lessons since I-​being the inquisitive mind I am– wanted to research the book in an in depth fashion and stumbled upon SAME, WORD FOR WORD Spark Notes.
So…as a recap, you are paying 600 $ for a Spark note translation + an additional 48 $ for the four paperback, chapter books that are part of the required reading. Apparently, the books have to be purchased through the school, rather than finding a cheaper alternative at the online Barnes and Noble-​Yuri muttered something about standardizing the book. You would think that a staggering charge of 600 $ would include all of these charges and expenses.
Oh well. At least they give a free linen bag and a white binder with our names. Sometimes, if we were lucky, the teachers would give out dum dum lolipops as a snack. I am surprised they didn’t charge us for the air we breathed; or even billed us for sitting at their desk; 48 $ for four books is absolutely ridiculous, from my point of view.
Do NOT, under any circumstances pay for these boring, insipid, trite, hackneyed, unsubstantial services; it is a ripoff for 600 $-your time and money are better suited at a more well established tutoring service. The tutors at Barun are teachers at High schools who basically tutor there as a second job. And from the long hours of 4 to 6, the school has nothing to offer except tired teachers, who are really overtaxed after their own personally long day of teaching students at their respective high schools.