When Kalyan Ray‑Mazumder graduated from Yale in 2012, he set out to pursue two passions: acting and education. He had studied theater and psychology and was captivated by how performance can affect people’s beliefs, behaviors, and opportunities. He moved to New York City determined to build a career on stage and screen, but within a few years his priorities shifted.
Ray‑Mazumder found early success performing Off‑Broadway and landing roles in television and film. Yet he also encountered the limits the entertainment industry often places on actors of diverse backgrounds: many auditions offered him stereotyped roles, such as terrorists, that he refused to endorse. As he grew disillusioned with mainstream storytelling, he discovered a deeper satisfaction in the stories he was creating as an educator.
While pursuing acting, Kalyan spent more than 5,000 hours tutoring students for the SAT and ACT, drawing on his own perfect or near‑perfect test scores. He realized that his theater training gave him a unique advantage in the classroom: performance techniques helped him engage students, lower anxiety, and make dry material memorable. Students who insisted they could never memorize a formula or grammar rule would, in contrast, flawlessly recite rap lyrics or movie lines. Kalyan adapted his curriculum to meet them where they were—turning grammar and math into raps, sketches, and jokes—so students could retain rules and, importantly, understand their logic.
The results were clear: regardless of their starting point, many of his students rose into the 95th percentile or higher on the English sections of standardized tests, and multiple students achieved perfect scores. Yet Kalyan also recognized a problem. Because his services were initially available mainly to families who could afford premium tutoring fees, he worried that his approach might unintentionally widen the achievement gap.
Determined to make high‑quality, entertaining test prep accessible to more students, Kalyan earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and founded Prepmedians. Built on a principle of equity—“All students deserve to laugh so they can learn”—Prepmedians aims to democratize test preparation by combining comedy, music, and proven pedagogy.
Prepmedians, known as “the test prep comedians,” partners with public high schools and nonprofit organizations nationwide, and serves individual learners through Prepmedians.com. The platform uses short sketch comedy and pop‑style music videos to teach SAT and ACT concepts, creating content that is culturally relevant and entertaining while aligned to Common Core, SAT, and ACT standards. Think of it as the intersection of Khan Academy and sketch comedy: rigorous instruction delivered with humor and performance.
Early data from pilots show promising outcomes. In a comparative study, students using Prepmedians improved 2.5 times more than those using another widely recognized online resource. The platform also reports a statistically significant immediate increase in quiz scores—about a 6 percent lift—after students watch a single video, and average entertainment ratings above 4.5 out of 5. Educators receive dashboards with detailed analytics to monitor student progress, adapt instruction, and reduce test anxiety through more engaging lessons.
Access and flexibility are central to Prepmedians’ model. The website is optimized for mobile devices so students can learn on phones or tablets even when laptops or reliable broadband are not available. Schools and teachers receive training and ongoing support via email, phone, and video conferencing, enabling Prepmedians content to be integrated into classrooms, after‑school SAT programs, or as an engaging homework supplement.
Looking ahead, Kalyan intends to expand the Prepmedians library beyond test prep to include financial literacy, interpersonal skills, and other academic subjects where engagement can drive real learning gains. His core conviction is simple: when education is entertaining and culturally relevant, students become more engaged, more confident, and better prepared for opportunity.
About Prepmedians
Prepmedians empowers students to succeed on the SAT and ACT by delivering curriculum through short, effective sketch comedy and pop music videos. The content is crafted by educators and top‑scoring graduates with substantial tutoring experience and aligned to Common Core, SAT, and ACT standards. Prepmedians provides individualized learning profiles, teacher dashboards, and mobile‑first access so schools and students can benefit from an inclusive, equity‑focused approach to test preparation.
This article was originally published by The Learning Counsel, a research institute and media organization focused on the transition to digital curriculum in education.