Saving Students $30 Million: How Kaplan's All Access Is Transforming University Test Prep | Kim Canning

Kim Canning is helping Kaplan expand access to career readiness, test prep, licensure prep, credentialing, and professional development resources through a new model built for universities and students. As VP of Strategic Partnerships at Kaplan, Kim works with colleges and universities to bring Kaplan's All Access License to learners at scale. Kaplan recently won a BIG Awards for Business honor for the program.

In this episode, Russ and Kim explore how Kaplan has evolved over more than 80 years from test prep in Stanley Kaplan's Brooklyn brownstone to a modern education company supporting students, universities, and career pathways across the country.

They dive into Kaplan's All Access model, which gives universities an enterprise license so students can access a broad catalog of Kaplan resources without each student having to pay individually. Kim explains how the program helps remove financial barriers while also introducing students to resources they may not have known existed, from MCAT and LSAT prep to critical thinking, data literacy, career readiness, credentialing, and licensure support.

The conversation also covers how universities are using All Access in different ways, including first-year programs, career preparation, graduate school pathways, healthcare licensure, and support for historically black colleges and universities. Kim shares examples from Hampton University, NYU, Illinois public institutions, and other partners using the program to support retention, persistence, graduation, and student confidence.

Along the way, Kim discusses education equity, soft skills, COVID-era learning gaps, critical thinking, healthcare pipelines, first-generation college students, government partnerships, and why universities may need to think differently about the resources students need to succeed.

Topics Covered:

[00:22] Welcome and intro, Kim Canning, Kaplan, and the BIG Awards for Business win

[00:49] Kim's 28-year journey with Kaplan

[02:12] Kaplan's 80-plus year history and Stanley Kaplan's founding mission

[03:25] What the Kaplan All Access License is

[03:44] Moving from department-level purchases to university-wide access

[06:07] How universities use All Access across different student needs

[07:23] Cost, awareness, and access barriers for students

[08:00] Why students may not know which resources can open doors

[09:26] Helping students reduce anxiety and understand expectations

[09:55] How All Access can support engagement, retention, and loyalty

[11:37] Flipping the traditional student-pays model

[12:40] Kaplan's footprint with historically black colleges and universities

[14:00] Why All Access can create immediate student impact

[15:02] Supporting freshmen and sophomores with foundational skills

[15:42] Hampton University and critical thinking as a student success priority

[17:40] Why soft skills matter more in an AI-driven world

[18:49] Building critical thinking resources beyond test prep

[21:30] Supporting science courses and the medical school pipeline

[22:43] The Illinois All Access initiative and statewide education equity

[24:00] Supporting 17 Illinois institutions and saving students millions

[24:43] How All Access can help first-generation and underrepresented students

[25:27] Student and advisor feedback from the Illinois rollout

[26:47] Coordinating across government, institutions, and education leaders

[27:25] Why mission alignment helped move the Illinois initiative forward

[30:06] Why All Access is one piece of a larger higher education puzzle

[31:00] Personalizing student experiences and supporting future pathways

[31:57] Why All Access complements universities rather than replacing them

[33:24] Final thoughts on improving the student experience and expanding access