This is for anyone who is just starting and can’t figure out how to access the King schools private test prep course. Go to program outline on the student extranet, scroll all the way to the bottom and click on the king schools link. It will automatically pre-fill a course key you need to set up your king schools account. I drove myself crazy trying to find this earlier haha, hopefully this helps anyone who had the same issue. Whatever you do, do not buy it separately as it is included in the program.
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Andy,
Thanks for this! It definitely is tricky to get King Schools started at first.
-Hannah
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Andy,
Once you complete King Ground School Private Pilot course, I’ve been hearing of good recommendations from students to supplement it with Sporty’s Test Prep app on your iPad/iPhone.
Brady
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Thanks for the tip, I’ll be sure to download that. I also got the king flash card companion app which is awesome. Same log in as the king schools course.
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Those flash cards are new since I went through as a student! How nice! I was favorable to the ASA test prep app and the ASA oral guidebooks for checkride prep. Just something else for you to check out!
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Andy,
Very cool! They didn’t have them back in the day but I am a huge fan of flash cards.
Adam
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Hi @awills55!
Thank you for posting this! This is the exact question I have! I am actually still trying figure out how to access the King schools private test prep course. I went to Program Outline on the student extranet as you instructed, and scrolled all the way down, but there is no King schools link! Is the link moved to somewhere else? I’m kind of driving myself crazy because I thought it’d be more obvious to figure it out! haha
Thank you!
Hyeon
I just checked and I can’t find the link anymore. Not sure why, but I would email training support. They’ll get you set up.
The King Schools courses have been discontinued for incoming students. In its place is the new ATP Elevate program, which you should have access to,
Chris
That was the exact reply I received from the training support team this morning. This change has been made very recently. Since it was still a part of program when I signed up for the school, I really hope they will honor that and still provide me with King Schools. I feel that King’s program has worked for everyone through and through.
Has anyone taken PAR test after studying the new ATP Elevate program? How is it and how is it diffrerent from King schools?
Thank you for your time and inputs!
Hyeon
Hyeon,
The elevate program is a step up in terms of how you receive ground training. First, they are run in house by ATP instructors. They are offered live so you can participate, ask questions, etc. If needed, you can also go back and watch previously recorded sessions as many times as you need.
As always, if you feel you want to supplement with King Schools for test prep you can. You’ll just have to purchase that on your own (if you’re not grandfathered in to access).
Hannah
Hannah,
As someone not yet in the program, can you explain the differences between the new and old program? (specifically how the old program differed)
Ben
Ben,
The program has changed a lot since I enrolled in 2019 and attended 2020. When I first attended, I was receiving Vouchers for PSI exams where I could take an Airmen Knowledge Test (AKT) before my start date and receive a refund for the cost. I had access to King Ground School and the program Credit Private was 7 months. I believe there was some sort of deal with Sheppard Air at that time too, I can’t remember off the tip of my tongue.
When I was graduating the program in 2021, I started seeing minor changes. I think the biggest change in the middle of the year was the shortening of programs, i.e., 9-month “Zero to Hero” was now 7-months, and the Credit Private was 7 months to 5 months. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve read previously threads and heard one time that the program was shorter than what it is now.
This year, ATP started transitioning heavily into ATP Elevates where Instructors (like Hannah mentioned above) teach in real-time which offer an opportunity for students to interact, ask questions, and connect with fellow students. The King Schools is being discontinued due to key issues with enrollment of courses (electronically), but in place students will have access to Elevate and hundreds of resources. The team of experts at ATP are working on qualifications of Elevate to count as ground knowledge for regulations like 61.65(b), 61.105(b) and 61.125(b).
Not only is the program changing, but so are some of the planes we’re receiving. I don’t have the number off the top of my head, but ATP took delivery of Fuel-Injected Piper Archers (G1000 NXi) and Piper Seminoles. Last year the whole Piper fleet was carbureted; There are a few deliveries happening in the coming week(s) - If you follow ATP’s social pages you will probably see the new deliveries.
Since the discontinuance of King Schools, there are still apps and test prep out there to prepare students for Airmen Knowledge Tests (AKT) like Sporty’s and Sheppard Air. There is always the option to supplement the study with purchasing Sporty’s or Kings on the side, but that is at the student’s discretion. With the number of resources and documents that ATP provides, there is endless ways to study and be prepared to take a written or checkride. Afterall, it is the primary instructor’s responsibility to ensure the student is proficient in knowledge and flight before a checkride.
As a Lead Instructor, these changes that are happening are good for everyone. Yes, Kings (we all love John and Martha) really did a great job and I think played a lot into the success of students. ATP has since the start of my career been in production of in-house training videos to better the experience and knowledge of the student. It will take a little time to get adjusted to, but after any glitches/bugs are fixed, I believe it will be a more modern way of success. During your time at ATP any documents that are revised and updated into the database are instantly available on Student Extranet and ForeFlight (if downloaded, available anytime, anywhere). I’ve seen a lot of really cool changes that I never thought of until our standards team mention during our weekly meetings.
Everyone is always trying to find new ways to adapt to changes of technology and demands of the industry, ATP is doing that.
Brady
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Thank you for your reply, @Hannah!
Thank you for explaining that the new Elevate program is a step up of ground training. I wasn’t certain if the Elevate was designed to help with the PAR written test/checkride preparation even though I was told that it is a replacement for King Schools. After having gone through some of the Elevate videos (not all), I’m not sure if King and Elevate can be compared apple to apple?
I still haven’t gotten a crystal clear answer on which Elevate materials to study in preparation for the PAR test, which is the first written test I’m trying to study for. My first day of ATP is set for mid-September, so my goal is to use every little bit of spare time I can make to knock out as many written tests as possible.
I reached out to the Training Support team, and I was advised to use Sporty’s Study Buddy app to prepare for the PAR written test. While I think Study Buddy is a great test prep tool, I felt that the app is not exactly a tool I can use to learn actual knowledge. I need so much more learning before I can even begin to try answering questions in the Study Buddy app. My understanding is King Schools is where students were able to learn the materials first. So I’m a bit struggling with where to start in order to focus on gaining knowledge specifically in preparation for the PAR’s written portion.
Thank you again for your time!
Respectfully,
Hyeon
Hyeon,
If you’ve followed this forum you know we recommend taking as many of the writtens as you can prior to your start (if possible) to get them out of the way. The reason for this is the FAA writtens are a requirement that doesn’t really follow the curriculum and are for the most part, simply a box to check. Sporty’s Study Buddy (and the Sheppard Air preps you’ll use for the other knowledge exams) really aren’t designed to teach you anything. It’s simply a test bank of questions and answers and you’ll basically be taking the exams using rote knowledge. It’s very common for people to think “hold on, I need to learn this information”, and you will but it’s far easier to learn it during your training where you’ll have context.
You need to trust the program and the advice given. Use the Study Buddy, get proficient, take the exam and get it out of the way. The learning will occur later, again, when it’ll make sense.
Adam
Hyeon,
I should have clarified better. The Elevate videos will help prepare you for the private pilot phase in ground knowledge which can also help test prep if done simultaneously. However, as Adam explained the tests are really just a box to check.
Since you have the time to get them done ahead of time, you just need to use rote memorization to knock out as many tests as you can. Use the Sportys app or ASA. Don’t get overly worried about not learning the material at this phase. Once you start the program with the writtens completed, that’s the time to really dig in on the knowledge portion.
Hannah
I wish they would just keep Kings School. Currently in the instrument phase and ATP didn’t give me access for the Kings instrument course that other students that started before me had access to. I did watch some of their videos thanks to some of my classmates and I can tell you that the Elevate online classes are nothing like Kings School training videos. The problem with Elevate is that you have to sit in front of the computer for three hours at night and is basically an instructor reading a power point. They are also far behind in the curriculum. When you go do your sims and flights you are expected to know stuff that they haven’t even began to discuss yet. I think a program that you can play on demand and allows you to play an reply the things you want to see again has more value for my time.
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Alex,
I have passed your comments onto ATP management, thank you for posting them.
Chris
@Adam @Hannah Thank you for your replies! It was a little bit confusing to wrap my head around the fact that FAA writtens are a box to check, and they can be passed with rote memorization. This was a new info for me. Thank you.
@Navigator Thank you for this input! I can’t help but to think that King Schools must have been a good starting point for new students coming from zero knowledge or experience. Even though I may primarily be using rote memorization to check off my boxes, I think it’s reasonable to say I want to understand at least some of what the test is talking about. @Chris Thank you for passing down the comments onto ATP management!