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March 28, 2024, 07:32:33 pm

Author Topic: Advice for those hoping to tutor VCE/HSC/QCE  (Read 8338 times)  Share 

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Joseph41

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Advice for those hoping to tutor VCE/HSC/QCE
« on: July 16, 2018, 03:32:25 pm »
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By nature of these forums, it's unsurprising that a lot of us have either been tutored, tutor currently, or have tutored in the past. I tutored privately for eight years before starting full-time work in early 2017. In this thread, I have some advice for those currently in high school who are considering tutoring in the future.

1. Keep your notes.
Through Year 12, I didn't actively think too much about the prospect of tutoring through university. But I'm really, really glad I kept my notes from my subjects, because they've turned out to be extremely helpful, indeed. I was able to develop them into really nice resource booklets for my students without too much difficulty - something I most certainly would not have been able to do without them.

I know heaps of people, like, burn their notes when they finish their exams, or throw them out or whatever. I get that it can be therapeutic or cathartic. I get that you probably don't want to hoard stuff from high school, and that's cool. But if you are considering tutoring down the line, you never know what will come in handy.

2. Think about what frustrates you.
And also what you enjoy.

We all have teachers we click with more than others - that will be the case until the end of time. Not all students will relate with all teachers, and that's sweet - it's human nature. But if you keep track of what sort of things your teachers do that frustrate you, or annoy you, and, on the flip side, please you, you're in an excellent position to help your own students down the track.

3. Learn from others.
Honestly, I think one of the biggest mistakes new tutors make is assuming that their students will learn in the same way that they did. It's just not the case. There are thousands and thousands and thousands of high school students across the country, and none of them are the same.

Think about your class at the moment. Think about how each of your peers has different interests, and needs, and learning styles. Then think about how you might go about tutoring them - or people similar to them - in order to convey information in the most appropriate manner.

Being aware of how others learn will give you great insight that can help you with your own students. I know, for example, I've been able to implement learning activities and the like that have been quite successful, based on my experiences with peers and other students previously.

4. Don't try to run before you can walk.
Just because you've graduated with great high school scores, it doesn't mean you can expect to gain $60/hour from tutoring. The market changes a bit from time to time, but look around and see what the going rate is. Something like UniversityTutor might be helpful for this purpose.

To start with, you might like to be a little conservative just to get your foot in the door. For context, the first time I tutored, I charged $15/hour, and the first time I tutored Year 12, it was $25/hour. But you do you.

5. Play the long game.
Very many people offer tutoring services straight out of Year 12. If you want to do the same, that's great! But don't expect to have 50 students coming to you in the first three weeks. The somewhat unspoken side of tutoring is that finding students can be tough, it can be a bit of a long grind, and it's never guaranteed.

Persistence pays off, and if you're willing to put in the work and truly care about your students' results and welfare, you'll be paid off in the end.

Good luck!
« Last Edit: July 16, 2020, 01:44:27 pm by Joseph41 »

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Quinapalus

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Re: Advice for those hoping to tutor VCE/HSC
« Reply #1 on: December 26, 2018, 07:57:56 pm »
+1
I collected all my paper work from this year. Quite scary how much there is! (2 vacuum boxes worth)

Hoping that it can help others  ;)
99.95 Aggregate: 220.45

2017: Methods [45~48.79] Music Performance [50] (Premier's) (Violin)

2018: French [45~51.94] Latin [45~54.05] Chemistry [47] Specialist Maths [48~54.59] Literature [50]

2019, 2020: Biomed @ Melbourne

Offering tutoring, selling notes/essays, or even general VCE advice, PM Quinapalus via ATAR notes if interested or email [email protected]