Are you a working parent looking for a work-life balance, or a recent graduate looking to put your linguistics skills into good use?
Maybe you should consider private tutoring.
Private tutoring can be an enriching career if you love to help others, as it allows you to touch students’ lives. Through tailored guidance and focused attention, you can help your tutees realize their full academic potential as you teach them valuable life skills.
But private tutoring is not only beneficial to your students, but to you too.
For instance, you can earn some good money as a self-employed tutor. Private tutoring is also one of the most flexible jobs around as it gives you a chance to choose your working hours. You also get to put your college degree into use through tutoring.
Thus, if you have been wondering what to do with your mathematics degree, now you know you can put it into good use by becoming a tutor for maths and earn some good money while at it.
But how do you go about becoming a self-employed private tutor?
How to Get Started
If you have no prior experience tutoring, you may want to consider registering with an established tutoring agency first.
An agency does the marketing for you and provides you with students. They also provide you with training materials and ensure that you get paid for your services.
But a major drawback of working for a tutoring agency is that they set the fee for the services you offer, and they also demand a commission for every hour you teach.
This is why many tutors, after working for an agency for a while, choose to go the self-employment way. But the biggest headache that most self-employed tutors have is how to get students.
How to Get Students as a Self-Employed Tutor
You can boost your chances of getting tutees even if you’re just starting as an independent tutor by building your credibility.
You can do this by:
· Joining a professional association or a union-related to your tutoring subject
· Highlighting your academic qualifications
· Using testimonials and success rates from past students to demonstrate your worth
· Don’t charge below the market tutoring rate as parents may conclude that you’re offering low services
· If you have experience working for an agency, be sure to highlight it
· Be professional in terms of punctuality, manners, communication, and the way you conduct your business
Marketing can also boost your prospects of getting new students.
While your most effective form of advertising is word of mouth from former clients, you can also consider advertising your services on local newspapers and radio stations.
Social media is also a strong marketing platform. For instance, you can join local Facebook groups and politely ask members to spread the word that you’re offering tutoring services. You can also advertise your services on online tutoring websites or put up adverts on business intersections and public bulletin boards.
The Qualifications You Need To Be a Private Tutor
As a tutor, you’re expected to provide tailored tuition that supports the learning needs of your students. This is why you need some level of competency in the subject area you intend to teach.
There are no formal entry qualifications to become a tutor, but most clients require tutors to have a college degree.
You must also be proficient in your tutoring discipline and at least have reached a level higher than the level you intend to teach. This means that if you’re an undergraduate, you can only tutor students at GCSE or A-level.
In addition to academic qualifications, you should also have some essential qualities such as:
· A passion for helping others
· Patience
· Enthusiasm
· Good communication skills
· Empathy
· Creativity
Private tutoring can be a rewarding experience if you have the dedication and the passion for it. Hopefully, now you know where to start if you have been thinking about becoming a private tutor.
