It’s no secret that college students are often low on cash. Many take up jobs on campus doing work-study, at their local supermarket, or the coffee shop. But there’s one position that can have a lot of flexibility and bring you some extra dollars, all without leaving the comfort of your dorm room. Online tutoring jobs allow college students to put their skills to the test and help other students.
What Do Tutors Do?
Tutors help other students who may be struggling in a particular class or need a little bit of assistance to get a higher grade. Tutors can cover a particular course (or courses), go over just a few aspects of the subject the individual is struggling with, or provide other services, such as study, homework, or ACT/SAT assistance.
Pay can vary from tutor to tutor, subject to subject, and job to job. Your experience can impact the opportunities available to you. However, tutoring in college is great because you can set your own hours, meaning you don’t have to put your own education in jeopardy to work.
What Are the Benefits of Becoming an Online Tutor in College?
There are quite a few upsides to becoming an online tutor – aside from the extra cash you’ll be earning.
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You’ll become a better teacher.
- Teaching can be an excellent skill to learn – and not just for future teachers. Management, for example, needs to know how to lead and educate their team. Tutoring allows you to get a bit of that mentoring experience.
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It’s flexible.
- Since you’re self-employed, you can set your own hours and tell the students you’re tutoring when you’re available. By doing it online, too, you get the added flexibility of a larger pool of students to tutor.
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You don’t have to travel.
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Tutors usually have to meet their students at a library or their home (or invite them to their home), but online tutoring means you can do it all from the comfort of your dorm room if you choose.
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You’ll get experience.
- As with any job, you will get plenty of experience by tutoring others. In this particular position, you will learn time management, marketing, and resume writing.
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It’s rewarding.
- With tutoring, you can often see the fruits of your labor! And as the student succeeds, it’s a win for you, too.
What Do You Need to Become a Tutor?
The main thing you need is to be well-educated in the subject matter you’re planning to teach. If you’re thinking about tutoring algebra, for example, you need to have a solid grasp on algebra and everything you will be covering with that student. If you struggled in your own math class, this might not be the subject to help others with. Some programs will even require you to have a certain GPA in the coursework you’re planning to teach.
Some online tutoring positions will also require you to:
- Be a native English Speaker
- Pass a test showing your competency in the subject
- Have a high school diploma
- Be a certain year in college
- Have access to a computer
- Have access to reliable internet connection
- Work a certain number of hours a week
- Not have any academic violations
College students often become tutors for other college students or even local K-12 students, but there are companies and programs out there that will require you to have a college degree, licenses, and certifications. This is not a hard and fast rule – there are plenty of tutoring positions that require little to no experience. Just an understanding of the material. (In the next section, we’ll mostly be covering online tutoring jobs where little experience is required.)
What Online Tutoring Jobs Are Available for College Students?
There are plenty of places to look for tutoring jobs online, but these examples are great starting points!
Your College
Colleges and universities often have tutoring programs for their students. The program will partner interested students with individuals in need of tutoring in a particular course. These can be online, in-person, or a mix. It really depends on the school’s program.
Colleges often tend to have minimum requirements for these positions. They may ask for a certain number of hours or a particular GPA.
Online Tutoring Job Sites
There are plenty of online tutoring job sites that can be used by college students. Each one has different criteria, but do allow students to apply. They work by connecting you with students in need of tutoring. These are only three examples of online tutoring opportunities out there – there are several others!
- Pay varies depending on the subject.
- Must be a sophomore or higher.
- Have to pass a competency exam.
- Will only be allowed to teach K-12 students.
- Pay varies
- Tutors have to bid for questions students have asked to obtain work.
- $16 per hour
- Requires at least 2 years of tutoring or teaching experience
Some other options include CheggTutors, PrepNow Tutoring, and Magic Ears.
Online tutoring Job Boards
Of course, you don’t have to go through a site dedicated to partnering tutors with students. There are tons of opportunities online where you can connect with the student yourself and apply for the position like you would any other job. Sites like ZipRecruiter, indeed, and others have students and their parents looking for tutors.
Social media is also a great place to find students who are in need of tutoring. Individuals are regularly asking for coursework assistance on Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, and others.
However, note that this can be risky as you have little guarantee of pay. Partnering with someone on Facebook, for example, runs the risk of the other ghosting you after services are provided. Always properly vet who you are planning on working with, whether it’s a company or an individual. Having a signed contract can help ensure you can collect payment even if the individual disappears, too. If you’re worried about this or don’t want to deal with the hassle of invoices, potential late payment, and everything else that comes with it, it may be in your best interests to work with a vetted company or tutoring service rather than going out on your own.
Does online tutoring sound like it would be a good way to earn a bit of extra cash during college? This extremely rewarding job can definitely bring a lot of life experience to the table, too! Just always be sure to follow “safety first” when looking into any of these positions.
Students often are running low on cash during their college years. Could scholarships help you afford school and your expenses? Use our Scholarship Search tool (even if you’re already in college!) to find awards you may qualify for.
