HLEB continues to introduce readers to the inner workings of various professions. In today's episode, a private tutor talks about the children of rich parents, the disadvantages of the age difference and attention span
I chose tutoring as a way to earn extra money because it seemed easy to me. You came to your child’s home for an hour and a half to two hours (yes, I visit students, and don’t host them at my home), explained everything to him, gave him a bunch of tasks, and at the same time you sit and scroll through your feed on VKontakte or stick to Pikabu " But this job is no easier than others. In some ways it’s even harder.
I teach Russian language and literature to schoolchildren. Considering that at the university I studied both of these disciplines in depth for two years, at the beginning of the third year I considered myself ready to explain my knowledge to other people. The main advantage of a young tutor, a student or so, is that he has recently gone through all this hell with the Unified State Exam, all the memories of preparation, passing, chips and tricks are vivid in his memory. He is also close to the age of five-minute-graduates and therefore can speak the same language with them. In general, I considered myself an ideal candidate for this role and thought that I could handle it in no time. How wrong I was.
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My first student is in 9th grade, preparing for the OGE in Russian. She’s lazy, but she understands that she needs to pass the exam well, and that’s why she studies. Here I discovered the first inconvenience of working as a tutor: you must constantly hold the child’s attention. In recent years, this has been even more difficult, because a phone with Internet access always on is pestering you with messages on VKontakte and Twitter. You have to put the phone away, both of them: you can’t force a child not to do what you do yourself.
I learned to maintain attention after about a month. This is not difficult to achieve: you need to do different things all the time. We wrote the theory, did oral exercises, and chatted about abstract topics. And I also set aside time to complete tasks independently. As a result, we never do one type of work for more than twenty minutes. I remember some interesting incidents from my life, from my studies, interesting facts about the Russian language. Did you know that in our language there are many roots consisting of one letter? But the child is captivated, he has never seen anything like this before.
The second problem is laziness. I encountered this when working with a second student who needed a tutor in both Russian and literature to pass the Unified State Exam. It seems that he understands that he needs to pass the exam, it is simply necessary, but he does practically nothing. Constantly cancels classes, citing poor health, illness, or some errands. Doesn't do homework or does it "to get rid of it." And how to deal with this? I'm not her mother to tell her off. I took the following position: if you want results, do it; if you don’t, don’t waste your and my time. It helped.
But all this is nothing compared to the third problem - lack of education.
The mother of a seventh-grader who had problems with the Russian language school curriculum contacted me. I thought it would be easier than the Unified State Exam or Unified State Exam. Well, I read the textbook and retold it in my own words. And, probably, it would have worked with another child. But not with this one.
Antosha (let's call him that) is a real teacher's nightmare. Even if I howled, how did the teachers who interact with him at school every day cope? All the previous problems were here: it is impossible to maintain attention, and even more so to overcome laziness. In the first lesson, out of everything I had planned for an hour and a half, we only managed to complete a third. He was constantly distracted, endlessly talking about his school, about hockey, which he plays every day, about his cat, which was immediately running around. And when you try to bring him back to the topic of the lesson, he’s like:
- Yes, let's... Oh, you know, I weave baubles from rubber bands, would you like me to show you?
The topic of my second lesson with Antosha is communion. Everything seems simple: you take an adjective, take a verb, combine it - you get a participle. But Antosha didn’t even know what a verb was. And then came a generally stunning question:
- What is case?
This completely finished me off. I don't have the case definition in mind. To me it is as simple as “what is a chair.” It's a damn chair. That's all. In the seventh grade, a student should already know cases, like the multiplication table. In a normal school, of course.
There was no third lesson with Antosha.
I guess it's not about me. Yes, a professional teacher would probably have handled it much more calmly. But I didn’t have such problems with other students! I think these are shortcomings of upbringing. From communication with the student’s mother, I concluded that he is the only child in the family. And also - that they don’t have a lot of money. And he talks to mom and dad in such a way that it’s immediately clear: he is the king here, the master of the situation. So everything is clear.
I made a conclusion for myself: the smaller the age difference between the tutor and the student, the easier it is for both. At least for me it is.
Therefore, the next student was just a gift in comparison with the restless seventh grader. And yes, I finally got a child who is really interested in the subject. An eleventh-grader asked me to study literature with her to pass the Unified State Exam. And I understood why some teachers have “favorites.” This doesn't always happen on purpose. It’s just much more pleasant to communicate with those students who are interested in acquiring new knowledge and ask you questions themselves.
But, of course, an approach must be found for everyone. And this is the most difficult thing. Everyone has their own favorite topics of conversation, their own working capacity limits, and their own view of the subject being studied. For some, it is enough to cross the “threshold”, while others strive for high goals. And when you have five such individual lessons a week, sometimes you simply cannot connect to the next student. And connecting to him, being on the same wavelength with him is very important. Otherwise, nothing will work out at all.
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If you want to get into tutoring, it is important to understand that it is not the “easy way to make money” that I initially thought. This is work. You should always be prepared for the topic of the lesson. You must swim in the subject being taught like a fish in water - at least at the level at which the student is studying it. You should always have a backup plan if something goes wrong. You have no right to be tired, sleepy, irritated, angry. You should always have a smile on your face, otherwise you will not make the student smile. Don't tune in to his wavelength. You must become his friend. A friend who just knows a little more and is ready to help you learn the material.
The most important joy from such work is when the student understands. Then work turns into a pleasant, even favorite thing. Then you don’t think that this is additional income. This is a job like any other, and in some ways it’s not easy. And when a student achieves success, this is the best reward for a tutor.
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1 494 0 Hello, today we will tell you all the secrets of how to become a tutor, where to start and how to look for clients.Often, parents are faced with the fact that their child does not learn the material well at school or does not cope with the established curriculum at all. The student should not hang his nose: after all, if difficulties arise, you can always turn to a tutor. The profession of “teacher for hire” is in demand to this day. Sometimes tutors earn more than full-time teachers. Of course, the salary depends on the level of the teacher.
Tutor's profession
The work of a tutor is not as easy as it seems at first glance. Especially considering that many students are restless and do not learn new information well. That is why the salaries of private teachers are much higher than those of their colleagues from city schools.
Prices are set per academic or regular hour, and the lesson schedule is adjusted according to the wishes and capabilities of both the student and the tutor.
Pros of the profession
- Working as a teacher at home is much easier: you no longer need to cope with a whole group of children or teenagers, you work with a specific student.
- There are no reports or programs that need to be strictly followed.
- There is no need to report to the director or head teacher of the school.
- The tutor plans his own time and distributes the workload.
Demand for the profession
Tutors are especially in demand right before exams. For example, before the Unified State Exam, State Examination, TOEFL, MBA and others.
Finding a tutor is very simple: just look at the bulletin board on the Internet or in the city newspaper. Since there are so many teachers, it will be difficult to get to the top of the profession. You will have to prove that you are a master of your craft and deserve to receive a high salary.
Of course, if you have already worked as a teacher, then continuing to work will be much easier. At the same time, you may have earned a good reputation among your former or current students.
How to start tutoring
- To ensure you get off to a good start, determine which field is right for you. Don't take on an area of knowledge in which you are not very strong.
The most popular teachers are foreign language teachers: English, French, German. The age of the student, as they say, is “from young to old.” These can be preschool children and businessmen. The last category of citizens is more solvent and most promising for your career growth.
- Select the category of citizens you will work with. These could be:
- Preschool children- in preparation for school.
- School graduates- in preparation for entrance exams.
- Students- in preparation for the session.
- Adults seeking to improve their knowledge.
- Corporate clients- this is relevant for foreign language teachers who are invited to companies to work with employees.
When thinking about choosing the age of students, be guided by those with whom it is easier for you to find a language.
- Create a training program.
It is very important to do this at the beginning of the journey. Of course, you can adjust it during the learning process. But in order to monitor the level of students’ knowledge, an initial work plan must be required.
- Develop a test to check knowledge levels at different stages: when the student comes to you for the first time, after a month and at the end of training. This will make it easier for both you and the student, who will clearly see what he has achieved.
- It is necessary to purchase appropriate literature, methodological and visual aids. Some of them can be downloaded for free, while others will require you to spend money. A good teacher always has his own personal methodological developments and is guided by them.
One program will not be enough if you study in different subjects and with people of different ages. Try to find an individual learning system for each student.
- Register as an individual entrepreneur.
Many people are concerned about taxes. For your peace of mind, you can register as an individual entrepreneur and pay taxes for yourself. In addition, if you plan to work with companies, most likely they will enter into an agreement with you, which means you will definitely have to report to the tax office.
Of course, you can start troubles with these accounting problems, see how everything goes, and if success is not long in coming, make it official.
But remember, tutoring is considered a form of individual activity, and it is not subject to licensing. The teacher's qualifications must be confirmed by a diploma. At the same time, registration of an individual entrepreneur will become a mandatory procedure, because private teaching is a business activity.
Therefore, it is necessary to provide that a percentage of the funds earned will be spent on paying taxes. However, profits can increase significantly if students study in your apartment or via online communication. This way you save on transport and have more time to spare.
- Decide on the type of lesson.
- Online(via Skype);
- Offline(by visiting the student at home or visiting you);
The first method is the most advanced and gaining popularity nowadays. This is convenient for residents of big cities: there is no need to stand in traffic jams and spend money traveling around the city to get to a private teacher. In addition, students can be recruited from different cities and even countries.
Surprisingly, the cost of training via Skype is slightly higher than the traditional form of training. This may be due to the fact that Skype teachers are more modern people who value their time. In addition, this allows you to hold video conferences with several students of one teacher, sharing the level of knowledge in a group, without gathering a crowd of people at home. This results in a full-fledged educational process and a whole class of students.
Speaking about such a specific job as a tutor, it is worth noting one thing - it is important to look for an approach to each of your wards. The teacher does not always use video communication: you can also send the necessary materials and assignments by email, if the student can understand them independently and complete all the assignments.
- Set prices for your services.
When wondering how to get started in tutoring, many are unsure of their final salary. A very low amount will completely discourage motivation, but an excessively high amount will scare off potential clients.
If you are confident in the quality of your services, do not hesitate to ask for sufficient payment. If you have no experience, it is still better to lower the rates until you get the hang of the hard work of a private teacher.
The amount will be influenced by several factors:
- Place of residence;
- Teaching experience;
- Teacher education;
- Intensity of classes;
- Teacher guarantees;
- Difficulty of the subject.
It is worth discussing in advance whether payment will be made for each lesson, all lessons for a month or after a fixed number of days (for example, after 5, 10, 15 lessons).
The basis for successful activities will be the extensive experience of the teacher and the high quality of the material. Tutoring may well become the main source of income, and the profit will be several times higher than the average salary of a full-time teacher.
Of course, start-up capital is needed: to purchase teaching materials and literature. But it will quickly pay for itself. You will be able to achieve “net” earnings after just a few months of active work.
So, you have purchased the necessary materials and are ready to get to work. Let's start with the most banal thing: finding students.
How to find students for tutoring
- Word of mouth. Works flawlessly. Tell everyone you know that you have decided to take up tutoring and you will be surprised how quickly people will reach out to you. Don't be shy about your profession. At least you don’t sit still, but do everything to earn money.
- Paid services.
There are many services where you can post your resume. Be sure to include:
- the price of one hour (academic or regular);
- subjects for which you are studying;
- your education and work experience;
- areas in which it will be most convenient for you to work.
After leaving your contact information, wait for a call from your prospective students and talk to them. After talking in person, you will decide whether you can work with this person or not. It is advisable to immediately clarify the age and academic performance of the schoolchild (student).
- Free services.
If you do not want to work through intermediaries, then you can always place advertisements yourself in newspapers, magazines or on online bulletin boards (Avito, Yula, hh, RabotaRu, etc.). And also on online message boards in your city. Go to social media and start looking for free groups to post about your services.
Create your own page where you post your diplomas and student reviews. Your personal page is very convenient not only for listing your credentials and work experience, but also for prompt communication with students. In addition, children love modern teachers who speak the same language as them, so they learn the material better.
Here are some tips from experienced tutors on how to tutor:
- When meeting a student and/or his parent, immediately clarify that the student’s success will depend not only on you, but also on the diligence of the student himself. If your child has problems with perseverance or is not serious about studying, do not hesitate to tell your parents about it. Otherwise, after a while, “all the barrels will roll on you.”
- Patience is the key to success. Sometimes students will meet, as they say, not a gift. Here it is important to control yourself and not get personal.
- Inspire! Try to find an approach to each student. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a teenager or an adult, you can tease anyone.
- Lesson objectives. At the very beginning of your training, clarify the objectives of your lessons. What expectations does the student have for your lessons, what does he want to achieve. Share your plans for his training. Set clear goals for him, for example, that by the end of the year, he must learn this and that.
- Humor. Classes are the work of the mind. Make jokes with your students, take a minute break, and talk about abstract topics. This way the information will be absorbed better.
- Give feedback. If your students are children, then call their parents and tell them about the child’s successes and failures, because it is unknown what he tells about you at home. If your students are adults, once a month summarize your learning and ask for feedback on your lessons.
- Always have a backup plan! When preparing for classes, have a clear plan and standards for deviation from it. Don't expect to figure it out on the spot. Have additional tasks in stock if the student completes it quickly and still has time.
- Don't hang on to careless students. There is no need to beat yourself up if you see that you cannot find a common language with a student. Don't quarrel with the students, just say goodbye to him.
Useful articles:
University and school teachers often engage in tutoring to earn additional income. Why does this work become an occasional activity for some, while others are constantly in demand and are not looking for students? Secrets of an excellent tutor.
University teachers and school teachers, especially young ones, often find themselves in tutoring. Becoming a tutor means not only having additional income, it also means a free work schedule and the opportunity to choose your own program and students.
Only a few become private teachers, for most of them it is combined with their main job. What is the secret of a successful tutor?
Professional skills
To become an excellent tutor, it is not enough to have a university degree. You must know your subject perfectly, be able to explain not only the theory, but also show how to implement it in practice, and it is better if there are examples from real life. Also signs of professionalism are:
Knowledge of the methods of teaching a subject in a certain sequence and the ability to explain why the study takes place in this particular sequence. Use of quality textbooks. The tutor should have his own set of teaching aids, which he considers the best - well-written, structured and clearly demonstrating theoretical calculations. You must not only choose a textbook to teach, but also be able to explain to the student why you chose this particular textbook.
Providing additional materials. Agree, you can read the textbook yourself, there is no need to hire a tutor for this, so a good teacher always provides students with additional materials, uses high technology in teaching and makes the educational process more interactive.
Application of a fair system of knowledge assessment, readiness to justify this or that assessment. The work of a tutor is also assessed, but this time by the level of knowledge of his student. You can find out the effectiveness of your program by comparing the student's initial level with the current one or by asking parents, colleagues, and the student himself about progress.
Constant professional growth of the tutor. Each of us has something to learn, so a successful tutor regularly attends advanced training courses, trainings and seminars on his subject and teaching methods. It will also be useful to monitor events occurring in the world related to your field of knowledge.
Personal qualities
Not every graduate of a pedagogical university is capable of becoming a good tutor. To do this, you need to have a set of qualities that allows you to build the educational process most effectively. The most important quality is the ability to find a common language with the student and establish emotional contact with him. Without understanding the reaction to the training material, you will not be able to make adjustments to the program if necessary. Contact with the student allows you to increase his interest in the subject being studied, and hence the effectiveness of learning.
Punctuality and consistency are also important for a tutor. The beginning and end of classes should always be at the same time, checking of completed work should be done exactly on time, and materials for the lesson should always be prepared in advance. It’s good if a tutor thinks systematically, this will allow him to form the structure of classes and in the learning process not jump from one to another, but go from simple to complex, always keeping in mind the final goal.
How to become a tutor
If you have a desire to become a mentor, to teach someone what you know yourself, then you are ready to become a tutor. To achieve success, you need to perform a number of actions:
- Choose your specialization. Mathematical analysis and solving differential equations are fundamentally different directions, although one is part of the other.
- Treat everyone individually. Do not forget that in front of you is not a stream of students, but one specific person, to adapt to whom is now your job.
- Always conduct a knowledge assessment at the beginning of the course. This will help you know if the student is ready for your program, or if it needs to be slightly expanded on the basics that the student does not know. Make the learning process interactive - encourage the student to ask questions and express his opinion, even if it does not coincide with yours or the generally accepted one.
- At the end of the course, ask the student to evaluate the program and your effectiveness as a teacher. This will allow you to improve your skills, and at the same time you will receive recommendations for working with your next clients.
The demand for tutoring services is great, and in order to become not just one of many, but the best in your field, treat it responsibly. Raise the level of knowledge of students, students and adults, improve yourself and your educational program, then thanks to you, modern society will become a little better.
The main fundamental part on which success in any professional activity is based is quality education. Today, the provision of tutoring services is extremely popular. Everyone knows that a well-prepared student can easily pass exams at a prestigious university and enter it. Many people who need the services of a tutor want to improve their basic educational level in any subject, and many want to take this issue very seriously. In general, the tutoring industry is a fairly promising area of business. And in this article we will talk about where to start tutoring primary grades. Moreover, in this article we will let you know how to turn this business into a profitable field of activity.
What you need to make money from tutoring
Are any of you asking yourself the question: How can you become a tutor? The most important thing is to understand for yourself that your desire alone will not be quite enough to answer this question. You can create a successful and profitable home at home when you adhere to a specific plan of action. Therefore, below we will talk about what you need in order to achieve success in this matter?
Basic requirements
Tutoring is a very responsible and difficult profession. Many believe that this work provides additional income for teachers of universities and schools. But in fact, real professionals in this matter do not teach in these educational institutions. The main and important condition for organizing this business at home is excellent education and extensive experience in this work. Another important factor for a tutor is good knowledge in the field of psychology and teaching skills. The more experience a tutor has in a given field, the better their professional skills. Based on this, we can safely say about the possibility of increasing tariffs for the services provided in the future.
Everyone knows that many people have great difficulty believing information about experience. In order to establish yourself well, you need to ask your students for help in writing letters of recommendation. Any person who has not only excellent knowledge, but also his own personal qualities, which every good teacher should have, can become a tutor.
So, how can you become a tutor? In order to achieve success in this, the following personal qualities will help you:
- Such a quality as responsibility will help to competently approach the work of maintaining discipline in lessons and planning them.
- Great interest in your work. A good tutor always strives to improve personal knowledge and a better teaching method.
- The opportunity to teach and present the necessary material in a more accessible way. Even if a teacher knows the answer to a question perfectly well, he can always competently explain it to another person.
- Such a quality as punctuality allows the tutor to start and finish his lesson at the right time.
- Competently establishing a common language with students. Personal qualities and charm are the main basis for excellent relationships with your clients. And competence, in turn, also plays a huge role in building relationships.
- Inner self-control and patience for mistakes.
If you also have all the qualities that we listed above, then you can safely start working as a tutor. But first, you can work with the children of your friends or acquaintances. Thanks to this, you can gain experience. After that, you can look for new clients.
Search for students
From this article you can learn about how to make money from tutoring. Above we have listed the qualities that every tutor should have. But here it’s worth talking about how to find new students for your activities. If you have just begun to engage in such activities, then now a new tutor can be of great help from various resources on which specialists post questionnaires for the opportunity to find a job. This information indicates the place where the training will be conducted, the city of residence, the cost of these services, work experience, time of training and personal education. If you don’t want to bother posting your personal resume on these resources, you can print out advertisements and post them at the entrances of houses or bus stops, near various educational institutions. An excellent option is also to create a personal website. Skype training has become extremely popular these days. Therefore, if you have a computer with a working webcam, you can teach your students remotely.
Is it necessary to obtain a license?
Tutoring is a type of teaching activity that does not need to be licensed. If the tutor has a diploma, then it acts as the main confirmation of the qualifications you have received. Since tutoring is considered a business activity, in order to start working, you must register with the tax authority as an individual entrepreneur. This action will be an excellent option in the future to increase your income, since most people began to turn to those tutors who work legally.
If you are at the stage of drawing up your business plan, tutoring may not be classified as home-based tutoring. If you are essentially a businessman, then you can consider the option of creating a training center. In this case, you will definitely need to obtain a license.
Tutor cost
Most tutors ask themselves the most important question: what price should they set for their services? Many tutors, in an effort to attract a large number of clients, set low prices for their services. But this is far from correct. In this case, you personally will have minimal motivation to perform your work at a high level. Among other things, your clients will begin to doubt the quality of the services you provide. You should always remember that the work done must be paid accordingly. At the moment there are no established payment rates for these services. Below we will describe the facts that will affect the earnings of a tutor conducting classes at home:
- Personal experience in this field;
- Education in this profile;
- Place of residence (locality);
- Number of classes held per week;
- Guarantees provided by the tutor;
- The uniqueness of the discipline.
"Inconvenient" questions
If a client, for some reason, has not paid for the lesson, there is no need to be afraid to tell him about it. You perform your services for him, and monetary compensation for this should be mandatory. You can ask the client how it is more convenient for him to pay for lessons: for each lesson separately or for 6-7 lessons.
How to achieve success
You probably already understood that tutoring as a business activity can bring good income to every tutor. But in order to be able to bring your plans to life, you need to constantly work on yourself. It is impossible to become a tutor if you do not improve your level of knowledge or are impatient with students' mistakes. If these qualities are inherent in you, then they will have to change. The most important thing in this matter is your personal desire to increase the client’s level of knowledge or give him new ones. The main thing for you is to become a great friend to your student. When doing your work, remember that there are no unsolvable cases!
- You need to choose one area of activity as your main one and try to become an excellent professional in it. After you achieve success, you need to start learning new knowledge.
- It is important to apply a special individual approach to each of your students.
- You need to take your first lesson with a particular student with special responsibility. After the lesson, you should evaluate the level of his knowledge and determine goals and possible loads.
- You need to make your lessons more interesting. If you force a student to simply cram his subject, you will not achieve the effect you need.
- Try to give your training client the opportunity to express his personal opinion. In the same case, if it differs from your point of view, try to enter into a debate with the student.
- Try to get your student to respect you. If you still fail to achieve this, it is better to refuse to conduct lessons with him.
For teachers who want to receive greater compensation for their work, tutoring as a business would be an interesting option. First you need to find out how to get started and how much you can earn from this activity. But in most cases, almost no capital investment is required, and profits appear from the first months of operation.
And although this direction is not considered a new product, not all experienced teachers are able to easily organize themselves and move to a new level of earnings on their own. To do this, you can consult with colleagues who have already been tutoring for a long time, and also draw up a competent business plan and move step by step towards your goal. Even beginners should not have any particular difficulties.
Benefits of additional homeschooling
According to the Institute of Education, it has been established that a quarter of schoolchildren in Russia use the services of tutors, and sometimes several at once. In order to prepare for exams or to improve their knowledge in any field, people want to take the help of additional teachers in addition to those who teach the subject at school.
The most popular areas are mathematics and English, but other areas of science are also in demand on the market. Therefore, almost every teacher or even student who wants to make money on this can find application for their knowledge and experience.
Of course, to become a tutor, you need to have certain qualities:
- Have a good understanding of your subject, love it and improve yourself.
- Be able to convey a message to any person, regardless of his age and level of education.
- Individual approach to each client.
- Responsibility and punctuality - this is the only way to organize work competently, plan classes correctly, arrive on time and be able to distribute information for the allotted period of the lesson.
You need to be not just a professional, know the theory being presented, but also find a common language with students and their parents. It is important to be able to explain any topic at an accessible and simple level. The speed of formation of a client base will depend on these qualities. After all, thanks to the reputation of a good and talented teacher, you can get many orders without even making any special efforts for advertising.
What are the advantages of the idea of private tutoring? Each person can find their own advantages, but the following are considered the most attractive:
- No large start-up capital is required.
- The payback of the project occurs very quickly, high profitability.
- There are different forms of activity and you have the right to choose the one that is more suitable and convenient for yourself.
- Thanks to the Internet, you can find clients even outside your hometown or state.
- The process of organizing a business is quite simple and does not take much time.
- Having a good reputation in certain circles, you can quickly form a client base.
- This area of activity can be the main one or act as additional income.
- High demand for individual items.
Where to start?
From paperwork and business organization on a legal level. To do this, just contact the tax service and open an individual entrepreneur. You will not be able to hire a large number of teachers, but you will not need a license to operate.
If you are opening a tutoring center together with partners or are going to organize a large complex with many vacancies for teachers, then it is better to immediately register a legal entity (LLC). But in this case, you must obtain a license for tutoring activities from government agencies.
In any case, the tax system is simplified with the payment of 6% of all income. Be sure to indicate the correct OKVED codes:
- 10.3 – additional education for children.
- 42 – provision of similar services for an adult audience.
But there is another way. From January 1, 2017, tutors have the opportunity not to pay taxes if they are not registered as an individual entrepreneur and carry out teaching activities as an individual. But then the possibility of hiring staff is completely excluded, and you can also provide services only for household and personal needs, which significantly limits the entrepreneur.
But in this case, you will also have to register with the tax service, that is, inform them about your private activities. And since the line between a self-employed person and an individual entrepreneur is too thin, it is better to play it safe and register as an individual entrepreneur.
Activity format
Today you can make money through tutoring in several ways:
- Through remote learning, for example, via Skype, Viber or other instant messengers. This also includes webinars, online conferences, etc. All you need for this is a computer or laptop, headphones, a microphone and a webcam. This method makes it possible to unite a group from different parts of the world and approach the learning process as creatively as possible.
- Tutoring at the client's home. At the same time, you must appear at the address on time, and additionally include the cost of transportation (public or private) in your payment. Try to leave early and avoid traffic jams so as not to violate the rules of punctuality.
- Training at home when clients come themselves. Thanks to this, you can reduce the cost of lessons. But plan your class schedule carefully so that no one has to wait in the hallway while you finish with the previous student.
- A separate center or office where people come for individual or group classes. To do this, it is better to hire several teachers at once and carefully think through the lesson schedule. So, there are categories of people for whom it is more convenient to study in the morning, while for others, on the contrary, evening hours are suitable.
Services provided
First, be sure to decide on your profile. If you are a subject teacher, then most likely you made your choice a long time ago. But when searching for personnel for a tutoring center, it is advisable to focus on different and most in-demand areas. Thus, today foreign languages (especially English), mathematics and Russian are in greatest demand.
Since all clients are different and their learning goals are also different, you need to create a certain algorithm of actions. Typically, full-fledged tutoring centers operate as follows:
- The first consultation is free. It is necessary to find out the wishes of the student, his level of knowledge and training, determine the profile, prices, conditions, etc.
- If the client wishes to enroll in any university, they provide him with the basic requirements for each specialization, guide him towards specific exams and draw up an individual work plan.
- During the learning process, they must adhere to the chosen methodology and strategy, providing as much as possible all the required information on the subject in accordance with the goals of the classes. For this purpose, teaching aids, dictionaries, reference books and other educational literature on the subject are often used.
- They try to diversify the forms of classes as much as possible - seminars, lectures, consultations.
- Modern computer technologies are also used to speed up learning, facilitate this process, and consolidate skills by simulating individual situations.
Arrangement of the premises
If you tutor at home or remotely, then this item is unlikely to interest you. But when creating a center or office for conducting classes, you need to approach this issue correctly.
First, think about a good location. It is desirable that it be somewhere in the central part of the city or near educational institutions - schools, institutes. Consider the cost too. Sometimes it is more profitable to rent a ready-made classroom at a university or other institution, where the fees are low and you don’t have to purchase additional furniture. Here it is easier to find clients with minimal advertising costs.
Secondly, make repairs if necessary and arrange everything in such a way that sanitary and epidemiological control and fire inspection do not make claims against you. Again, there is a pleasant pattern - in educational institutions all the rooms are already prepared properly and the owner has the necessary permits from regulatory authorities.
Thirdly, you should purchase everything for the arrangement of educational and administrative rooms:
- furniture (desks, tables, chairs);
- boards;
- office equipment;
- computer and educational software;
- consumables, stationery, small accessories, etc.
It is imperative for students to stock up on a sufficient number of teaching aids, textbooks and other materials that are issued to them for a limited period. In some cases, it is necessary to install a telephone line, the Internet and other means of communication.
Personnel and work schedule
To start a tutoring business, you don’t have to hire someone. You can cope with the influx of clients on your own and keep all the profits for yourself. But when organizing the center you will have to use the help of specialists.
To do this, they hire a sufficient number of teachers with different areas of subject matter in order to cover the range of services as widely as possible. Their qualifications, work experience and personal qualities should be checked especially closely. The reputation of tutors and their professional skills will largely determine the desire of clients to visit your institution.
To perform administrative and organizational functions, you will have to hire a secretary. An accountant can act as a separate staff unit or perform work under a contract (outsourcing). Don’t forget about constant maintenance of order - the cleaning lady can also come at certain hours or clean the classrooms throughout the whole working day.
Don't skimp on wages. Please note that good specialists will be in demand outside the center. And along with them, most of the clients may leave. Therefore, always try to respect the interests of professionals and pay them adequately for their work.
It is important to properly organize the educational process. To do this, they create a convenient schedule for students. Consider personal preferences, group composition, target audience and other factors. For example, it is easier to conduct individual lessons in the afternoon or morning. But group meetings take place in the evening. The duration of the lesson for children should not exceed 40 minutes, but for adults the time can be increased to 1-1.5 hours.
The main clients of tutors are the following categories of the population:
- Students who do not keep up with the program as a whole or have problems with any one subject.
- Applicants wishing to enroll in a university.
- Young people after the army who want to continue their education.
- Various representatives of professions who had to change the specifics of their work or retrain.
- Entrepreneurs who lack knowledge in a narrow specialization.
Having decided on who can mainly become your clients, you should build on this in the future when building a business (placement, advertising, training methods). Thus, when targeting children, it is desirable to be located closer to schools and provide a wide range of subjects for the secondary educational system.
If your target audience is adults for the purpose of retraining, then focus on practical skills in certain areas of activity and in foreign languages.
People most often learn about tutors, their skills, reputation, and focus from sources such as acquaintances, close friends, neighbors, and relatives. Word of mouth is the main method of advertising for most good teachers.
But if you are going to recruit students for a full-fledged center or complex that provides a wide range of training programs, then it is worth using mass advertising. To do this, use different strategies:
- Post notices in educational institutions.
- Distribute leaflets on crowded streets or places where your potential clients gather.
- Disseminate information about your activities among everyone you know;
- Print out business cards.
- Create a website or group on social networks, post ads, use contextual advertising.
- Use local newspapers and magazines.
This type of business has its own characteristics, and in many cities it is also characterized by high competition in certain areas. To succeed, you need to adhere to unspoken rules:
- Take into account the individual characteristics of the perception and assimilation of information by each client separately. Design training programs according to personal characteristics.
- Pay special attention to the first lesson, where you need to objectively assess the student’s level of preparation, his needs and goals.
- Design training programs in such a way that clients find it interesting. Involve the creative process, use modern techniques, captivate children with games, and further motivate adults to achieve their goals.
- Give students the opportunity to express their opinions and build constructive debate.
- If for any reason you cannot gain the trust and respect of a client, it is better to refuse cooperation with him. Remember, a good specialist will always have a job.
- Try to create a schedule that is convenient for both students and teachers. Consider life situations, work and educational processes.
- Never skimp on office equipment, auxiliary materials and aids.
By building the system properly and approaching organizational issues with full responsibility, you can quickly achieve full payback for the project and receive not only profit from the activity, but also pleasure, and also earn the respect of your students.
Financial aspects
If you do tutoring at home, then you won’t need any special investments. Almost from the very first lessons you will begin to earn income. But organizing the center will require large investments.
Most of the investment will be spent on:
- rental of premises;
- staff salaries;
- public utilities;
- furniture and office equipment;
- teaching aids and consumables.
On average, students pay from 300 to 800 rubles for one lesson with a tutor. But much depends on the locality, the chosen subject, the group or individual process, the duration of the lesson, the complexity of the tasks, etc. A third of the income usually goes to pay specialists. But even with such indicators, the payback of the project occurs after just a few months of active work.
Video: tutoring as a business.