7 Online Tutoring Services to Help Rescue Your GPA, Sanity
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From instructional videos to live one-on-one help, often 24/7, these online services can help you get ahead academically. And they’re usually less expensive than an IRL tutor.
There’s no academic panic like the night before an exam, when you can’t quite grasp the words in front of you no matter how many times you’ve read them. You want help, but where to turn? You’ve played back the professor’s lecture dozens of times already. The teaching assistant is likely fast asleep and not up to answering your frantic messages. And your friends probably don’t know much more than you do. An online tutor can be your sanity-and grade-saver.
Online tutoring services are among the best tools you can use to help get ahead academically, from tutoring videos to live one-on-one help, often 24/7.
Another smart reason for using an online tutor is cost. It tends to be relatively inexpensive—starting at just under $30 per hour—compared with private tutoring, which is often a few hundred dollars an hour.
As the school year gets closer, it’s time to buy some e-textbooks and start thinking about who can help you master their material. We’ve done the homework for you; here are a few to consider.
Wyzant
Wyzant is a smart choice for students of any age. Kindergarteners to grad students will be able to find help here. The wide range of subjects covered on Wyzant also makes it a good resource for job applicants looking to learn a skill or aspiring musicians to pick up an instrument. Tutor qualifications vary by subject, but each tutor has to pass a proficiency test.
Chegg Tutors
With Chegg Tutors, tutors who are currently enrolled in or have graduated from top colleges lend their expertise to high school and college students. Chegg Tutors offers an extensive list of subjects, including computer science and engineering as well as test prep. A lesson via chat on Chegg is $6.95 for one or $14.95 a month for unlimited online chats. Video call lessons cost $30 per month.
Smarthinking
Smarthinking from Pearson has 24/7 access to tutoring for students from middle school through graduate school and resources for professionals as well, including help with writing resumes. Those who struggle with writing can get essay help. An hour of tutoring is $35; four hours are $125. Smarthinking says over 90 percent of its tutors have a master’s degree or Ph.D. and on average have 12 years of experience working with students.
Skooli
Skooli offers tutoring for elementary through college-age students. It’s pay as you go, at 82 cents a minute. Tutors must have either a bachelor’s degree or higher in the field they’re teaching, a teaching license, or specialized certification in their field.
Tutor.com
Tutor.com covers over 80 subject areas for students in kindergarten through college. Its tutors are available all day, every day. In addition to regular courses, Tutor.com offers SAT prep for high school students, which is not surprising since the company acquired The Princeton Review years ago. It also offers an app for help on the go (iOS, Android), though it is not updated frequently.
Four levels of monthly plans are available for all tutoring: $39.99 for one hour per month, $79.99 for two hours per month, $114.99 for three hours per month, and 75 cents per minute if you pay as you go. An introductory session is free. There is no cost for Tutor.com’s services for military families. Tutor.com tutors are either enrolled in or have graduated from an accredited university and are experts in the subjects they teach.
TutaPoint
TutaPoint has tutoring available in almost 40 subjects for elementary through high school students at $40 per hour. The site also offers test prep, including for students with learning differences. TutaPoint tutors are certified teachers, retired teachers, teaching assistants, professors at colleges and universities, and experts in their fields.
TutorMe
If you need help immediately, try TutorMe. It matches available tutors with students ASAP. The site offers tutoring for students in high school through college and beyond: There is a wide and varied list of tutoring for professionals, whether they’re in IT or fashion. Tutoring is $39 for one hour per month, $69 for two hours per month, $119 for four hours per month, or $1 per minute to pay as you go. Tutors have tutoring or teaching experience and must be experts in their field; each tutor’s qualifications appear in their profile.
Originally published at https://www.pcmag.com on August 21, 2019.
