Tutoring, babysitting, dog-walking, this trifecta of jobs rhymes with high school days and easy money. One of the most popular student jobs regardless of education level, tutoring is often limited to signing up for a schoolwide list of available tutors and a couple of hours spent in someone's class or living room. However, like all other industries, tutoring has been deeply affected by the growing integration of modern technology with our daily lives. Want a student job that's flexible, quintessentially modern and highly adaptable? Here's why you should consider becoming a part-time tutor.
Tutoring part-time allows you to ride the wave of modernity
The economic landscape is always changing. The almost exponential development of innovation has led to the rapid development of specific economic fields. What does this mean? That you've probably heard terms like the experience economy or the sharing economy being thrown around. Tutoring belongs to a subset of the sharing economy (companies like Airbnb) called the knowledge economy. The growth of the sharing economy has shown that there is limitless value in services that rely mostly on interpersonal interactions. Being a part-time tutor in the modern age means being part of an economic vanguard.
What this concretely means is that like everything else a whole host of apps, websites and platforms have developed to fully modernize being a part-time tutor. Some examples are italki, Apprentus or TyTa. TyTa is an up and coming app that aims to connect students with skilled student tutors. Specifically designed with international students in the Netherlands in mind, it wants to break down the common obstacles many international students face with the Dutch education system by offering a highly tailored experience.
Gain job experience as a part-time tutor
If economic activism doesn't really speak to you then broadening your social network probably does. Networking is one of the staples of the modern employee’s toolkit. Becoming a part-time tutor at university often means tutoring your peers and learning how to navigate the student-teacher power dynamic. In addition to sharpening your networking skills, tutoring provides an introduction to the accountability and responsibility required of all professional positions.
You have to adapt to the learning style of your different students and constantly ensure the quality of your work. This allows you to develop precious soft skills that will be very valuable for a full-time job. For example, signing up as a tutor for apps like Apprentus or TyTa allow you to reap the benefits of a remote part-time job while honing your communication skills. What’s cool about TyTa is that students are matched based on the subject, place and time. Despite that, the choice of the tutor pairing ultimately lies with the student.
TyTa actively seeks to promote peer to peer learning. They've created an app that views knowledge as something to be shared rather than a tool creating imbalanced power dynamics. And, as a tutor, you can also create a student profile to get some help too. Check out this video to see how their system works!
Develop your leadership skills
Leaders are a dime a dozen and leadership skills are highly requested by employers. Tutors by definition are people that take initiative and demonstrate their leadership potential by actively transmitting their knowledge to students. The key to being a good leader is having the ability to adapt and utilize killer listening skills. Tutors need to listen to their students in order to tailor the class to their expectations and capacities.
As well as leveling the educational playing field, being a part-time tutor is an easy way to meet new people, brush up on some skills and earn some pocket money. Apps such as TyTa, provide a platform that not only makes tutoring easier but makes it more transparent and fair. Tutors are paid for the exact amount of time they spent tutoring and both students and tutors receive reviews that are visible on their profiles.
What’s your favorite experience with tutoring?
