Tutoring Interview Questions and Answers

Questions and Answers for Tutoring Interviews

This post is designed for both employers and potential tutoring employees. During an interview session for tutoring, there are some common questions that will be asked, as well as what employers are looking for in a potential tutor's answers to these questions. This post will help both employers and potential tutoring employees navigate through that interview. For a list of advice concerning fifty common interview questions, check out this page here: How to Ace the 50 Most Common Interview Questions.

Questions and Answers for Tutoring Interviews #1: Tell Us About Yourself

"Tell us about yourself" is the most common and first "question" that tutors will need to answer. You should be prepared with exactly what you will say when asked this question. You want to share with the potential employer things about yourself that also demonstrate your qualifications for the job. A good example of how you might answer this question is how Michael explains his qualifications on his Champaign tutoring page on his website. As you can see, he explains his professional experience, as well as the kinds of students he has worked with and the different subjects he has experience tutoring. It is a very good idea to write out what you would say in answer to this question because you will almost surely be asked it. Be as prepared as possible by writing it out and rehearsing your response.

Also, check out this Best Answers for Common Interview Questions page.

Questions and Answers for Tutoring Interviews #2: What Is Your Tutoring Method/Philosophy?

For potential tutors, this is also an extremely common question asked by employers. A proper answer to this question will have at least three parts:

1. First, talk about how you plan to assess/diagnose where the student currently is. Talk about what kinds of questions you will ask the student, as well as what kinds of practice questions you might use to diagnose areas that the student struggles with. This is extremely important because you can only help a student effectively if you know what he or she needs the most help with.
2. Second, explain the kinds of strategies you might use to help a student move to the next level in his or her learning. Talk about the kinds of questions you will regularly ask the student to check for understanding, as well as give a demonstration of how you might explain a question to a student. Also, talk about how you will help the student progress from needing your help to being able to solve the problems independently.
3. Finally, talk about how you will make sure that the student truly understands the material. Talk about giving the student problems to complete individually, without any help, and that you will check to make sure the student no longer requires your assistance to solve the problem. 

Questions and Answers for Tutoring Interviews #3: What Subjects Can You Tutor?

When employers ask this interview question to a tutor, they want to know how versatile you are as a tutor. Within one subject, there are countless divisions within that subject, so employers want to know if you have the skills to cover diversity within any particular subject, as well as whether you have the skills to branch out into other subjects if necessary.

The best way to prepare for this question is simply to study your material to make sure you know it inside and out, as well as to practice tutoring as many students as possible in as many subjects as possible, even if this is for free, to give yourself plenty of experiences you can talk about in your interview. The best proof for an employer is in your experience, so if you can talk about actual students and tutoring sessions you have experienced, employers will be far more impressed. 

Interview Questions and Answers Video

For more help with preparing for questions and answers in a tutoring interview, check out this video below. It always helps to see and hear what an actual interview might look like, so that you can visualize yourself in the actual interview. This will help you be both better prepared and more confident.