How much should I charge for physics tutoring?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around determining an appropriate hourly rate for tutoring high school physics, particularly in the context of a college student offering tutoring services. Participants share their experiences, rates, and considerations regarding pricing, workload, and the nature of tutoring services provided.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests charging $15 an hour, expressing uncertainty about whether this rate is too low.
  • Another participant argues that $15 is indeed low, recalling their own experience of charging $25 a decade ago.
  • Some participants mention that $10 an hour is common for college-level tutoring, with one noting that it is reasonable based on their knowledge of others' rates.
  • Concerns are raised about the implications of not reporting tutoring income for tax purposes, with differing opinions on whether this is common practice.
  • A participant who secured a rate of $20 an hour expresses concern about competing offers from other tutors.
  • Discussion includes the importance of preparation time, transportation costs, and material costs when determining a tutoring rate.
  • Some participants advocate for higher rates, suggesting that professional tutors charge between $50 and $80 per hour, depending on location and expertise.
  • One participant mentions that tutors employed by colleges often earn significantly less than what private tutors charge, indicating a disparity in compensation.
  • There is a suggestion that tutors with a college degree could reasonably charge $40-50 per hour, reflecting confidence in their skills.
  • Concerns are raised about the workload involved in tutoring, especially when developing lesson plans and conducting labs, which may warrant higher compensation.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on a specific rate, with multiple competing views on what constitutes a reasonable hourly charge for tutoring. There is significant variation in personal experiences and regional differences in pricing.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight the variability in tutoring rates based on factors such as location, level of education, and the nature of the tutoring service provided. There are also discussions about the implications of taxation and the expectations of workload associated with different tutoring arrangements.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be useful for college students considering tutoring as a source of income, educators exploring tutoring rates, and parents looking to understand the market for private tutoring services.

  • #31
Bipolarity, from post #31,

Count on a continued demand for private tutoring. This has been the case for hundreds of years, and since it is a very normal human thing, it will continue. Also count on the availability of an oversupply of tutors and teachers. Educated people are employed, unemployed, changing jobs, and some need or want extra money and can provide instructional service, both privately, and through private institutions. Just look at what community college instructors do: many go to jobs at more than one C.C. because each C.C. which hires them puts them on as part time at few enough hours that the C.C. does not need to pay benefits. Since class size are somewhat unpredictable, the teacher risks class closure; and can't be sure if he has a job at the place the following term. So many of these people while maintaining some knowledge and skills through teaching can also tutor and may try to. The universities and community colleges also have establshed tutoring programs for their Mathematics courses or a tutoring center somewhere on campus so there are tutors there.

Tutoring is not going to go obsolete any time soon.
 
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  • #32
When AP exams come around the corner in a few months, it's the cash cow for private tutoring..jack up your prices!
 
  • #33
the emoluments for tutoring CG students online

Hi Friends, I have been approached by an online tutoring company to take online tutoring sessions for CG students based in US/UK, they are paying Rs. 2.5 per minute, is it ok or should i charge more for it.
 
  • #34
kikko said:
I'd be tutoring a high school graduate in high school physics. His parents want 6-8 hours a week. What should I charge? I'm a physics major/math minor/chemistry minor in college. This is my 3rd year of physics, though I'm a senior. I would think $15 an hour, but I don't know if that's low or not.

My parents paid for my elder brother to have a private math tutor for one hour per week and that cost £20.

That's like, $30?
 
  • #35
I work in my schools tutoring lab making $9/hour. I also do private tutoring as well, and I get between $10-15/hour for the private tutoring. I weight it a little different depending on the class. If I'm tutoring someone for Algebra I, I'm only likely to charge $10/hr, but if I'm tutoring for College Algebra, or Trigonometry, I'll charge $15/hr. I just finished Calculus I this last semester, and I've already had a couple people tell me that they want me to tutor them next semester. They both were more than happy to pay $15/hr. Most of the students I tutor receive somewhere around 3 hours of tutoring a week.
 
  • #36
brimacki said:
People who don't have a college degree probably shouldn't be charging more than $20/hour. However, you have a college degree and you won't be working with a firm. I'd say quote something on the order of $40-50/hour. The fact that you charge a high amount should make the parents want to hire you more. This means you have confidence in your skills and are willing to deliver. Consider how much more they would be paying, plus how much less attention the student would get, if he went to a community college.


I'm not sure how to take this comment. What do community colleges have to do with anything?

Community colleges often result in MORE attention from professors, because class sizes are significantly smaller. I'm in a community college currently, and the largest class in my entire school has around 80-90 students in it. Over 90% of classes have fewer than 30 students, and the professors are nearly always very available. We have a comprehensive tutoring lab (which I work in), with tutors for nearly every class in the school, aside from more specialized classes like nursing, welding etc. A lot of the lower level classes like introductory calculus, calculus based physics, and general chemistry would have hundreds of people at a lot of universities. I've never had a physics or math class with more than 20 people in it.

Smaller class sizes and more personalized attention is often considered to be a perk of community colleges.
 

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