If you like teaching and working with students, online tutoring may be the right work-at-home opportunity for you. Your earning potential increases greatly if you have experience teaching or tutoring in the most popular subjects for online tutoring. If you're just starting out, you should at least consider specializing in one or more of the following:
1. Online Math Tutoring
The subject most requested for tutoring online is math. It can be the most challenging subject for students and parents who may not have done well in that area. High schoolers especially request math tutoring, because it gets much harder in grades 9-12, and their options of getting help from people around them decreases dramatically. Even students who do well in math need help now and then and could benefit from one-on-one tutoring. The popular math subjects taught by online tutors are:
- Algebra
- Geometry
- Trigonometry
- Calculus
If you have the academic knowledge and skills to tutor in any of these areas, be sure to highlight them in any tutoring community profiles and in your resume. You can expect to earn anywhere from $20 to $50 per hour, depending on your education and teaching experience.
2. Online English Teacher
English is a close second to math in popularity for online tutoring. Tutors work with students in many areas, including:
- Grammar
- Essay writing
- Literature analysis
- Vocabulary
- Communications skills
You can even offer proofreading services to students. Some teachers specialize in teaching the English language to immigrants or foreigners who are beginners or have some skills, but need to improve their conversational and writing skills. The options are numerous and the competition is high. If you want to become an online English teacher you should decide the demographics of the students you want to work with and build your reputation and resume in that area. For example, you may enjoy teaching English to adults much more than teaching vocabulary skills to elementary students.
It's important to tutor the people you like to work with, because you'll be more motivated to market yourself if you enjoy your work. Pay for English tutoring is different from math, especially if you offer editing and proofreading services. You can expect to earn $2 to $5 per page to review written work, and $15 to $45 per hour for tutoring, depending on your education and teaching experience.
3. Online Science Tutor
Following math and English in popular online tutoring subjects is science. Like math, students find it hard to find individuals within their circles to help them with science, which is one of their most challenging subjects. Sometimes students just need help figuring out a concept in order to complete any assigned work. However, science can be abstract to many students. They may require much more one-on-one attention and help to understand the application of concepts, such as how they relate to experiments. Therefore, online tutoring includes everything from helping students set up science fair projects to studying for exams. The popular science subjects taught by online tutors are:
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Physics
As an online science tutor, you can expect to earn anywhere from $20 to $50, depending on your education and experience. The more experience you can show working in the field of science, the more marketable you'll be to students looking for online tutoring.
Helping students through online tutoring can be a rewarding career if you're a teacher at heart. It's true that tutoring jobs are competitive, especially when it comes to the most popular subjects. However, if you're consistent and build a reputation for providing valuable help, your students will spread the word and help you get more tutoring jobs.
Daphne Mallory, Esq. is the co-owner of Mallory Writing Services and has written more than 100 articles helping home based business owners and entrepreneurs start and market their business. You can learn more about her here.
