Online tutors come in all shapes and sizes. Graduate students, teachers (current or retired), professional tutors, and subject experts each have a different mix of degrees and training—not to mention a variety of personal qualities unique to the individual. But what makes a good tutor, and what should you be looking for?
Choosing a tutor is a significant decision that can dictate your success in a subject. The wrong fit can leave you feeling unsure about your understanding of a subject, but the right fit can inspire you forever and show you all the benefits of tutoring. Consider the qualities outlined in this guide when looking for a good tutor!
What are the characteristics of a good tutor?
The characteristics of a good tutor boil down to what makes them a good listener and mentor. Although a tutor is there to teach you, knowledge of the subject and experience teaching aren’t the only qualities you should look for. A prestigious degree doesn’t necessarily mean someone will know how to explain their subject of expertise, and someone with a lack of experience can make up for it with enthusiasm and emotional intelligence.
Regardless of the subject, look for tutors who have the following characteristics:
- Experience
- Goal-oriented
- Enthusiasm
- Honesty
- Communication
- Empathy
What comes to your mind when you ask yourself what makes a good tutor? There’s no one correct answer, and knowing what matters most to you will help you find the right fit. A good tutor will have a mix of all of these qualities, but it’s up to you to decide which of them to prioritize.
6 qualities of a good tutor
Every tutor is different—with their own strengths and weaknesses—but these six qualities are traits that all good tutors have in common.
1. Experience
If you’re looking for a test prep tutor for the ACT, you’d ideally want the tutor to be familiar with the test, right? One of the most essential qualities in a good tutor is experience in the subject they teach. Having experience as a tutor means knowing how to teach the subject to a new student, what the best resources are, and how to adapt to a student’s learning style and needs.
An experienced tutor could be someone who has:
- A degree in the subject
- Certification to teach the subject
- A long track record successfully tutoring students in the subject (Check the number of hours and ratings a Wyzant tutor has on their profile!)
- Demonstrated a high level of proficiency in the subject (e.g., an SAT tutor who got a perfect SAT score of 1600)
A tutor with any one of these backgrounds can do an excellent job teaching you what you want to learn. Depending on how you like to learn and what kinds of specialized knowledge you’re looking for in a tutor, one type of experience may be more valuable than the other.
For example, if you want an AP Biology tutor and you’re planning on majoring in life sciences, someone with a bachelor’s degree in biology can give you insight on what you can expect with similar classes in college. Likewise, a writing tutor without a degree who has professional writing experience, hundreds of 5-star reviews, and several glowing testimonials could be the ideal person to proofread your college admissions essay.
It’s also worth mentioning that a working understanding of modern technology goes hand-in-hand with what makes a good tutor online. If audio is mysteriously missing from your video call, it helps to have a tutor who can troubleshoot on the spot!
2. Goal-oriented
You’re hiring a tutor with some kind of goal in mind. That might be passing a class or picking up the basics of the guitar. Whether you’re taking a handful of lessons or one a week for an entire school year, your tutor should ask what your goals are and focus on helping you achieve them.
This starts with you telling your tutor what you want. Even if you don’t have a concrete goal in mind, your tutor can help you get a general idea. Want to become fluent in Spanish? Great! Your tutor can give you an idea of what your timeline might look like for different levels of fluency.
Ultimately, a good tutor aims to help their student reach their goals and be prepared to succeed on their own without a tutor in the future. That means helping you with soft skills like:
- Discipline
- Confidence
- Studying efficiently
- Research skills
- How to figure things out on your own
3. Enthusiasm
A good tutor is excited to teach you! That enthusiasm extends beyond the subject matter. Someone who uses lessons as a way to instill a love of the topic—not just an understanding—is almost guaranteed to be an enthusiastic, engaging tutor.
Look for the following tells in a tutor’s profile to give you insight into how they feel about tutoring and their subject area:
- Experience: If they’ve been doing this for a long time, there’s a good chance they enjoy it.
- Reviews from other students: Do they vouch for the tutor’s insider knowledge, patient teaching style, and/or infectious energy?
- Personal details: An English teacher who shares that they love to write creative fiction in their personal time clearly has a passion for the subject.
4. Honesty
A tutor who is honest is easy to trust. The more open your tutor is, the more you can rely on them to help you. If they don’t know the answer to your question, they should be able to admit that and search for the answer with you rather than come up with something on the spot that may or may not be true.
You should also be honest with your tutor in return. There’s no reason to lie in a lesson with a good tutor: The only reason they’re there is to help you. If you’re struggling with a difficult concept, there’s a good chance your tutor remembers what it was like learning it for the first time. They might have even taught students with the same struggles as you, so they know exactly how to guide you to understanding.
Remember that a good tutor is also someone with integrity who won’t do your homework for you. A tutor’s job is to help you learn, not to give you a shortcut to a good grade.
5. Communication
Communication is the foundation of any strong relationship, and your relationship with your tutor is no exception. When you’re in contact with any tutor, they should be transparent and open about the following things:
- Availability: Flexibility is important when picking a lesson time that works for both of you, and it could take some back and forth to find the right time in a busy schedule.
- Cost: How much does a tutor cost? Wyzant tutors set their own rate, and that rate could vary depending on if a lesson is in-person or online or if the lesson is cancelled at the last minute. A good tutor will communicate all potential costs to you before you start a lesson.
- Expectations: Make sure you and your tutor are on the same page about what you should be doing between lessons and if you should prepare anything for the next lesson.
Once you’ve started working with a tutor, make sure you know how to contact them outside of your lesson for questions. While expecting a tutor to be available 24/7 isn’t reasonable, being able to reach them within a business day or two is.
6. Empathy
One of the biggest advantages of private tutoring is the promise of human connection. A school teacher can be responsible for dozens of students at any given moment, but a one-on-one lesson with a tutor is all about you. An empathetic tutor will do what they can to make your lessons feel like a safe space where you can be vulnerable about the weaknesses that led you to seek out a tutor and take pride in your accomplishments. Look for a tutor who:
- Offers positive feedback alongside constructive criticism
- Aligns their teaching style to your learning style
- Is emotionally intelligent and able to adjust the lesson based on your mental state
- Listens to and respects your concerns
Empathy goes two ways. A good tutor can tune into their student’s emotional state and learning capacity, but students also have to be receptive to their tutor’s instruction and advice.
How to choose the right tutor
Now that you have a picture in your mind of a good tutor, think about what matters most to you. Ask yourself these questions (and any others that might be relevant to your unique situation):
- What does tutoring mean to me?
- Does it matter to me how long a tutor has been tutoring?
- Does personality or experience matter more?
- Does the tutor seem trustworthy?
- Do I need a tutor with a degree so they can give me college advice?
Once you’ve narrowed down what you want in a tutor, you can use the filters on Wyzant’s search page to find a tutor. You can filter for several parameters, including whether they’re a licensed teacher, if they’re an IXL-certified tutor, what level of student(s) they tutored, and the tutor’s age.
However, those filters will only help you with logistical characteristics. To assess whether they have good tutor qualities, look at the following information on a tutor’s profile:
- Student ratings and reviews
- Tutor bio
- Tutor education
If you have questions that the tutor’s profile doesn’t answer, reach out and ask! A good tutor will be glad to answer your questions to make sure you find the right tutor for you. Preparing questions to ask tutors ahead of time will also show your own enthusiasm and dedication to learning.
Quality tutors for every subject
Hiring a tutor takes courage. Reaching out to a stranger to ask them for help is an inherently vulnerable action. That’s why knowing what makes a good tutor—and how to find that tutor—is an essential first step to an enjoyable and productive experience. If you look for experts with tutor qualifications like experience, communication, and empathy, you’ll be off to a great start.
A tutor who’s perfect for one person may not be the right choice for the next. If your first choice doesn’t work out, Wyzant’s Good Fit Guarantee will refund the first hour of your first lesson, and help you find a better tutor fit among Wyzant’s thousands of tutors.