Smartly-dressed tutor, with a white shirt and black tie, looks at the camera with a smile as he talks about tutoring.

Tutoring as a first-year student: Enriching my university experience

George is a first-year student of Economics at the University of Liverpool. Read on to find out about his involvement in our specialised 'Maths Circles' programme, his highlight of tuition, and the key skills he’s got out of tutoring so far.

…with tutoring, you’re always learning and you’re doing something different, so it never gets boring.
George Williamson, first-year Economics student at University of Liverpool.
  • 2

    years at Tutor Trust

“Before university, I was working in retail for three years, but it was getting a bit boring and samey. I wanted to feel that I was getting something out of my work. Then, my friend, who also works for Tutor Trust, talked about how great tutoring was and how amazing it was to see how their pupils were developing their Maths skills. I thought I’d apply, and was successful. Since I started tutoring in October 2022, I’ve loved it. The work is enjoyable and it’s good to see the pupils develop!”

George trained in Secondary Maths tuition and currently takes on several different assignments: a one-to-one with a pupil who is a Cared for Child and a one-to-six session as part of the ‘Maths Circles’ programme, created by Axiom Maths, and in partnership with University of Liverpool Maths School. The pioneering project is designed to stretch and challenge the top Mathematicians in Years 7, 9 and 9 and strongly emphasises problem-solving.

"Thanks to tutoring, my Maths and communication skills have improved the most. With Axiom Maths tuition, I’d also say that my confidence in talking to a class and explaining things has grown. As well as all that, my Maths and tutoring skills have developed because the pupils show you different ways of working that you’d never have thought about. In university, we have group projects and you need to give presentations in some modules and it’s a lot easier for me to do that now.

“I enjoy the tuition, and also supporting my one-to-one tutee as the progress they are making is noticeable. They found their times tables challenging at the start, but now, eight weeks on, they are doing division problems with ease, which felt really rewarding to see. My highlight of tuition was when this pupil finally did a hard division problem all by themselves, without any help from me.

“The advantages to being a tutor are how flexible tutoring is, and working with the pupils. In retail, you can do night shifts until around 11pm, whereas, when you’re tutoring, the hours are always in the day and you can work around your university timetable. I spoke to my Schools Coordinators about when I could work, and they sorted it all out for me. Also, in retail, you can do the same thing every day, but with tutoring, you’re always learning and you’re doing something different, so it never gets boring.

“For me, the impact of tutoring is massive and it’s a big responsibility. You’re teaching your young pupils life skills that they can use forever, for example, teaching times tables and divisions. For the pupils, they are advanced for their age and very enthusiastic about that the subject, so they might want to go onto Maths and STEM careers, and I’m hoping that, with tutoring, they have the confidence to believe that they can achieve that.

“I definitely see myself continuing with Tutor Trust for the next few years. For those interested in becoming a tutor, I’d say give it a go! Just make sure you know enough about your subject when applying.”

A male tutor wearing a burgundy jumper is sat tutoring a group of primary school-aged pupils wearing bright red school uniforms.

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