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Last updated April 7, 2023

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Blog > Common App , Essay Advice > How to Write an Insightful College Essay About Tutoring

How to Write an Insightful College Essay About Tutoring

Admissions officer reviewed by Ben Bousquet, M.Ed Former Vanderbilt University

Written by Kylie Kistner, MA Former Willamette University Admissions

Key Takeaway

If you’ve had a job tutoring others, you know that tutoring can be an impactful act of teaching and learning. It can also at times be gratifying, hilarious, or downright difficult.

As a college essay topic, tutoring experience can be an effective way to highlight your academic expertise and communication skills. Essays about tutoring can also be some of the most endearing when they discuss the tutor-tutee dynamic. In short, a college essay about tutoring can be a great topic to round out your application narrative .

But often students rely too heavily on overdone themes.

In this post, I lay out the three most common issues with college essays about tutoring and discuss what you can do instead.

When writing about tutoring others, a “love of helping and teaching” is not enough.

One of the most common tropes in personal statements about tutoring is a “love of helping others” or a “love of teaching.” Even if you’ve genuinely developed a love of helping or teaching, these themes alone are simply too common and generic to produce an insightful college essay.

Instead, try focusing on the critical pedagogical and communication skills you have developed while tutoring. Analyze the lessons you’ve learned to understand how they connect to your own experience as a student. Ask yourself how your work as a tutor has shaped your goals for the future.

Let’s say that your favorite student struggled with math, so you found a brilliant way to engage her in a new concept that resulted in her acing her next exam. You could write about how great it felt to help her or how much you loved teaching her.

But that topic doesn’t give the admissions committee very much to go on. A better approach would be to discuss what your strategy was, why you used it, and how it exhibits something wonderful about you.

By concentrating on what specifically has made you feel like a good teacher or helper, you can write an essay that showcases your love of helping and teaching while also demonstrating to your admissions officers your ability to think deeply and act with forethought and kindness.

Center yourself rather than your tutee when discussing your tutoring experience.

It’s only natural that you may want to write about a specific person you tutored when talking about your tutoring experience. The tutee is, after all, an integral half of the tutoring session. Forming good working relationships is part of being a good tutor, and the best tutor-tutee relationships have lasting impacts on both people.

But the heart of your college essay should not be about not the amazing or frustrating or brilliant student you tutored. It should be about you. Accomplish this by instead drawing attention to how your tutee affected you.

Perhaps the student you’ve connected with the most is one who was so shy he’d barely look at you in your first appointment. Although you may be so proud of the progress he made, your essay should not be about him. He’ll have his own turn to apply to college.

Discuss what you’ve learned from him, how you’ve been inspired by him, or how he reminds you about something about yourself. Maybe he taught you patience or bravery. Or maybe it was your work with him that led you to want to be a teacher or counselor.

Whatever your story is, it should be about you.

Talk about how your tutoring work makes you a good member of an academic community.

One of the reasons the “love of helping” essays don’t come across well to admissions officers, aside from being overdone, is that they can also read as arrogant. Your academic merits may have earned you your tutoring job, but the rest of your application will also show that you can excel in the classroom.

Instead, use your essay to convey to the admissions committee what a good academic community member you are. Highlight a time when you collaborated on a problem, when you were surprised at something you learned from your tutee, or when you had to work harder to be a better tutor.

Most schools would probably prefer to invite a curious and collaborative student to join their community over an arrogant and competitive one, so check your essay for tone.

You should come across as authoritative in your tutoring field but genuine in your recognition of the progress you have made and the lessons you still have left to learn.

Remember the importance of peer learning as you write and revise your own college essay about tutoring.

Finally, you were effective as a tutor not only because of your skills but also because there is inherent value in peer learning. Don’t forget to benefit from peer learning yourself by seeking out others who can read your college essay.

Having someone ask clarifying questions, evaluate the effectiveness of your approach, and identify your central message will only improve your essay.

Tutoring is hard work that takes great effort, skill, and persistence. What will make your college essay about tutoring insightful rather than generic is your ability to show your admissions officers why tutoring mattered to you and why your tutoring experience makes you a good fit for their school. The best essays will also tactfully reveal who you are as a person through your interactions with your tutee.

Ready to take your college essay to the next level? Check out our How to Write a College Essay guide.

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College Essays

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If you grow up to be a professional writer, everything you write will first go through an editor before being published. This is because the process of writing is really a process of re-writing —of rethinking and reexamining your work, usually with the help of someone else. So what does this mean for your student writing? And in particular, what does it mean for very important, but nonprofessional writing like your college essay? Should you ask your parents to look at your essay? Pay for an essay service?

If you are wondering what kind of help you can, and should, get with your personal statement, you've come to the right place! In this article, I'll talk about what kind of writing help is useful, ethical, and even expected for your college admission essay . I'll also point out who would make a good editor, what the differences between editing and proofreading are, what to expect from a good editor, and how to spot and stay away from a bad one.

Table of Contents

What Kind of Help for Your Essay Can You Get?

What's Good Editing?

What should an editor do for you, what kind of editing should you avoid, proofreading, what's good proofreading, what kind of proofreading should you avoid.

What Do Colleges Think Of You Getting Help With Your Essay?

Who Can/Should Help You?

Advice for editors.

Should You Pay Money For Essay Editing?

The Bottom Line

What's next, what kind of help with your essay can you get.

Rather than talking in general terms about "help," let's first clarify the two different ways that someone else can improve your writing . There is editing, which is the more intensive kind of assistance that you can use throughout the whole process. And then there's proofreading, which is the last step of really polishing your final product.

Let me go into some more detail about editing and proofreading, and then explain how good editors and proofreaders can help you."

Editing is helping the author (in this case, you) go from a rough draft to a finished work . Editing is the process of asking questions about what you're saying, how you're saying it, and how you're organizing your ideas. But not all editing is good editing . In fact, it's very easy for an editor to cross the line from supportive to overbearing and over-involved.

Ability to clarify assignments. A good editor is usually a good writer, and certainly has to be a good reader. For example, in this case, a good editor should make sure you understand the actual essay prompt you're supposed to be answering.

Open-endedness. Good editing is all about asking questions about your ideas and work, but without providing answers. It's about letting you stick to your story and message, and doesn't alter your point of view.

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Think of an editor as a great travel guide. It can show you the many different places your trip could take you. It should explain any parts of the trip that could derail your trip or confuse the traveler. But it never dictates your path, never forces you to go somewhere you don't want to go, and never ignores your interests so that the trip no longer seems like it's your own. So what should good editors do?

Help Brainstorm Topics

Sometimes it's easier to bounce thoughts off of someone else. This doesn't mean that your editor gets to come up with ideas, but they can certainly respond to the various topic options you've come up with. This way, you're less likely to write about the most boring of your ideas, or to write about something that isn't actually important to you.

If you're wondering how to come up with options for your editor to consider, check out our guide to brainstorming topics for your college essay .

Help Revise Your Drafts

Here, your editor can't upset the delicate balance of not intervening too much or too little. It's tricky, but a great way to think about it is to remember: editing is about asking questions, not giving answers .

Revision questions should point out:

  • Places where more detail or more description would help the reader connect with your essay
  • Places where structure and logic don't flow, losing the reader's attention
  • Places where there aren't transitions between paragraphs, confusing the reader
  • Moments where your narrative or the arguments you're making are unclear

But pointing to potential problems is not the same as actually rewriting—editors let authors fix the problems themselves.

Want to write the perfect college application essay?   We can help.   Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will help you craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. We learn your background and interests, brainstorm essay topics, and walk you through the essay drafting process, step-by-step. At the end, you'll have a unique essay to proudly submit to colleges.   Don't leave your college application to chance. Find out more about PrepScholar Admissions now:

Bad editing is usually very heavy-handed editing. Instead of helping you find your best voice and ideas, a bad editor changes your writing into their own vision.

You may be dealing with a bad editor if they:

  • Add material (examples, descriptions) that doesn't come from you
  • Use a thesaurus to make your college essay sound "more mature"
  • Add meaning or insight to the essay that doesn't come from you
  • Tell you what to say and how to say it
  • Write sentences, phrases, and paragraphs for you
  • Change your voice in the essay so it no longer sounds like it was written by a teenager

Colleges can tell the difference between a 17-year-old's writing and a 50-year-old's writing. Not only that, they have access to your SAT or ACT Writing section, so they can compare your essay to something else you wrote. Writing that's a little more polished is great and expected. But a totally different voice and style will raise questions.

Where's the Line Between Helpful Editing and Unethical Over-Editing?

Sometimes it's hard to tell whether your college essay editor is doing the right thing. Here are some guidelines for staying on the ethical side of the line.

  • An editor should say that the opening paragraph is kind of boring, and explain what exactly is making it drag. But it's overstepping for an editor to tell you exactly how to change it.
  • An editor should point out where your prose is unclear or vague. But it's completely inappropriate for the editor to rewrite that section of your essay.
  • An editor should let you know that a section is light on detail or description. But giving you similes and metaphors to beef up that description is a no-go.

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Proofreading (also called copy-editing) is checking for errors in the last draft of a written work. It happens at the end of the process and is meant as the final polishing touch. Proofreading is meticulous and detail-oriented, focusing on small corrections. It sands off all the surface rough spots that could alienate the reader.

Because proofreading is usually concerned with making fixes on the word or sentence level, this is the only process where someone else can actually add to or take away things from your essay . This is because what they are adding or taking away tends to be one or two misplaced letters.

Laser focus. Proofreading is all about the tiny details, so the ability to really concentrate on finding small slip-ups is a must.

Excellent grammar and spelling skills. Proofreaders need to dot every "i" and cross every "t." Good proofreaders should correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and grammar. They should put foreign words in italics and surround quotations with quotation marks. They should check that you used the correct college's name, and that you adhered to any formatting requirements (name and date at the top of the page, uniform font and size, uniform spacing).

Limited interference. A proofreader needs to make sure that you followed any word limits. But if cuts need to be made to shorten the essay, that's your job and not the proofreader's.

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A bad proofreader either tries to turn into an editor, or just lacks the skills and knowledge necessary to do the job.

Some signs that you're working with a bad proofreader are:

  • If they suggest making major changes to the final draft of your essay. Proofreading happens when editing is already finished.
  • If they aren't particularly good at spelling, or don't know grammar, or aren't detail-oriented enough to find someone else's small mistakes.
  • If they start swapping out your words for fancier-sounding synonyms, or changing the voice and sound of your essay in other ways. A proofreader is there to check for errors, not to take the 17-year-old out of your writing.

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What Do Colleges Think of Your Getting Help With Your Essay?

Admissions officers agree: light editing and proofreading are good—even required ! But they also want to make sure you're the one doing the work on your essay. They want essays with stories, voice, and themes that come from you. They want to see work that reflects your actual writing ability, and that focuses on what you find important.

On the Importance of Editing

Get feedback. Have a fresh pair of eyes give you some feedback. Don't allow someone else to rewrite your essay, but do take advantage of others' edits and opinions when they seem helpful. ( Bates College )

Read your essay aloud to someone. Reading the essay out loud offers a chance to hear how your essay sounds outside your head. This exercise reveals flaws in the essay's flow, highlights grammatical errors and helps you ensure that you are communicating the exact message you intended. ( Dickinson College )

On the Value of Proofreading

Share your essays with at least one or two people who know you well—such as a parent, teacher, counselor, or friend—and ask for feedback. Remember that you ultimately have control over your essays, and your essays should retain your own voice, but others may be able to catch mistakes that you missed and help suggest areas to cut if you are over the word limit. ( Yale University )

Proofread and then ask someone else to proofread for you. Although we want substance, we also want to be able to see that you can write a paper for our professors and avoid careless mistakes that would drive them crazy. ( Oberlin College )

On Watching Out for Too Much Outside Influence

Limit the number of people who review your essay. Too much input usually means your voice is lost in the writing style. ( Carleton College )

Ask for input (but not too much). Your parents, friends, guidance counselors, coaches, and teachers are great people to bounce ideas off of for your essay. They know how unique and spectacular you are, and they can help you decide how to articulate it. Keep in mind, however, that a 45-year-old lawyer writes quite differently from an 18-year-old student, so if your dad ends up writing the bulk of your essay, we're probably going to notice. ( Vanderbilt University )

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Now let's talk about some potential people to approach for your college essay editing and proofreading needs. It's best to start close to home and slowly expand outward. Not only are your family and friends more invested in your success than strangers, but they also have a better handle on your interests and personality. This knowledge is key for judging whether your essay is expressing your true self.

Parents or Close Relatives

Your family may be full of potentially excellent editors! Parents are deeply committed to your well-being, and family members know you and your life well enough to offer details or incidents that can be included in your essay. On the other hand, the rewriting process necessarily involves criticism, which is sometimes hard to hear from someone very close to you.

A parent or close family member is a great choice for an editor if you can answer "yes" to the following questions. Is your parent or close relative a good writer or reader? Do you have a relationship where editing your essay won't create conflict? Are you able to constructively listen to criticism and suggestion from the parent?

One suggestion for defusing face-to-face discussions is to try working on the essay over email. Send your parent a draft, have them write you back some comments, and then you can pick which of their suggestions you want to use and which to discard.

Teachers or Tutors

A humanities teacher that you have a good relationship with is a great choice. I am purposefully saying humanities, and not just English, because teachers of Philosophy, History, Anthropology, and any other classes where you do a lot of writing, are all used to reviewing student work.

Moreover, any teacher or tutor that has been working with you for some time, knows you very well and can vet the essay to make sure it "sounds like you."

If your teacher or tutor has some experience with what college essays are supposed to be like, ask them to be your editor. If not, then ask whether they have time to proofread your final draft.

Guidance or College Counselor at Your School

The best thing about asking your counselor to edit your work is that this is their job. This means that they have a very good sense of what colleges are looking for in an application essay.

At the same time, school counselors tend to have relationships with admissions officers in many colleges, which again gives them insight into what works and which college is focused on what aspect of the application.

Unfortunately, in many schools the guidance counselor tends to be way overextended. If your ratio is 300 students to 1 college counselor, you're unlikely to get that person's undivided attention and focus. It is still useful to ask them for general advice about your potential topics, but don't expect them to be able to stay with your essay from first draft to final version.

Friends, Siblings, or Classmates

Although they most likely don't have much experience with what colleges are hoping to see, your peers are excellent sources for checking that your essay is you .

Friends and siblings are perfect for the read-aloud edit. Read your essay to them so they can listen for words and phrases that are stilted, pompous, or phrases that just don't sound like you.

You can even trade essays and give helpful advice on each other's work.

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If your editor hasn't worked with college admissions essays very much, no worries! Any astute and attentive reader can still greatly help with your process. But, as in all things, beginners do better with some preparation.

First, your editor should read our advice about how to write a college essay introduction , how to spot and fix a bad college essay , and get a sense of what other students have written by going through some admissions essays that worked .

Then, as they read your essay, they can work through the following series of questions that will help them to guide you.

Introduction Questions

  • Is the first sentence a killer opening line? Why or why not?
  • Does the introduction hook the reader? Does it have a colorful, detailed, and interesting narrative? Or does it propose a compelling or surprising idea?
  • Can you feel the author's voice in the introduction, or is the tone dry, dull, or overly formal? Show the places where the voice comes through.

Essay Body Questions

  • Does the essay have a through-line? Is it built around a central argument, thought, idea, or focus? Can you put this idea into your own words?
  • How is the essay organized? By logical progression? Chronologically? Do you feel order when you read it, or are there moments where you are confused or lose the thread of the essay?
  • Does the essay have both narratives about the author's life and explanations and insight into what these stories reveal about the author's character, personality, goals, or dreams? If not, which is missing?
  • Does the essay flow? Are there smooth transitions/clever links between paragraphs? Between the narrative and moments of insight?

Reader Response Questions

  • Does the writer's personality come through? Do we know what the speaker cares about? Do we get a sense of "who he or she is"?
  • Where did you feel most connected to the essay? Which parts of the essay gave you a "you are there" sensation by invoking your senses? What moments could you picture in your head well?
  • Where are the details and examples vague and not specific enough?
  • Did you get an "a-ha!" feeling anywhere in the essay? Is there a moment of insight that connected all the dots for you? Is there a good reveal or "twist" anywhere in the essay?
  • What are the strengths of this essay? What needs the most improvement?

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Should You Pay Money for Essay Editing?

One alternative to asking someone you know to help you with your college essay is the paid editor route. There are two different ways to pay for essay help: a private essay coach or a less personal editing service , like the many proliferating on the internet.

My advice is to think of these options as a last resort rather than your go-to first choice. I'll first go through the reasons why. Then, if you do decide to go with a paid editor, I'll help you decide between a coach and a service.

When to Consider a Paid Editor

In general, I think hiring someone to work on your essay makes a lot of sense if none of the people I discussed above are a possibility for you.

If you can't ask your parents. For example, if your parents aren't good writers, or if English isn't their first language. Or if you think getting your parents to help is going create unnecessary extra conflict in your relationship with them (applying to college is stressful as it is!)

If you can't ask your teacher or tutor. Maybe you don't have a trusted teacher or tutor that has time to look over your essay with focus. Or, for instance, your favorite humanities teacher has very limited experience with college essays and so won't know what admissions officers want to see.

If you can't ask your guidance counselor. This could be because your guidance counselor is way overwhelmed with other students.

If you can't share your essay with those who know you. It might be that your essay is on a very personal topic that you're unwilling to share with parents, teachers, or peers. Just make sure it doesn't fall into one of the bad-idea topics in our article on bad college essays .

If the cost isn't a consideration. Many of these services are quite expensive, and private coaches even more so. If you have finite resources, I'd say that hiring an SAT or ACT tutor (whether it's PrepScholar or someone else) is better way to spend your money . This is because there's no guarantee that a slightly better essay will sufficiently elevate the rest of your application, but a significantly higher SAT score will definitely raise your applicant profile much more.

Should You Hire an Essay Coach?

On the plus side, essay coaches have read dozens or even hundreds of college essays, so they have experience with the format. Also, because you'll be working closely with a specific person, it's more personal than sending your essay to a service, which will know even less about you.

But, on the minus side, you'll still be bouncing ideas off of someone who doesn't know that much about you . In general, if you can adequately get the help from someone you know, there is no advantage to paying someone to help you.

If you do decide to hire a coach, ask your school counselor, or older students that have used the service for recommendations. If you can't afford the coach's fees, ask whether they can work on a sliding scale —many do. And finally, beware those who guarantee admission to your school of choice—essay coaches don't have any special magic that can back up those promises.

Should You Send Your Essay to a Service?

On the plus side, essay editing services provide a similar product to essay coaches, and they cost significantly less . If you have some assurance that you'll be working with a good editor, the lack of face-to-face interaction won't prevent great results.

On the minus side, however, it can be difficult to gauge the quality of the service before working with them . If they are churning through many application essays without getting to know the students they are helping, you could end up with an over-edited essay that sounds just like everyone else's. In the worst case scenario, an unscrupulous service could send you back a plagiarized essay.

Getting recommendations from friends or a school counselor for reputable services is key to avoiding heavy-handed editing that writes essays for you or does too much to change your essay. Including a badly-edited essay like this in your application could cause problems if there are inconsistencies. For example, in interviews it might be clear you didn't write the essay, or the skill of the essay might not be reflected in your schoolwork and test scores.

Should You Buy an Essay Written by Someone Else?

Let me elaborate. There are super sketchy places on the internet where you can simply buy a pre-written essay. Don't do this!

For one thing, you'll be lying on an official, signed document. All college applications make you sign a statement saying something like this:

I certify that all information submitted in the admission process—including the application, the personal essay, any supplements, and any other supporting materials—is my own work, factually true, and honestly presented... I understand that I may be subject to a range of possible disciplinary actions, including admission revocation, expulsion, or revocation of course credit, grades, and degree, should the information I have certified be false. (From the Common Application )

For another thing, if your academic record doesn't match the essay's quality, the admissions officer will start thinking your whole application is riddled with lies.

Admission officers have full access to your writing portion of the SAT or ACT so that they can compare work that was done in proctored conditions with that done at home. They can tell if these were written by different people. Not only that, but there are now a number of search engines that faculty and admission officers can use to see if an essay contains strings of words that have appeared in other essays—you have no guarantee that the essay you bought wasn't also bought by 50 other students.

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  • You should get college essay help with both editing and proofreading
  • A good editor will ask questions about your idea, logic, and structure, and will point out places where clarity is needed
  • A good editor will absolutely not answer these questions, give you their own ideas, or write the essay or parts of the essay for you
  • A good proofreader will find typos and check your formatting
  • All of them agree that getting light editing and proofreading is necessary
  • Parents, teachers, guidance or college counselor, and peers or siblings
  • If you can't ask any of those, you can pay for college essay help, but watch out for services or coaches who over-edit you work
  • Don't buy a pre-written essay! Colleges can tell, and it'll make your whole application sound false.

Ready to start working on your essay? Check out our explanation of the point of the personal essay and the role it plays on your applications and then explore our step-by-step guide to writing a great college essay .

Using the Common Application for your college applications? We have an excellent guide to the Common App essay prompts and useful advice on how to pick the Common App prompt that's right for you . Wondering how other people tackled these prompts? Then work through our roundup of over 130 real college essay examples published by colleges .

Stressed about whether to take the SAT again before submitting your application? Let us help you decide how many times to take this test . If you choose to go for it, we have the ultimate guide to studying for the SAT to give you the ins and outs of the best ways to study.

Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?   We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download them for free now:

Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

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“A Tutor’s Guide to Tutoring College Essays” by Amit Klingner

college essay about tutoring

Amit Klingner is one of two SSWCA Tutor Representatives and a Senior tutor in the Herndon Writing Center. 

The time has come for Seniors to write personal and often creative pieces for their college applications. As writing center tutor, no matter your age, you will most likely tutor a college essay soon! It is completely normal for underclassmen tutors to fear working with a seemingly more mature Senior tutee who asks to have their college essay tutored. What should you do? You’ve never written a college essay, so how could you possibly give them any advice?

Wrong! You are in the writing center because you know how to help peers with writing, and most likely, you have a pretty good idea of how to write a college essay–you just don’t know it!

College essays are just personal narrative essays! Seem a little less scary now? The only difference is that a tutee’s intended audience is their college of choice. You don’t need to have first-hand experience writing college essays in order to tutor them. Keep in mind that tutoring these essays does not require a hidden level of maturity that only Seniors have!

Here are a few points to keep in mind when tutoring these essays in order to create the most productive session with you and your tutee. Although these tips are super important for all writing center tutoring sessions, these points should be the main area of emphasis while tutoring college essays.

Help Tutees Brainstorm

One of the most important parts of tutoring college essays is the idea-generating portion. Try to ask your tutee open ended questions or questions that make them clarify what they mean in different parts of their essay. These questions help the tutee think more about their topic, and help them feel more confident with what they are trying to emphasize or say in their essay.

It is quite common for stressed Seniors to come into the writing center with college essays that are in its early stages, and hope to seek help from a tutor. As a tutor, you may feel stuck in helping them generate ideas, but don’t fret! If that situation ever happens, you can spend the session helping them do a number of brainstorming and idea organizing activities. Have the tutee create a mind map. It is really helpful for the tutee to draw out ideas and map them out on a visual surface, by drawing it out, he or she can draw lines to make connections between parts of their essay.

Another good tip is to have them create an outline of what they plan to write in the essay. If they have a lot of ideas and things that they want to add to their essay, try to get them to make an outline of what they want to write about. This outline can be in the form of bullet points, but this method is really helpful, so they get an organized “to-do” list of things that they would like to mention in their essay.

Remind your tutee that writer’s block doesn’t mean they don’t have any good ideas about the topic. It is more of a mental state of being overwhelmed or critical of the ideas in your head.

Be Supportive

Being supportive of the tutee and their ideas is another key part of tutoring someone working on a college essay. College essay writing is very personal and can make any writer feel vulnerable about the content of their essay. It is important, especially in these personal narrative tutoring sessions, that you make the tutee feel comfortable with sharing their ideas with you.

One amazing tip is to create a compliment sandwich when you are giving constructive criticism on their essay. An example of a compliment sandwich is if a tutor were to say “I really like that you included this part into your essay, and if you make your point more clear here, then your essay will be stronger than it already is!”

This does not necessarily mean you should be walking on eggshells the entire tutoring session, but just remember to be mindful of how you approach explaining your constructive criticism. If they are feeling stuck and overwhelmed, assure them that having too many initial ideas is better than having none.

Help Tutees Make Their Writing Shine

Another thing to look for when tutoring a college essay is that their writing is vibrant and unique in some way. To be more specific, try to help the tutee’s personality shine in the essay through tone, writing style, and diction. This doesn’t necessarily require you to know the person writing the essay, but having some vibrance in the writing will sure put the “person” in personal narrative. One tip to tell the tutee is that a friend should be able to read their essay, and be able to know who wrote it!

You Can Do It!

By following at least some these tips, hopefully some of the pressure of college essays can be relieved from you and your tutee! Regardless of you grade level, any writing center tutor is capable of tutoring a college essay–it’s just how you approach it!

Princeton Tutoring | Academic Tutoring, Test Prep, College Essays

COLLEGE ESSAY SUPPORT

Not sure how to approach the common app essay or your supplemental essays.

The college essay (a.k.a personal statement) must be introspective, personal, and emotional.

This type of writing is rarely taught in typical high school English classes.

As a result, many students struggle with how to start their essays or end up wondering whether they’re on the right track or not.

But that’s okay! With proper guidance, any student can craft a powerful story.

Our co-founders, Kevin and Greg, have spent the last 15+ years helping students achieve admission into their top choices, including all of the top colleges.

They’ve taken their best techniques and created a structured methodology to guide you through the creative storytelling process.

How Does It Work?

  • Free Consultation – We learn more about your child
  • A Perfect Tutor Match – Our team thoughtfully matches you with an amazing College Essay Advisor
  • Progress Tracking – Stay in the loop with detailed progress reports after every session

Available Online or In-Person

  • Online – Over the past decade, we’ve successfully helped students all over the world using Zoom, virtual whiteboards, and other technologies.
  • In-Person – Locally in the Princeton, NJ area

100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

  • Experience You Can Trust – Near-perfect ratings, 50,000+ hrs of tutoring experience, and 500+ happy reviews
  • Not completely satisfied with a session? Let us know, and we’ll make it right or refund the unused sessions.

# of qualities that all successful college essays must have

college essay about tutoring

What makes a great college essay?

We have a strong understanding of how colleges evaluate your essay..

Our experience is based on:

  • “Inside” knowledge from friends and colleagues who were former admissions officers at the most selective colleges
  • In-depth analysis of hundreds of the best college essays (which are sourced from our own Ivy League tutors and not available anywhere else)
  • Tons of research & many years of successfully working with students

At the end of the day, the personal statement is all about… telling an engaging story that expresses your values and personal growth .

So how do you actually do all of this?

Our approach

If you don’t have a strong foundation, it doesn’t matter how beautifully written your essay is….

While the essay is very much a creative exercise, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a structure or certain principles you should follow:

Step 1: Brainstorming

  • Understand 7 qualities of a successful college essay
  • Multi-step brainstorming process
  • Work through 6 tips for choosing a winning topic

Step 2: Outlining

  • 5 ways to structure your college essay & identifying the best one for you
  • Outlining best practices

Step 3: Drafting & Revising

  • Multiple revisions and comprehensive edits
  • Enhance with “advanced” storytelling techniques and ensure a compelling intro/conclusion
  • Polish for style, grammar, and mechanics

college essay about tutoring

Yale, Cornell, and Carnegie Mellon

“College decisions finally came. Alan has been admitted by Yale, Cornell and Carnegie Mellon…. Thank you so much for your help through this difficult process! We really appreciate it!”

J.X., Parent of 12th Grader

college essay about tutoring

Who will you be working with?

Work with storytelling experts who are highly skilled at helping students uncover their best essay..

The majority of our essay consultants are Ivy League graduates and are EXCEPTIONAL writers.

  • Hollywood screenwriters, playwrights, and authors
  • MFAs in Creative Writing and PhDs in English
  • College professors and English teachers

HOWEVER… we are fully aware that it takes more than just a strong writer to craft a great college essay.

Not only have our consultants successfully achieved admissions to top colleges themselves, but they also truly understand what colleges are looking for and are well-versed in our proprietary methodology.

Furthermore, they have the unique ability to connect with students and make them comfortable. This is a critical factor during the brainstorming and introspection phases.

7 qualities of successful college essay s

Introspective & reflective.

The most successful essays are highly introspective, full of reflections of what you’ve learned, how you view the world, and who you are.

Not used to writing about yourself? Don’t worry. Most students aren’t.

Descriptive & Engaging

Superficial descriptions in your essay will make your essay forgettable.

Incorporate imagery, emotions, perspectives, or insights to bring your reader into your story.

Be honest with yourself. Be vulnerable. Put yourself out there.

You’ll have a richer set of experiences to draw from during the brainstorming process. As a result, your essay will have more depth and be more engaging.

Unconventional & Distinct

What is unique about your essay?

If the reader can guess the rest of your essay after reading the first paragraph, you’ll want to go back to the drawing table.

Full of a Student’s Voice

Your grades, GPA, test scores, and extracurricular achievements are just numbers and facts on a page.

The college essay, on the other hand, is a chance to showcase your personality and unique way of expressing yourself.

Well-written

Don’t forget that admissions officers are also evaluating whether or not you can write at the college level.

There are different ways to improve your writing, but at the very least, make sure there are no spelling errors or grammatical mistakes.

A college essay, above all, adds meaningful value to the rest of your application.

When evaluating your draft, ask yourself whether your essay successfully showcases your voice, sheds light on your unique perspectives, and honestly conveys who you are.

How is your essay performing in these areas?

Thank You Thank You Thank You

“I GOT INTO USC!!! I don’t think I’ve ever cried from happiness so much in my life. I’m really going to Los Angeles! It feels surreal saying that.

I just want to say my deepest thanks to you. You were my mentor and my one and only helper during my college applications and I really don’t think I could’ve made it without you. I am truly so grateful for all the help you gave me. I’m not sure how to put into writing how much I appreciate everything you did to help me.

Thank you for helping me along my journey and I’m so happy I even made a new friend while I applied everywhere 🙂 I’ll stop writing now because I think I’m getting a little too existential and my keyboard is starting to get wet. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!”

B.S., Ecstatic 12th Grader 🙂

Frequently Asked Questions

“common app essay” vs “personal statement”.

When you hear the term “college essay”, it usually refers to the “Personal Statement”.

This is the most important essay because it can be reused for multiple schools.

The Personal Statement is also commonly referred to as the “Common App Essay”.

Even if you’re applying to schools that don’t accept the Common App and instead require a different application (e.g. Coalition Application, Universal College Application, UC Schools), each application will have its own version of the “Personal Statement”.

In summary… “College Essay” = “Personal Statement” = “Common App Essay”.

Additionally, each school might also require that you also submit “Supplemental” essays (e.g. “Why X School”?). These essays require a different approach.

When is the best time to start working on your college essay?

The reality is that most students will wait until the last minute.

This is not ideal for obvious reasons.

If possible, we recommend all of our families to start the process in the early summer with the goal of completing their personal statement by the end of the summer.

This timeline allows you to focus on completing the actual college applications themselves, as well as to work on the other supplemental essays (while also taking care of your other academic and extracurricular obligations).

How important is the college essay?

The college essay is simply ONE piece of the puzzle.

And while an important piece, rarely will even an AMAZING college essay make up for lackluster GPAs or test scores.

For rising seniors, there’s not much that can be changed in terms of GPA.

Standardized testing, ideally, will be done by the end of junior year as well (there should still be chances to take the tests in the fall/early winter if need be).

The college essay is usually the last remaining part of the application that you can still impact.

IF you’re targeting more selective or smaller liberal arts schools …the college essay will be VERY important.

IF you’re targeting larger state schools or less selective schools …the college essay will be LESS important.

IF your grades and test scores are below average for your target school …consider spending more effort on your essay.

Conversely, IF your grades and test scores are above average for your target school …you have a little more breathing room with regards to your essay.

IF your target school has gone test optional … then every other part of the application, including the college essay, becomes a little more important.

What is our pricing?

Pricing starts at 85/hr, ~149/hr, or ~349/hr depending on the tier of tutor.

Discounts are available for larger packages.

100% risk-free guarantee.

Let’s Get Started

Work with experienced and trusted advisors… and go from a blank page to a polished draft that you’ll be proud of.

In less time and with less stress.

All of our students have an overwhelmingly positive experience. We’re confident yours will too.

Contact us today!

We’d love to learn more about your student and see how we might be able to help!

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COLLEGE ESSAYS WITH JACKSON

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ACE YOUR COLLEGE ESSAYS.

With most four-year colleges test-optional, and more competition in the applicant pool now than ever before, college essays have become the most pivotal aspect of the process.

Since 2020, Jackson Prince has worked with over 50 college applicants  ranging from high schoolers, transfers, and graduate school hopefuls. His approach to the process guides applicants through brainstorming and writing stand-out essays -- from Personal Statements to school-specific prompts -- while keeping them organized and on-schedule.

Working with Jackson  for your applications is proven to produce memorable essays, reduce the stress on everybody involved (looking at you, parents!), and most importantly,

deliver those invaluable acceptance letters.

Screen Shot 2020-07-13 at 3.23.54 PM.png

MEET JACKSON!

Jackson Prince was raised in Los Angeles, went to Beverly Hills High School, and is a Duke University graduate . After applying to 17 colleges (admitted into 14, including schools like Columbia, Dartmouth, Georgetown, UC-Berkeley, and USC), Jackson chose the perfect school for him. At Duke, he majored in English with certificates in Documentary Studies and Policy Journalism & Media Studies. He also served as Opinion Editor of the school's newspaper, and worked closely with Duke Admissions and Student Affairs to learn about the college admissions process.

Jackson graduated in 2019, moved back to Los Angeles during the COVID-19 pandemic, and started his tutoring company with five "guinea pig" college applicants. He promised himself (and the parents of  those  applicants) that if they did not gain admittance to the schools they desired, he would find a different trade. Fortunately, all five got into top-choice schools, each categorized as a "reach."

Jackson has worked with 54 college applicants (and counting), and has acquired expert knowledge of what college admissions essay-readers are actually looking for. Jackson's proximity to the college experience gives him a perspective unlike most college counselors, enabling him to translate an applicant's authentic voice into a great essay.

HOW IT WORKS

Once you've reached out to Jackson by email or through this website, working with Jackson is a three-step process, drawn out over several months.

STEP ONE: GETTING TO KNOW YOU...

You and Jackson will have two preliminary Zoom calls, in which you will talk through the schools you're thinking of applying to (with room for suggestions and changes along the way), organize your essays into a manageable timeline, and learn more about each other. Jackson's suggestion is to begin the process four months before your first deadline (June for rising seniors, August for transfer students). Jackson will also offer advice on college lists, as well as early action/early decision schedules.

STEP TWO: "WRITERS WRITE."

Using Jackson's methods (proven for natural and not-so-natural writers), you and Jackson will brainstorm, outline and edit each essay together, with most of the actual writing happening between sessions. Jackson will set you up with writing plans and targeted word counts so you're never writing in the dark. Unlike most college counselors, Jackson will follow each of your essays from initial inspiration to its final draft, and is always available to be texted and called, free of charge. This kind of personal attention produces some really special essays. You'll be working on Google Docs.

STEP THREE: COUNTING WORDS AND WALKING AWAY

One of Jackson's philosophies is that in order to achieve the best possible version of any essay, you've got to overwrite it first. Because it's much easier to trim a tree than to make a tree grow more branches. Your first draft will almost certainly be over the stated word count. Once you trim an essay together to the desired word count, you and Jackson will move on to the next, with a plan to revisit each essay comfortably before submission deadlines.

Image by Thom Milkovic

YOU'LL BE THE NEXT SUCCESS STORY!

The second you begin working with Jackson, he's on your team until the end. No matter your enthusiasm about writing, your preferred major (or lack thereof), a safety school, a target school, or a reach school, Jackson will work hard to put you in the position to succeed with every essay you write.

Jackson celebrated the success of his cohort as they have been accepted into schools like Duke, NYU, Michigan (Ross School of Business), Indiana (Kelley School of Business), WashU, Colorado College, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, UVA, USC, UW-Madison, Bowdoin, Oxford (UCAS), Pomona, Case Western, Tulane, Emory, SMU,  UCLA ,  UC-Berkeley, LMU, Columbia Law, UChicago Law, and more.

They also shared some very kind words about their former tutor...

Jackson makes essay-writing enjoyable. He encouraged me to think out of the box and consistently pushes me to expand upon every idea until we land on the perfect story. Jackson truly cares, and spends the time to get to know you on a deeper level in order to dig-up the hidden gems in our lives that transform into great essays. Rather than underwriting and missing critical pieces to the story, Jackson encourages you to write as much as you can to avoid missing anything. He is also very patient and committed to helping you write the best essays that best displays YOU!

Emilee (UCLA '25)

Researching and Writing

Jackson believes that there shouldn't be any economic barriers to a college prep service. If you're applying for need-based financial aid, you (or your parent/guardian) and Jackson can meet to set up a rate/meeting schedule that your family is comfortable with. 

There are two options for payment plans:  

1. A flat hourly rate of $120-$150/hour, depending on timing/needs.

2. A down payment of $3500 covering the first 35 hours of work, with a continuing rate of $100/hour. Recommended for anyone applying to over 15 schools (counting the UC and UCAS schools individually).

Custom packages and processes can be discussed as well.

Image by Kaitlyn Baker

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Does jackson assist with graduate school applications.

Yes! Jackson has experience working with prospective graduate school students applying to schools of law, medicine, education, physician's assistance, occupational therapy, psychology, social work, and more.

DOES WORKING WITH JACKSON REPLACE THE ROLE OF A PRIVATE COLLEGE COUNSELOR?

Just about! Jackson's primary role is to work with applicants on their college essays, which take up the vast majority of effort, time, and energy in applying for college. Jackson also helps with additional sections of the application, including extracurricular descriptions. Jackson's extensive background and experience also allow him to make recommendations about application strategies, major choices, and even schools to add to the list. However, Jackson encourages that each applicant build a relationship with their in-school college counselor (if one is present) who will help facilitate logistics within the high school, will make contacts and inroads with colleges, and will often write their own recommendations for an applicant.

WHAT IF I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I WANT TO WRITE ABOUT? OR I JUST NEED "FRESH EYES" ON AN EXISTING ESSAY?

No problem! As part of the preliminary call, Jackson will assess where you are in your essay-writing process, and where he can help. Whether just getting started or looking for final tune-ups, Jackson will be happy to work with you at any point in the journey.

If you have any other questions, feel free to email Jackson!

LET'S DO THIS!

Email or fill out the form today!

[email protected]

Thanks for submitting!

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The Best College Application Essays Tutoring Online

Find the best college application essays tutor.

Nathan A. Los Angeles, CA, available for online tutoring

College Application Essay Coach

Stressing over college application essays ? Spring is a great time to get started with the drafting process! Over the past several years, I’ve helped dozens of students write the personal statements and school-specific supplementals... See Nathan's full profile

Nathan is wonderful! He helped my son tremendously with his college application essays. From the Common App personal statement to the supplemental essays for the Ivies to the safety schools, Nathan provided expert guidance with br... read the full review - Kathryn , 10 lessons with Nathan

Jonathan K. New York, NY, available for online & in-person tutoring

Writing Mentor specializing in College Application Essays

A professional writing mentor, I have worked chiefly with university applicants since 2013; full time the last 5 years. Essay Mentor for Fulbright Commission, 2015-2020, working with extremely promising applicants to help them in applying... See Jonathan's full profile

Jonathan helped our daughter prepare essays for almost 20 schools. He worked with her weekly over several months to generate strategies for how to approach each application (e.g., which supplemental essays to choose if there is a... read the full review - Nahid , 92 lessons with Jonathan

Ben U. Culver City, CA, available for online & in-person tutoring

College Application Essay Specialist with PhD from Berkeley

I’ve been helping university applicants with their college essays since 2016. My clients have been accepted at top-tier universities across the US. Taught academic writing at UC Berkeley for ten years. Directed 30 senior theses primarily... See Ben's full profile

If you’re struggling with a tight deadline and getting your ideas down on paper, book a session with Ben. He knows just the right questions to ask and has an amazing technique for getting your essays done as fast and as well as p... read the full review - Katherine

Laura S. Houston, TX, available for online & in-person tutoring

College Application Essay Writing

I have assisted many students with their college application essay writing. For those who may be struggling to write effective, engaging personal essays for their college applications , I am here to help. I'll make sure... See Laura's full profile

My daughter needed help with her college essay and the application was due in the next few hours. Laura replied to us within a very short period of time and agreed to help her with her essay. She was very knowledgeable and patient... read the full review - Havva

Abby P. Miami, FL, available for online tutoring

College Admissions Counseling

I am able to help with any aspect of the college admission process, including assisting students with crafting strong college application essays , determining which schools to apply to, preparing for the ACT and/or SAT, navigating the... See Abby's full profile

After each session my daughter has thanked me for finding Abby. She is well prepared and extremely professional. My daughter’s confidence has grown exponentially after two sessions.... read the full review - Lisa , 3 lessons with Abby

Henrik H. Lakewood, CA, available for online & in-person tutoring

3+ yrs experience helping students find/get into their dream schools

This is especially relevant for college applications , because admissions offices look for essays that are irreplaceable and hard to forget. Each year, they read scores of essays from impressive applicants with impressive... See Henrik's full profile

My son was struggling with trying to organize and write his paper for his Brit. Lit. English class. We feel so fortunate to have found Henrik through the Wyzant app. Henrik was always very responsive when communicating with me thr... read the full review - Allison , 2 lessons with Henrik

Ben G. Washington, DC, available for online & in-person tutoring

Proofreading, Editing, Revisions, Feedback — 4400+ Hours on Wyzant

I’ve also worked with young professionals and retirees looking to improve their writing skills. I’ve proofread work correspondence, personal statements, cover letters, college application essays (undergraduate, graduate, law school,... See Ben's full profile

Ben has been an amazing college essay help throughout my whole process so far. He is always there to respond to any messages I send, and he even has quick responses to any of my questions. His work ethic is one of the best I have ... read the full review - Rita , 48 lessons with Ben

Jaclyn B. New York, NY, available for online & in-person tutoring

Highly Experienced College Application & Essay Tutor

I have been counseling students on their college applications, essays , and overall search for 4 years with a focus on the student's needs and their intended career plans. I focus on the development and writing of the student's... See Jaclyn's full profile

Jeremy S. Washington, DC, available for online & in-person tutoring

Columbia Grad for English Help

As a Columbia University alum and published writer with articles in U.S. News, I can help with just about any English needs. I've helped countless students with academic writing, college application essays , literature reviews, reading... See Jeremy's full profile

How to break down test questions in order to choose the correct answer! Jeremy is very good at walking you through not only the test question, but going through each answer choice to find the most appropriate answer!... read the full review - Deanna , 12 lessons with Jeremy

Elizabeth B. Albany, NY, available for online & in-person tutoring

College Application Essays

Many of my SAT students also ask for my help with college applications . We work on the many essays that are required, and I am skilled in drawing students out through careful questioning that we then turn into solid essay ... See Elizabeth's full profile

Ms. B is a master at literature and linguistics, and she knows precisely what strategies to teach in order to make taking tests far easier. Furthermore, unlike many other tutors, she is able to make sessions fun and something to l... read the full review - Michael , 6 lessons with Elizabeth

Kenneth O. Chicago, IL, available for online & in-person tutoring

College Admissions Essay , College Application Essays Expert

...Statement of Purpose, Supplemental Essays , UC PIQs)! Whatever you call them, I can help you through the college essay process. Together, we’ll create college application essays or college admissions essays that work! Not only that, but we will do it ... See Kenneth's full profile

Kenneth helped me with my essays for a program which I am applying to. He helped me make my essays not only more personal, but a more accurate depiction of who I am. He helped me add many topics to my original essays, and take out... read the full review - Trevor , 2 lessons with Kenneth

Nick S. Santa Monica, CA, available for online & in-person tutoring

The College Lad - Leading SoCal Writing Coach & Test Expert

A huge part of this success is that my students end up with top-notch application essays . My own writing has been published in over a dozen publications and my years of experience writing web copy have taught me how to apply that punchy... See Nick's full profile

Barrie-John M. Kintnersville, PA, available for online & in-person tutoring

Essays Made Effective

I have helped dozens of students with college application essays . I help them generate ideas and ensure that the application is tailored to the college of their choosing. As a freelance writer, I teach creative ways to introduce a topic and... See Barrie-John's full profile

Mimi C. Saint Louis, MO, available for online tutoring

Experienced Editor Specializing in College Application Essays

Your college essays are your opportunity to dazzle the admissions committee with your unique perspective and singular voice. I've served as an application reader for an Ivy League university, and as an editor at a nationally renowned... See Mimi's full profile

Mimi worked with our senior high school student to brainstorm, develop and edit their common app essay for college admission. Our teen describes Mimi as warm, kind, supportive and enormously helpful. From a parents' perspective, M... read the full review - Elise , 7 lessons with Mimi

Helene F. Nyack, NY, available for online & in-person tutoring

Effective Writing/Editing Tutor; College Essay Tutor & Counselor

These comprehensive services are individualized to the needs, interests, and requests of each client-student. ESSAY WRITING I help students with essays for college applications and for academic papers. My role is to guide... See Helene's full profile

Helene has been assisting my son with his essays and she has been an amazing help. She is part counselor, part editor, and part cheerleader. She is able to help him clarify his ideas and express them clearly in his voice, not hers... read the full review - Linda , 12 lessons with Helene

Teagan L. Austin, TX, available for online & in-person tutoring

Award-winning Harvard Grad / College Essay and Application Consultant

Throughout my tutoring career, I have helped numerous clients refine and polish academic papers, college essays , and applications. Whether you need assistance with your writing style, grammar, vocabulary, or paper structure, I can use my... See Teagan's full profile

Teagan has been helping my daughter with her college essays and counseling and has been exceptional! He has been patient, always positive and brings out the best in her. He clearly understands what various colleges need and guides... read the full review - Varadan , 8 lessons with Teagan

Marianne B. Naperville, IL, available for online & in-person tutoring

High-level College Application Essay Coach

My 13 years in college admissions at two selective institutions with holistic approaches to admissions means I know the expectations that admission committees have for the application essays . This specialized insight informs my... See Marianne's full profile

Marianne is a wonderful tutor. I can tell that she is quite experienced with AP Literature and its curriculum and she was able to help improve my writing more compared to other English tutors. Marianne would often guide me to deep... read the full review - Molly , 5 lessons with Marianne

Dr. Lauren J. Austin, TX, available for online & in-person tutoring

Get Help with Essays and Research Papers by Former Professor

Lauren, an academic writing and research coach. I work primarily with college and graduate students to conquer your writing and research projects, from short essays to dissertations and grant applications (and everything in between). I hold... See Dr. Lauren's full profile

Dr. Lauren J. is an amazing tutor who helped me to clarify my main points in my statement of purpose for my many graduate school applications. She was often available and made time to help me throughout the application process. I ... read the full review - Allison , 9 lessons with Dr. Lauren

Lindsay P. Groton, NY, available for online & in-person tutoring

Experienced Admissions Professional

As a former Admissions Professional for Cornell University, I have read countless undergraduate college applications and understand what makes a compelling essay . See Lindsay's full profile

Cornelia G. Bethel, CT, available for online & in-person tutoring

College Application Essay Editor

When they were accepted, the admissions officers commented on the excellence of their essays . I have helped dozens of students with their college applications , shepherding them through all stages of this complicated process. From... See Cornelia's full profile

Wonderful! Can't say enough positive things about her. Very helpful, understanding, and had working. She knows what she's talking about, and is all about helping her students. So happy I found her. She will be the reason I pas... read the full review - Susan , 14 lessons with Cornelia

Barbara B. Plymouth, MA, available for online & in-person tutoring

Boston College/ Harvard SAT/ACT/ISEE/SSAT/College App Success

I have taught English in every grade from sixth to twelfth, finding the best parts of each of those grades. My twelfth grade classes were grounded in SAT Preparation and College Application Essay writing. My tenth grade classes had to be... See Barbara's full profile

Barbara is helping with college essay and supplemental writing. She is knowledgeable and executes. She helped with strategy for applications as well as themes and process. ... read the full review - Laura , 3 lessons with Barbara

Hassan A. Costa Mesa, CA, available for online & in-person tutoring

College App Essay Tutor

...skills and articulate who they want to be with more impact and confidence. I offer support at all stages of the college application essay writing process: brainstorming, outlining, and editing.... See Hassan's full profile

Hassan has a great fund of knowledge and is clear in explaining and patient. He is one of the best tutors I have ever had. He pays attention to the assignment and communicates effectively.... read the full review - Mary , 13 lessons with Hassan

Christine B. Cupertino, CA, available for online tutoring

Experienced College Application & Essay Writing Tutor

I’ve taught College Writing Workshops and tutored individuals through the college application process for the last 7 years. I have extensive experience supporting students through all phases of the college application/essay ... See Christine's full profile

Julie K. Orlando, FL, available for online & in-person tutoring

High School Teacher and College Instructor

As a high school teacher who has worked with students from grades 9-12, I have had many students come to me for help about their future goals. I have helped them refine essays and look at being well-rounded so as to be more noticeable by... See Julie's full profile

If you are looking for a tutor, you’d be doing yourself a disservice if you didn’t give Julie an opportunity to connect with you. From the very start, you will see Julie’s high level of organization, planning, and flexibility whi... read the full review - Dan , 7 lessons with Julie

Derek H. New York, NY, available for online & in-person tutoring

Harvard/Yale Admit w/ 5 Years of College Application / Essay Consulting

Since my own college admissions cycle, I have guided high school students through the entire college admissions process. From crafting personal statements to building school lists to editing school specific essays to interview prep to... See Derek's full profile

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The first draft is always the hardest. Work with an admissions essay coach who will give you practical, step-by-step guidance on how to develop your essay and make your story come alive.

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All our 800+ editors have passed the challenging Scribbr Academy, which has a passing rate of only 2%.

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Janice Scribbr essay coach

Janice holds a PhD in German studies from Duke University. As a former professor, she has helped many students refine their application essays for competitive degree programs and study-abroad programs. Today, she helps students improve their writing skills at Scribbr. In her spare time, when she's not writing or editing, she enjoys working on the small family farm that she owns and operates.

Alexandra Scribbr essay coach

Alexandra earned an Erasmus Mundus MA in cultural narratives and a BA in English from Emory University. As a teacher, editor, and writing coach, she has spent nearly a decade helping students find their voice and express their ideas.

Amy Scribbr essay coach

Originally from Maryland, Amy headed west to attend Scripps College in California, where she earned a bachelor's degree in music and gender studies. In 2009, she began working for the admissions office of her alma mater, where she focused on reviewing applications and interviewing prospective students.

“Extremely professional and timely”

Extremely professional and timely! Regis did an amazing job bringing my admission essay to life. It went from overly wordy and unclear to very professional and concise. If I don’t get into my desired program, it won’t be because of my essay.

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We’ll send back your fully edited essay. Applying to college is nerve-racking, but at Scribbr you never have to wait for long.

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Scribbr & academic integrity

Scribbr is committed to protecting academic integrity. Our proofreading service, our AI writing tools ( plagiarism checker , paraphrasing tool , grammar checker , summarizer,  Citation Generator ) as well as our free Knowledge Base content are designed to help students produce quality academic papers.

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Your questions, answered.

We know that waiting for feedback can be nerve-racking. If you select our faster deadline option, you’ll hear from your personal statement editor in 12 hours or less – including on weekends and holidays. 

We never engage in rewriting or adding text at Scribbr. Our personal statement editors will make grammatical corrections and leave suggestions using Word’s track changes and commenting feature. However, we always make sure that your perspective and voice remain front and center in your essay.

We know that waiting for feedback can be nerve-racking. If you select our faster deadline option, you’ll hear from your college essay coach in 12 hours or less – including on weekends and holidays.

Yes. All our college essay coaches are subject-matter experts and can help you make decisions regarding the content of your essay. Your coach will help you make a strong case for your admission.

Our essay coaches will provide feedback on…

  • Whether your topic is appropriate and how to strengthen it
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  • How to dig deeper and show self-reflection and insight
  • What content is missing and should be added
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If you have any questions, feel free to email [email protected].

Yes! Our essay coaches can help you reduce your word count by up to 25%. You can choose to receive this feedback through direct edits or suggestions in comments – just select your choice when you upload your essay.

When you submit your essay to our College Essay Editing & Coaching service, you’ll be asked to indicate what type of content feedback you would like to receive. You can choose from three options:

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Whichever option you choose, you’ll receive in-depth content feedback from your essay coach. However, the type of feedback your essay coach provides may differ, and the option you should choose depends on what outcome you want from the review. You can always elaborate on what type of feedback you want in your note to your essay coach.

Learn more about the three options below.

Choose from three options

If you choose this option, we’ll challenge you to write the best possible essay – no content suggestions are off-limits, including reorienting your topic or reframing your story. Students who choose this option aren’t afraid to go back to the drawing board if it’ll increase their chances of getting accepted. You may have to roll up your sleeves and do some more work on your essay, but your essay will be much stronger because of it.

Select this option if your priority is to have the best possible essay, even if it requires some extra work on your side.

We’ll strike a balance between “dig deep and challenge me” and “tread lightly.” We may suggest changes to your structure and narrative, including removing weak content, elaborating on certain sections, and adding content to strengthen your arguments. You may have to rework sentences and paragraphs, but we won’t suggest major content changes.

With this option, we’ll focus on improving your essay in a way that requires little additional work from you. We’ll provide you with targeted suggestions for how to refine your essay’s structure and narrative, but we will work within your current structure and topic. While you may have to make a few tweaks here and there, we’ll aim to return you a polished draft that’s ready to be submitted to your chosen colleges.

Select this option if you are fairly satisfied with your essay and don’t want to make major changes or if you have limited time to revise.

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Writing essays is a big part of the college experience–and for students who want help mastering this project, Grade Potential provides college essay tutors who know all the ins and outs of quality writing. Through one-on-one tutoring on your timetable, we provide college essay tutoring that empowers students to write clearly and efficiently.

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15 Best Online Writing Tutoring Services for 2023 (50 Tutoring Services Reviewed)

Writing is a core skill that is essential for success in high school and college , as well as many graduate programs and future careers. 

However, many schools don’t teach students how to write effectively . Writing is a highly individual skill and the best way to learn is with one-on-one help. 

When school classes assign essays, most students are left to flounder . The students who are the most successful tend to benefit from writing lessons at home from their parents. But this is challenging and time-consuming—not to mention, many parents might not have honed those writing skills themselves!

Families have been increasingly recognizing the immense benefit of private writing tutoring . Learning how to write early on will have a positive ripple effect throughout the student’s academic and professional career, and a little bit of improvement can go a long way!

Sign up for writing tutoring today

What is the Best Online Writing Tutoring?

  • PrepMaven – best online writing tutoring overall
  • Pearson’s Smarthinking – best big tutoring company for writing tutoring
  • Skooli – best super-quick tutoring
  • Wyzant – alternative for families on a budget
  • Learn to Be – best free writing tutoring (for qualifying families)

The best of the rest:

  • Tutor.com / The Princeton Review – disappointing quality from test-prep giant
  • ArborBridge – pricey service with mystery tutors
  • Learner – writing tutoring that includes ESL learners
  • Club Z! Tutoring – tutoring franchise with (purported) writing curriculum
  • Sylvan Learning – tutoring franchise that includes Spanish-speaking staff
  • Varsity – uneven quality at higher prices
  • Chegg – lightweight essay review on a membership basis
  • TutaPoint – creative writing and quick editing but little expertise
  • Tutoring Service of New York – new service with higher minimum package
  • Preply – lower-cost tutoring marketplace platform

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Best Online Writing Tutoring in 2022

#1 – prepmaven.

Our Verdict — Best Online Writing Tutoring Overall Price: $66–349/hour PrepMaven offers high-quality one-on-one writing tutoring at an incredibly reasonable price, given the qualifications of its instructors. All of PrepMaven’s tutors are Ivy-League grads, mostly from Princeton. (A few tutors are from elite universities that aren’t Ivies, like Stanford or Duke.) Many of PrepMaven’s writing tutors have won Ivy-League academic prizes for their written work. Not only do these tutors come from the most prestigious colleges in the US, but many also have professional writing experience. Among PrepMaven’s fantastic writing tutors are professional Hollywood screenwriters, journalists, published authors, and editors for academic presses. What makes PrepMaven special is that they don’t just offer essay editing and support with school writing assignments — they also provide expert instruction in how to write, which is a foundational skill that will help students succeed throughout their lives. PrepMaven has developed an original writing curriculum through their sought-after Academic Writing Workshop and expanded this for students seeking individualized tutoring. In addition to support with school writing assignments, PrepMaven can also provide students with educational enrichment outside of their school curriculum — this is especially beneficial for writing, which often isn’t taught effectively in schools. Students can work with PrepMaven tutors to craft research papers, literary analysis essays, or creative writing projects that will teach them essential writing skills. PrepMaven also offers specific coaching through the college essay writing process and has 15 years of experience helping students to gain acceptance to their dream schools. Read here for more specific information about college application essay help. Founded by brothers and Princeton grads Greg and Kevin, PrepMaven focuses on delivering consistently high-quality tutoring to students. Because PrepMaven’s tutors hail from the most elite universities, they’re uniquely positioned to coach students towards writing great school essays and papers. All tutors undergo a thorough training program and can use proprietary teaching materials to help students reach their goals. To make high-quality tutoring accessible to more families, PrepMaven offers tutoring at several different price points. At the most affordable rate, students can work with current Ivy-League undergraduates who specialize in writing. At higher rates, students can work with coaches who are both Ivy-League grads and professional writers (screenwriters, journalists, editors), many who also hold advanced graduate degrees.

Sign up for PrepMaven’s Ivy-League tutoring now

PrepMaven’s one-on-one writing tutoring is the best option for any student wanting high-quality writing help or enrichment.

At a glance:

  • Cost: $66–349/hour, depending on tutor qualifications; minimum $450 package
  • Writing tutor qualifications: Princeton graduates and professional writers (or current Princeton students); all experienced and highly trained, some with master’s or doctoral degrees

What we like:

  • Experienced Ivy-League tutors  — most of their writing tutors are Princeton grads or current students, with some from Harvard and other Ivies, and many tutors have won prestigious academic prizes for their writing
  • Professional writers — option to work with professional writers in nonfiction (journalism, published academic authors, academic book editing) or creative writing (screenwriters, playwrights, novelists, poets)
  • Different pricing options to meet different families’ circumstances
  • Smaller, boutique company offers more individualized approach customized for each student

What we don’t like:

  • Because they take the time to pair each student with the tutor that will be the best fit, sessions are not instantaneous and usually it takes 1–3 days to schedule with an Ivy-League tutor

Sign up for PrepMaven’s one-on-one tutoring now

#2 – Pearson

Our Verdict — Best Big Tutoring Company for Writing Tutoring Price: $38–42/hour, or $31–42 for a one-off essay review Pearson’s name might sound familiar — they’re a massive publishing conglomerate. You may also have heard of them from the controversy that ensued when the standardized tests that they were commissioned to create for the state of New York were found to contain over 30 errors and invalidated (whoops!). Pearson has brought their enormous resources to produce Smarthinking, an online tutoring platform. Tutoring is convenient and can be on-demand (with whichever tutor is currently available) or scheduled in advance, and is offered at reasonable prices. Our inside sources have mentioned that the Smarthinking platform itself is over two decades old and can be buggy, so we hope that Pearson updates their platform soon. Pearson’s tutors have a stronger educational background than many of the other competitors, with 90% of their tutors holding a master’s degree or doctoral degree. However, Pearson pays its tutors below-market wages ($11–13/hr), so it’s difficult for them to retain good teaching talent. It’s not possible to view any specific information about their tutors. There is no requirement for tutors to have graduated from top schools. For writing assignments, Pearson also offers the chance to request written feedback on an individual draft. This is a great idea, but it’s more limited in reality — writing tutors are allotted only 30 minutes to review each essay, which might work for recommending some small tweaks but isn’t nearly enough time for guiding a student in making substantial improvements. Furthermore, tutors are supposed to do these essay reviews in between tutoring sessions, so unfortunately they’re often rushed and distracted.

  • Pearon’s Smarthinking is a good option for families who specifically want to work with a very large company.
  • Cost: $42 for one hour, $150 for 4 hours ($37.50/hr); $31–42 for a one-off essay review, depending on page length
  • Writing tutor qualifications: college graduates, 90% of whom also hold master’s degrees or doctoral degrees — but not necessarily not from top-tier universities
  • Higher educational experience — most of their writing tutors hold advanced degrees
  • Instant tutoring — on-demand tutoring is available 24/7, and just enter your credit card information to start immediately
  • Reasonable pricing
  • Tutors aren’t necessarily from top schools , and it’s not possible to see any information about their tutors
  • Online tutoring platform is two decades old and has technological problems
  • Low pay means they struggle to retain good teaching talent

writing

Why is learning how to write important for future success? Jump below .

#3 – Skooli

Our Verdict — Best Super-Quick Tutoring Price: $39–49/hour Skooli is a newer online tutoring platform and the only one we’ve found that offers tutoring charged by the minute. Families can purchase packs for 8, 16, or 32 hours, or purchase individual hours. Students can then use these hours in as little as 15-minute increments. This might be handy for students who want to ask a tutor quick questions, and who don’t care about developing a relationship with a consistent tutor. Tutors for Skooli have college degrees, but haven’t necessarily graduated from a top-tier school. It’s not possible to see more details about individual tutors until after giving credit card details. Their online interface is slick and modern, although according to our inside sources it crashes frequently.

  • Students who want to work with a tutor to answer quick questions (sessions as short as 15 minutes).
  • Cost: $1248 for 32 hours ($39/hr), $672 for 16 hours ($42/hr), $352 per 8 hours ($44/hr), or $49/hour for individual hours, billed by the minute ($0.82/minute, minimum 15 minutes)
  • Writing tutor qualifications: college graduates
  • Tutoring available in very short increments , with a minimum session length of just 15 minutes
  • Students can’t work with the same tutor consistently , which is less effective for learning
  • Online tutoring platform has some technological problems and crashes frequently

#4 – Wyzant

Our Verdict — Alternative for Families on a Budget Price: $20–600/hour There are plenty of large platforms with large stables of part-time tutors and coaches available to work with students. Wyzant is one of the largest such platforms, with more than 65,000 tutors providing services through their website — including 4,260 online writing tutors. Students and families can pick individual tutors to work with from their roster and arrange tutoring services directly. One benefit of this model is that tutors can set their own rates, which vary hugely. Families on a budget can find online writing tutors as low as $20 per hour. However, these tutors might not have any teaching experience or training, and they may not have graduated from a top school or have professional writing experience. Some tutors on Wyzant with more qualifications may have much higher rates — as high as $600 per hour!

  • Families on a budget who are willing to work with a freelance tutor directly.
  • Cost: $20–600/hour
  • Writing tutor qualifications: varies
  • Marketplace platform means that some tutors list low rates for tutoring, which can make tutoring more affordable

Families can choose their own tutor directly out of over 4,000 writing tutors listed

  • No training for tutors — which leads to uneven quality of instruction
  • Families are hiring individual tutors, which means tutor qualifications vary enormously , and there are no guarantees
  • Choosing the right tutor out of 4,000+ is one more task for busy families

#5 – Learn to Be

Our Verdict — Best Free Writing Tutoring (for qualifying families) Price: free (or voluntary contribution of $9–30 per month) Learn to Be is a fantastic non-profit organization improving education for underserved youth in the US. Students work with the same tutor consistently, which allows them to build a strong relationship and allows for mentoring as well as learning. Students working with Learn to Be have seen an average increase in test scores of 15.8% and an average GPA increase of 1.6 — nearly two full letter grades (for example from a C to an A-)! Tutors are volunteers who are passionate about educational equity, and range from current high school and college students to professionals or retirees. The program works primarily with foster youth, homeless youth, and other lower-income families. Possible qualifications for free tutoring with Learn to Be include: student attends a Title 1 school, receives free or reduced lunch at school, comes from a single-parent home, is a foster child, is homeless, or qualifies for food stamps. It’s possible to work with a Spanish-speaking tutor through Learn to Be.

  • Students who qualify for free tutoring (foster youth or low-income families).
  • Non-profit helping underserved youth
  • Completely free tutoring for qualifying families
  • Students work with the same tutor consistently, which builds trust and leads to a better individualized educational experience
  • Volunteer tutor qualifications vary — some tutors are high school students as young as 14 years old
  • Only for qualifying youth in the US (low income or foster youth)

writing assignment online

Read below : how learning how to write well can unlock success for decades to come

Best of the Rest for Online Writing Tutoring

#6 – princeton review / tutor.com.

Our Verdict — Disappointing Quality from Test-Prep Giant Price: $60–75/hour for scheduled tutoring, minimum package $450; lower-quality instant tutoring at $26–35/hour, minimum package $350; monthly subscription instant tutoring at $36–40/hour Back in 2014, Tutor.com acquired the well-known test-prep company The Princeton Review. (Note that the Princeton Review has no connection to Princeton University.) They now offer subject-area tutoring in over 80 different academic areas, including essay writing. The range of tutoring options is a little confusing, but it basically breaks down to three different models: families can choose between (1) packages of 6–60 scheduled tutoring hours with more highly-qualified tutors through “The Academy”, (2) one-off tutoring packages of 10–50 “instant tutoring” hours that can be used over a six-month period, or (3) a monthly subscription for 1–5 instant tutoring hours each month. Tutors are available 24/7 for instant sessions. For students enrolled in The Academy’s scheduled tutoring sessions with packages of 24 hours ($1620) or 60 hours ($3600), they advertise a “guaranteed A.” This promise turns out to be a little deceptive, as the guaranteed “A” only applies to students who already have at least a B; for students who start with a B- or lower the guarantee is for one full letter grade. For students who work with a tutor through their Homework Help packages at least 2 hours each month for 3 months in one subject, they guarantee a grade increase of at least a half-step letter grade. (This guarantee doesn’t apply for students who already have an A- or A.) Of course, there’s a lot of additional rules in the fine print for these guarantees! Unfortunately, we were disappointed with the quality of this offering from The Princeton Review. In contrast to their operations for standardized test prep (like SAT and ACT prep ), their platform for subject-area tutoring does not provide instructors with training, so there’s very little consistency. Tutors are also capped at 2 or 3 sessions per day, so they’re by design part-time instructors who are teaching a little on the side. While The Princeton Review / Tutor.com claims to count Ivy grads and experts with advanced degrees among their tutors, we found this to be misleading. Most of their tutors have only a BA, and most have graduated from local schools that are not even in the top 200 universities. Pay for tutors is minimum wage, so it’s difficult for them to attract good teaching talent. Surprisingly for The Princeton Review, their subject-area tutoring is a tutoring marketplace platform (similar to Wyzant ). Families select individual tutors to work with based on their bios and arrange the tutoring sessions individually. For us, this obviates the point of working with a large company like Princeton Review, where in theory the advantage is quality control and a standard curriculum, even if it comes with a more corporate feel. With this marketplace model, tutor quality and qualifications vary considerably, especially given that tutors do not receive any training or teaching materials. Our inside sources tell us that their online teaching platform is outdated and has many technological bugs that make it crash frequently, and at least one year ago it only worked on PCs, not Macs!

  • Cost: The Academy tutoring packages: $450 for 6 hours ($60/hr), $1620 for 24 hours ($67.50/hr), or $3600 for 60 hours ($60/hr); Homework Help packages that can be used over a period of 6 months: $350 for 10 hours ($35/hr), $950 for 30 hours ($32/hr), or $1450 for 50 hours ($26/hr); Homework Help tutoring subscriptions: $40 for 1 hour each month, $115 for 3 hours each month ($38/hr), or $180 for 5 hours each month ($36/hr)
  • Tutor qualifications: college graduates
  • Reasonable pricing for tutoring and a range of payment models
  • Tutors are available 24/7 for instant Homework Help packages
  • Tutor qualifications vary — most are from local or state schools, not competitive colleges
  • Online platform is buggy and crashes frequently
  • Challenging for them to attract good teaching talent as pay is minimum wage
  • Low quality of teaching , surprising for a big-name player in test prep

#7 – ArborBridge

Our Verdict: Pricey Service with Mystery Tutors Price: $165+/hour, minimum package $2400 for 15 hours Featuring crisp, minimalist visuals and a younger team, ArborBridge calls itself “the next generation of test prep.” They’ve always been remote and online, so they haven’t suffered the growing pains with the shift to online learning that many competitors with outdated platforms (like Pearson and Princeton Review ) have experienced. That said, their tutoring is quite expensive! Their rate is always at least $160 per hour, and the minimum package is a hefty $2400 for 15 hours of tutoring. They also advertise a “concierge” tutoring service with a more customized experience — price upon request. Is it worth the price? We’re not so sure. ArborBridge claims to have hired the “best” tutors but they do not list any specific qualifications for their tutors or provide any bios for their tutor roster. On their (slightly-defunct) Instagram page they have provided some fun facts about a few of their tutors, but they don’t list any educational background, years of experience, or relevant professional credentials, just favorite foods and television shows. There’s no indication that their tutors have graduated from top colleges, have teaching experience, or any other relevant qualifications — unlike services like PrepMaven or Tutoring Service of New York that only hire Ivy-League tutors. In fact, our sources have mentioned that their tutors don’t receive much training prior to teaching. They also, unlike the Princeton Review, don’t offer any guarantees for raising grades or scores. In the end, we’re not sure why ArborBridge has such high prices without offering particularly high-quality tutoring in return. Their website looks nice, though!

  • Cost: $160/hour, minimum package is $2400 for 15 hours (+ 1 bonus hour); $4800 for 30 hours (+ 3 bonus hours); $7200 for 45 hours (+ 6 bonus hours) — or “concierge tutoring” with “highest level of hands-on care,” price upon request
  • Writing tutor qualifications: unknown
  • Known for good customer service
  • Younger, more modern tutoring service that’s built with technology from the get-go
  • Expensive , with a minimum cost of $2400 for 15 hours of tutoring
  • No information about tutor qualifications provided
  • No guarantees for grade or score raises
  • Seems more design than substance

#8 – Learner

Our Verdict — Writing Tutoring that Includes ESL Learners Price: $40+/hour Learner is another newer online tutoring platform. Unlike many of the other services on this list, Learner also provides tutoring services to adults, especially for non-native English speakers. Specifically for writing, we like that they will develop a tailor-made writing curriculum for individual students. In their writing tutoring sessions, students can receive lessons on grammar and research paper writing, read examples of good essays, and get help from their tutor with homework assignments. On the whole, Learner seems to have a stronger focus on writing than some of the other tutoring services like Skooli or Varsity Tutors . While they advertise that their tutors have degrees from “top universities,” it seems that the only necessary qualification for tutors at Learner is a college degree (not just from top schools). Their “satisfaction guarantee” simply means that they’ll allow families to switch to another tutor if it’s not a good fit. Their rates are reasonable for “average” tutors who do not have professional writing experience or degrees from elite universities.

  • Cost: $40+/hour
  • More focus on writing tutoring than some competitors
  • Reasonable pricing for online writing tutoring
  • No specific tutor qualifications beyond a college degree

#9 – Club Z! Tutoring

Our Verdict — Tutoring Franchise with (Purported) Writing Curriculum Price: varies by location (franchise) Club Z! is a tutoring franchise, so pricing and other details vary by location. Tutors with Club Z! do not have any specific qualifications. We’ve included them on this list because they claim to have developed a writing tutoring program, The Power of Words ©, which helps students write more effectively and efficiently for writing assignments and timed essays. However, our sources have mentioned that they do not actually provide tutor training or teaching resources, so it’s unclear to what extent this writing tutoring program has actually been implemented. They offer both online and in-home tutoring.

  • Cost:  varies depending on franchise location
  • Writing tutor qualifications: not specified
  • (Supposed) writing curriculum , The Power of Words ©
  • No specific qualifications for tutors — so unclear if tutors are college graduates, come from strong educational backgrounds, or have teaching experience
  • No training or teaching resources for tutors , leading to uneven quality

#10 – Sylvan Learning

Our Verdict — Tutoring Franchise that Includes Spanish-Speaking Staff Price: varies by location (franchise) Like Club Z! Tutoring , Sylvan Learning is a franchise, so pricing and other details vary by location. While previously Sylvan Learning was entirely in-person, they have more recently pivoted to offer online tutoring as well via their “MySylvanMarketplace” platform. Families can find online writing tutoring via this platform. Tutors with Sylvan Learning do not have any specific credentials like college degrees, elite educational backgrounds, or teaching experience. However, we like that many Sylvan Learning centers do have Spanish-speaking staff, which may be helpful for some families and students. On the whole, we found their website and platform a bit challenging to navigate, and it was difficult to get answers to our questions. Since each of the Sylvan centers is locally owned and operated, the customer service experience can vary significantly.

  • Cost: varies depending on franchise location
  • Some staff at Sylvan Learning centers may speak Spanish
  • No specific qualifications for tutors — so unclear if tutors are college graduates (let alone come from strong educational backgrounds) or have teaching experience
  • Confusing website and online tutoring platform

#11 – Varsity Tutors

Our Verdict — Uneven Quality Without Budget Pricing Price: $60–95/hour Varsity Tutors is an enormous tutoring platform offering online instruction in all academic subjects and test prep, including writing. These days their marketing has been ubiquitous! However, Varsity Tutors’ size has many downsides — most notably, very uneven quality of teaching. Tutors at Varsity need only a high school degree, and there is no requirement for tutors to have a college degree or teaching experience, let alone a top-tier educational background or professional writing credentials. Tutors can join the Varsity team very quickly and are paid lower rates than nearly any other tutoring company (just $12–15 for sessions that cost families up to $95), so it’s difficult for Varsity to attract and retain good talent. Lucky families might get assigned a good tutor, but that’s not at all assured. Varsity Tutors also does not provide any tutor materials, curriculum, or training, so it’s up to individual tutors to create everything from scratch, contributing further to the unevenness of quality. With rates higher than the competition with similar types of tutors (no specific qualifications beyond a college degree), Varsity is significantly overpriced. We’d recommend that families either consider a more budget-friendly option that would offer the same quality as Varsity in the $30–40/hour price range, or else consider a service like PrepMaven (starting at $66/hour) or Tutoring Service of New York (starting at $112/hour) that pairs students with highly-qualified tutors with advanced degrees, professional writing experience, and Ivy-League backgrounds.

  • Cost: $ 60–95/hour
  • Writing tutor qualifications: high school graduates
  • Large number of tutors , so certain to find a tutor to fit your schedule
  • No education or training requirements for tutors , along with low pay rates for instructors, means tutors are less-qualified than alternative writing tutoring services
  • Uneven teaching quality due to lack of resources for instruction
  • Overpriced given the lack of required qualifications for tutors

#12 – Chegg

Our Verdict — Lightweight Essay Review on a Membership Basis Price: $20 per month Chegg is one of the biggest tutoring platforms, so families may be familiar with their name already. We should note that they’ve pivoted several times in the past few years, so their service may have changed from what families have read. Whereas previously (first as InstaEDU, then as Chegg Tutors) Chegg offered live tutoring instruction online, Chegg no longer offers one-on-one tutoring. Instead, they now offer two subscription levels that allow students to view instructional videos, access answer keys for common textbooks, and receive asynchronous written feedback to homework questions. These questions are primarily answered by “subject matter experts” located in India. We’ve kept Chegg on our list for online writing tutoring because the higher subscription tier, their “Chegg Study Pack,” does include the option to submit papers for limited written feedback with a 48-hour turnaround time. Students can submit up to 15 short papers per month, up to 3000 words each (about 6 pages double-spaced). That said, this is not the same as active writing tutoring with live discussion and exercises directly with a tutor. The written feedback provided by Chegg’s essay review service is limited. Moreover, the essay reviews are done by different tutors every time, so there’s no opportunity to grow through working with one tutor consistently. This service might work for students who want merely a quick check of their grammar or other small details on school assignments and don’t care about long-term improvements as a writer. They also throw in an online tool to scan for plagiarism. Even if you didn’t intend to plagiarize, this tool can check for well-meaning “paraphrasing errors or missing citations.” However, we don’t think it’s a good way to learn how to write. For the best educational experience, families should look for online writing tutoring services that provide one-on-one video sessions with a consistent tutor each time.

  • Cost: $15 per month for Chegg Study subscription, which provides homework resources only and no essay reviews; $20 per month for Chegg Study Pack subscription which provides essay reviews (up to 15 short papers per month, up to 3000 words each) and math question help in addition to the homework resources
  • Writing tutor qualifications: none specified
  • Large number of written essay reviews per month , up to 15 short essays
  • Asynchronous, written feedback is not an effective way to learn
  • No education or training requirements for tutors , and no information about who the writing reviewers are
  • No option to work with the same writing tutor for each review, so no chance to grow with an individual tutor

#13 – TutaPoint

Our Verdict — Creative Writing and Quick Editing but Little Expertise Price: $50/hour Unlike many of the other online writing tutoring services, TutaPoint is one of the few that explicitly includes help learning creative writing. (The other services on our list that can teach creative writing are #1, PrepMaven , where students can even work with Ivy-League professionals in creative writing fields like screenwriting or publishing, and the Tutoring Service of New York .) In addition to one-on-one tutoring sessions, TutaPoint also offers the option to submit papers for written feedback with a 24-hour turnaround. Unfortunately, TutaPoint’s website is a little confusing and lacks a lot of important information about their tutoring services. More significantly, they pay their tutors about a quarter of what they charge clients, and this makes it difficult for them to attract and retain good teaching talent. Tutors at TutaPoint do not have any specific qualifications. They do not necessarily have college degrees or teaching experience.

  • Cost: $50/hour
  • Creative writing included in their subjects available
  • No specified qualifications for tutors , so writing tutors do not necessarily have college degrees or teaching experience
  • Quality of tutors is lower due to low pay for instructors

#14 – Tutoring Service of New York

Our Verdict — New Service with Higher Minimum Package Price: $ 130–155/hour Founded by a former tutor with the now-defunct Ivy Global tutoring service, the new Tutoring Service of New York offers subject-area tutoring online, including literature and writing. We like that they state that they teach both academic writing and creative writing — only #1 service PrepMaven and TutaPoint explicitly include creative writing. Most of their tutors are current graduate students, many at Columbia University and NYU. The higher prices of the Tutoring Service of New York reflect the more elite educational background of the tutors. However, their minimum of $1200 for at least 5 sessions is high, especially since many other services have smaller minimum packages (compare $510 minimum at PrepMaven or $450 minimum at The Princeton Review ), or else allow families to purchase one-off tutoring sessions ( Pearson , Skooli , and others).

  • Cost: $1200 for five 90-minute sessions; $2000 for 10 sessions; $2700 for 16 sessions
  • Writing tutor qualifications:  college graduates, mostly current graduate students at Columbia or NYU
  • Qualified tutors with mostly Ivy-League backgrounds
  • Creative writing included along with academic writing
  • New service , so client reviews are still limited
  • Higher minimum tutoring packages

#15 – Preply

Our Verdict — Lower-Cost Tutoring Marketplace Platform Price: $10–40/hour Preply is a lower-cost marketplace platform. It’s significantly smaller than Wyzant , and currently there are only 45 writing tutors listed on the platform (compared with over 4,000 writing tutors listed on Wyzant). Among those writing tutors listed, most don’t have high educational backgrounds. We spotted a number of grammar and punctuation mistakes on some of the tutor bios, which doesn’t bode well for their abilities as writing instructors. Preply is a more international platform, and some of the tutors are from other countries or located outside the US. One benefit of Preply’s platform is that rates are very low, ranging from $10/hour to $40/hour. These rates are actually comparable or higher than the pay rates for most of the larger platforms on our list (like Pearson , The Princeton Review , Varsity Tutors , and TutaPoint ), so don’t necessarily take these numbers on their own as indications of lower quality — just that tutors are earning a larger share. That said, the writing tutoring available through Preply does appear to be lower-quality than other options.

  • Cost: $10–40/hour, depending on rates set by individual tutors
  • Writing tutor qualifications:  varies
  • F amilies can choose individual tutors on their marketplace platform
  • No specific qualifications for tutors and no quality control
  • Task of choosing the right tutor can be stressful

student studying for SAT with online tutor

Top 50 Online Writing Tutoring Services Considered

  • Pearson’s Smarthinking
  • Learn To Be – free tutoring for underserved youth in the US
  • Tutor.com/The Princeton Review
  • Club Z! Tutoring
  • Sylvan Learning
  • Varsity Tutors
  • Lehman Tutoring Center
  • Business Writing Center
  • UPchieve – free tutoring for underserved youth in the US
  • SpecialEdTutoring.com 
  • GilliamWritersGroup
  • Jamie Haverkampf, MFA
  • Suprex Learning
  • UniversityTutor.com
  • Huntington Learning Center
  • Cluey Learning
  • Galaxy Grades
  • Clever Fox Education
  • Nurturing Wisdom
  • Themba Tutors
  • Tutoring Service of New York
  • Carla Castillo, carlaswritingspace.com 
  • Literacy Access, Ivy Sandz 
  • Kaplan Tutoring Services (separate from Kaplan)
  • ArborBridge
  • INC Education – focus on BIPOC students
  • Central Park Tutors
  • Special Education Resource
  • Revolution Prep

Princeton University

Start writing tutoring today

Why is learning how to write important?

Writing is a core skill that is essential for success in high school and college , as well as many graduate programs and future careers . 

Consider the following:

  • AP tests that require short answers and essays: AP English Literature, AP English Language, AP US History, AP European History
  • College admissions essays
  • Scholarship essays
  • Writing samples for college applications
  • Exams and papers for college classes
  • Internship applications
  • Grant applications
  • Fellowship applications (Fulbright, Rhodes, Gates, NIH, etc)
  • Graduate school applications (medical school, law school, business school, etc)
  • Research paper samples for graduate school applications
  • Master’s and doctoral theses
  • Coverletters and resumes for job applications
  • Networking with potential mentors
  • Written updates for your supervisor
  • Quarterly and annual reports for your job
  • Advertising for your freelance business
  • Letter for your mortgage application
  • Instructions to your direct supervisee
  • Speeches for your best friends’ weddings
  • Emails to your boss asking for a raise

Effective writing is at the heart of nearly every life hurdle! 

The skills that you build when you’re writing school assignments will be incredibly useful throughout your life. They’re applicable in nearly any job that you can imagine! Even for STEM jobs like doctors or computer engineers, clear writing is a highly-valued skill — one that becomes increasingly important as one aims at higher roles.

According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers , 73.4% of employers want a candidate with strong written communication skills . According to the College Board’s National Commission on Writing , two-thirds of salaried workers in large US companies have jobs that require writing . 

“Writing skills are fundamental in business ,” a survey respondent in the College Board report said, “It’s increasingly important to be able to convey content in a tight logical direct manner particularly in a fast-paced technological environment.”

A recent publication from the Harvard Business School agreed, noting that “companies will waste lots of time and effort if their executives and employees can’t communicate clearly.”

writing in future career

However, many people lack the writing skills to succeed in their careers . The College Board’s study found that a majority of US employers said that a third of workers fail to meet the writing requirements of their positions.

When I was teaching college students at the University of Notre Dame, many of my students (especially freshmen and sophomores) had brilliant ideas, but were not able to communicate those ideas clearly in writing.

If writing is such a key skill for success in education, career, and life, why do so many people lack this skill?

Unfortunately, many schools don’t teach students how to write effectively . Classes assign essays and leave students to flounder, especially in larger classes where well-meaning teachers might not have enough time to help each student individually. 

The students who are the most successful tend to benefit from informal writing guidance at home from their parents or other mentors. But this is challenging and time-consuming — not to mention, many parents might not have honed those writing skills themselves!

Families have been increasingly recognizing the immense benefit of private writing tutoring . Learning how to write early on will have a positive ripple effect throughout the student’s academic and professional career, and a little bit of coaching can go a long way!

student writing

Learning to Write for College Admissions Essays

Because they’re one of the most consequential writing assignments students face, let’s focus on college application essays for a moment.

Can a great college essay alone get you into Harvard?

No. You’ll need your grades, test scores, and extracurricular activities (as well as letters of recommendation and interview) to be outstanding.

But can a mediocre essay be the reason you didn’t get into Harvard?

Yes . There are thousands of amazingly-qualified students who graduate from high school each year. Great grades and test scores might be a prerequisite for admission to a competitive college, but they alone aren’t enough.

College essays are a key component of a student’s application. When done well, they transform a collection of numbers — GPA, class rank, SAT scores or ACT scores , number of AP classes taken, AP scores — into a picture of a real, individual person.

Essays do many things. Good college essays can highlight extracurricular achievements which otherwise would be overlooked in a sterile list. Strong essays often indicate the student’s future plans — how they plan to leave a mark on their college campus and on the world. They can shine a light on unique challenges that a student may have had to face on their journey.

Princeton University

College admissions officers only have a few minutes to spend on each application. College essays need to be original , interesting , and memorable . They need to grab the attention of the admissions officer and persuade them that this is the student out of hundreds or thousands of other similarly-qualified applicants who should be admitted .

College admissions essays are usually unlike any other kind of writing that students have done before. They’re a combination of memoir and marketing pitch, and they need to be creative but also highly strategic . That’s a tough assignment!

A great writing tutor can help students learn the essential skills that underpin this unique kind of writing.

Schedule a free short college essay consultation

Why work with a writing tutor?

You may want to consider working with a writing tutor if:

  • You want to improve your grades in your school essays and papers
  • You want to improve your performance on the writing portion of exams (like many APs)
  • You don’t know how to make an outline before writing an essay
  • You don’t know how to write a thesis statement
  • You’re not sure how to improve your writing based on feedback from your teachers
  • You’re not sure how to edit and refine what you’ve written
  • You have a hard time keeping yourself on track for your writing assignments and want an external structure to hold you accountable
  • You have no idea where to start in order to write your college application essays
  • You don’t know how to craft a compelling story for your college application essays
  • You feel overwhelmed by all of the different ideas you have and don’t know what would be the most strategic for college admissions—and what topics to definitely avoid for college essays
  • You’re tired of conflict between students and parents about college essays
  • You’re aiming at a competitive college (not just the Ivy League!) and know that you need your essays to be outstanding
  • Your grades, test scores, and extracurriculars aren’t exceptional, so you need your college essays to make your essay stand out from the pack
  • You’re unfamiliar with the US college admissions process (a common situation for international students and first-generation families in the US)
  • You want to learn to write so you can succeed in your later career
  • You know that if you learn to write well now, you’ll do better on every class, exam, assignment, and application for the rest of your life!

Any of these are good reasons to consider working with a writing tutor.

A good writing tutor should not only provide students feedback on writing assignments (comments like “your thesis statement should be clearer” or “your introductory paragraph needs a better hook”) — they’ll teach students how to effect those changes . 

A good writing tutor can provide lots of examples of good student writing and model how to improve the specific areas that need improvement for each individual student.

Remember, writing is an essential skill for most degrees and most careers — even in STEM! Learning to write well early on will make each subsequent education and career step easier and more successful.

writing

What makes a good writing tutor?

Of course, a good writing tutor should be someone who understands how to write well!

But in addition to that sine qua non , a good writing tutor should be an amazing teacher with experience, a strong educational background, and the ability to plan appropriate enrichment assignments.

Good writing has two components: 

  • a micro level : good grammar, a rich vocabulary, correct punctuation, and the other nuts and bolts of writing “correctly”
  • a macro level : being able to organize your ideas clearly and communicate them effectively — figuring out what you want to say, in what order to present your ideas, and how to connect them

Both are crucial to written communication, and a good writing tutor will teach both the micro level and the macro level.

It can be surprisingly challenging to find a good instructor who can teach both sides of writing.

Look for experienced tutors with strong educational backgrounds (i.e. who attended top universities) who have taught writing previously.

college essay about tutoring

Writing is a highly individualized activity — learning to write is, after all, learning how to communicate. This means that individual tutoring is particularly effective for learning how to write more effectively. 

The personal nature of writing also means that students will learn better when they can establish a relationship with their writing tutor . Look for a tutoring service where students can continue with the same tutor and build a sense of rapport.

A good writing tutor can help students to succeed on any writing assignments they may have for school . They can teach students how to work through the entire process of brainstorming, researching, planning, outlining, writing, and revising an essay.

An experienced writing tutor can also create additional assignments for students that will teach them key writing skills for the future and enrich their education. 

These enrichment assignments might include research papers, literary analysis papers, or creative writing projects appropriate to their grade level. This can be a great opportunity to challenge high-achieving students and develop their skills beyond what is offered by their school.

writing

Sign up for PrepMaven’s one-on-One writing tutoring

Best overall: The one-on-one writing tutoring from PrepMaven is the best out there both in terms of tutor quality and price. While PrepMaven’s tutors can certainly help with school assignments, they can also offer educational enrichment and coach students through creative writing projects. Starting at just $66/hour, students can work with current undergraduates at Princeton, Harvard, and other Ivy-League universities to improve their writing skills. Families can also work with experienced, professional educators and Ivy-League graduates at $149/hour. As a boutique tutoring service, PrepMaven offers careful attention to each student and boasts amazing customer reviews. Unique among the tutoring services we surveyed, PrepMaven doesn’t just offer assignment support — they can also teach students how to write.

Best of the big companies: The Smarthinking platform developed by publishing giant Pearson provides reasonably-priced tutoring both on-demand and scheduled in advance, and it’s better than the tutoring provided by other large companies. Their tutors have a higher level of education than many other options — the majority hold advanced degrees. That said, mosts of their tutors aren’t from top-tier universities, and they struggle to keep good teachers. In addition, their online platform is older and prone to crashing.

Best super-quick tutoring: If students want short-term tutoring available instantly, they might consider Skooli . Skooli is the only tutoring service we reviewed that offers tutoring by the minute. Tutors aren’t necessarily from top schools, and students can’t work with the same tutor consistently, so the quality of tutoring is lower, but on-demand tutoring can start as soon as you enter your credit card details.

Alternative for families on a budget: For families on a tighter budget, we’d suggest looking for an independent tutor on Wyzant . It’s a tutoring marketplace platform, so the quality varies hugely and there’s no oversight or qualification requirements, but you might find a decent tutor under $40/hour.

However, in our experience a good tutor can accomplish more with a student in one hour than an average tutor can do in five hours . With that in mind, it might be more effective to choose fewer hours of reliably high-quality tutoring.

Best free writing tutoring (for qualifying families): For qualifying lower-income families and students, Learn to Be is a fantastic option for free tutoring. Students can work with the same tutor consistently, which provides a good environment for learning. Tutors are volunteers with a wide range of backgrounds and experience levels, from current high school students to retired professionals.

University of Chicago (Image Credit: Rick Seidel Creative Commons CC BY 2.0)

Ready to learn to write with one of our experienced tutors? Schedule a free tutoring consultation with Jessica (Director of Tutoring) or one of our founders to see what would be the best fit for your family.

Regardless of your current writing abilities and planned career path, learning how to write well is a skill that will pay dividends throughout your life . 

Remember that essays can be used to earn scholarships as well as college admission , so a few months of writing coaching now can pay off with up to $300,000 in tuition saved later.

Writing is also a highly-valued skill in the workplace , and employers are looking for graduates who are strong writers.

To start working with an Ivy-League writing coach today, set up a quick free consultation with our team.

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Emily graduated  summa cum laude  from Princeton University and holds an MA from the University of Notre Dame. She was a National Merit Scholar and has won numerous academic prizes and fellowships. A veteran of the publishing industry, she has helped professors at Harvard, Yale, and Princeton revise their books and articles. Over the last decade, Emily has successfully mentored hundreds of students in all aspects of the college admissions process, including the SAT, ACT, and college application essay. 

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TJ and College Application Essay Tutoring

Writing the common application essay is a nerve-wracking and complex process for students. what does a college want to know about me do i tell them i have diabetes is being captain of my soccer team too cliche can i use a story about my science fair project if i didn’t win how do i write a compelling essay that expresses my unique voice and personality.

These questions are not easy to answer for teenagers, but with the help of writing tutors, Cathy Colglazier and Kate Lewis , students can learn to navigate the college application essay process and find the right topics for their essays. They might even enjoy the experience, regardless of how reluctant they are as writers.

Cathy has worked as a writing tutor with Inspiring Test Prep for over ten years. She is a former English teacher and department chair at both TJHSST and McLean High School. Kate has worked as a writing tutor with Inspiring Test Prep for over a year, and after her years at TJHSST, earned a MFA at George Mason University, later becoming a professor at both GMU and Northern Virginia Community College.

Former students would characterize Cathy and Kate as “Teen Whisperers” as they eas ily est ablis h a rapport with their students. The process then becomes one where the students’ voices emerge -and not the tutor or parents .

These essays are critical parts of the admissions folder, giving colleges insight into who the applicant is and whether the school is a good fit for them.

With Cathy’s and Kate’s help, students will polish their personal writing and become strategic in their choice of topics. Using effective language, correct grammar, and diction are, of course, essential, but compelling and insightful content is crucial for a successful essay. Colleges want the essays to answer the question “Who are you?”

The tutors will work with your student on an individual basis to achieve polished essays for their application portfolio.

For questions or to schedule an appointment call Cathy at 703-628-2348 or Kate at 571-344-2156.

Their fee is $150 per session with packets of four sessions being the suggested choice ($600). The number of sessions needed depends on the number of colleges the student is applying to, as well as the writing skill of the student. The tutors accept Venmo, but will arrange other modes of payment, if needed.

Cathy and Kate also work with students applying to private school, TJHSST, graduate school, medical and law school, summer internships, and scholarships.

If you want essay instruction please contact Cathy Colglazier and Kate Lewis directly.

Do not contact Kate Dalby for essay instruction. Mrs. Dalby only coaches the math portion of the TJ entrance exam. Her email is [email protected].

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Cathy Colglazier – Writing Instructor 703.628.2348 [email protected]

college essay about tutoring

Kate Lewis – Writing Instructor 571.344.2156 [email protected]

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COLLEGE ESSAY WRITING: 1-ON-1 TUTORING

Private sessions available, 11th - , flexible- set with your instructor, summer camps.

College Essay Writing 1-1   Dates: Monday June 10, 2024 – Friday August 23, 2024. Time: Flexible to your schedule Location: Online – Zoom to be sent by tutor. Faculty: Mr. Andrew Fondell, Mr. Rob O’Chander, Ms. Rachel Salinger, Mr. Jay Pawlyk Tuition: $700

For the student looking for personalized instruction with the college Common Application essay, an SJP English teacher will help brainstorm ideas, recommend a topic uniquely personal to the student, provide feedback on drafts, and offer final proofreading. Following an intentional schedule, decided upon by the student and the tutor, students will brainstorm ideas, develop drafts, and polish their product.  In that way, the Common App essay will be largely completed by September allowing the student to focus on other college-related activities during the first semester of senior year.  

Parent Testimonial:

“I just wanted to take some time to express how much I enjoyed reading my son’s college essay that you teach, review and monitor.  I can’t think of a teacher who could have made this any more special than you did. I have full confidence that my son can get into his dream school.”

This service is provided online via Zoom  – all links will be provided by the teacher upon registration.  Each student shall receive one-to-one time for a minimum of 5.0 hours and teachers will provide 1.0 additional hour of reading/edit time.  You may agree on another schedule with your child’s teacher, verified by email.  

Schedules will be set between students and tutors; parents will be cc’d on all scheduling emails so they are aware of when their child will meet with their tutor.  We ask that all students have an initial session in June, meet two or three times in July, and aim to complete all essay work with their tutor by Friday, August 23, 2024.  Any sessions beyond this date will be at the discretion of the individual tutor.  

Tutoring sessions can be rescheduled with 48 hours notice, and students who miss more than one session without sufficient explanation (medical emergency, for example) will not be offered a rescheduled session.  We ask that parents assist in scheduling, where necessary, and assist in providing a suitable work environment for their child.

Please click here to view our Summer 2024 Policies, including deposit and refund information.

All Summer at St. John’s  programs are subject to change and every effort will be made to provide advance notice of such changes.  Programs are contingent upon meeting minimum enrollment numbers, and programs that do not do so may be canceled at short notice.

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Program dates, flexible - set with your instructor, back to summer programs, related programs, academic enrichment, college essay writing workshop (evenings), week five: july 8-12, 2024, college interview and resume building workshop, college application essay writing workshop (mornings), week three: june 24- 28, 2024, new england basketball camp @ eagles sports camp, full day (9am – 4pm), new england flag football camp @ eagles sports camp, august 1-4, 2022.

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Taking the SAT and writing your college essay can seem like daunting tasks. Where do you start? Which resources are the best? How much time do you need to put in?

The good news is that you can definitely improve your SAT score with commitment, practice, and the right preparation. I would like to help you through that process, so you can walk into the test feeling like you've done it many times before.

The college application essay is also a source of frustration. You may not believe you are interesting or have lived enough to tell a compelling story. This is not true! Everyone has a unique personality, perspective, and life experience. The challenge is finding your uniqueness and bringing it out clearly in an essay. I can help you do that.

In addition to tutoring online check out my YouTube page for SAT Walk-through videos.

college essay about tutoring

As a Junior in high school, I didn't even know you could study for the SAT. Most believed that your score revealed how smart you were, and ultimately determined your future. Fortunately, my art teacher advised me to see a private tutor he knew. She was a lawyer who tutored SAT in her spare time. After five months I got through 20 SATs and my score increased over 200.... continue

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COMMENTS

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    A list of the 15 best online writing tutoring services, reviewed and ranked. Compare prices & writing tutor qualifications. Best overall: PrepMaven's writing tutoring ($66-349/hr). Best on a budget: Wyzant ($20-600/hr). Best…

  19. TJ and College Application Essay Tutoring

    The tutors will work with your student on an individual basis to achieve polished essays for their application portfolio. For questions or to schedule an appointment call Cathy at 703-628-2348 or. Kate at 571-344-2156. Their fee is $150 per session with packets of four sessions being the suggested choice ($600).

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  21. COLLEGE ESSAY WRITING: 1-ON-1 TUTORING

    College Essay Writing 1-1 Dates: Monday June 10, 2024 - Friday August 23, 2024. Time: Flexible to your schedule Location: Online - Zoom to be sent by tutor. Faculty: Mr. Andrew Fondell, Mr. Rob O'Chander, Ms. Rachel Salinger Tuition: $700 For the student looking for personalized instruction with the college Common Application essay, an SJP English teacher will help brainstorm ideas ...

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    College Essay Tutoring. Home About Testimonials Contact Schedule Open Menu Close Menu. Home About Testimonials Contact Schedule It's never been more important to write a great college essay. With a BA from Yale and over seven years of personalized college essay tutoring catered to each student's unique needs, I can help you put your best ...

  23. SAT

    As a Junior in high school, I didn't even know you could study for the SAT. Most believed that your score revealed how smart you were, and ultimately determined your future. Fortunately, my art teacher advised me to see a private tutor he knew. She was a lawyer who tutored SAT in her spare time. After five months I got through 20 SATs and my ...

  24. Linda R.

    Schedule an online tutoring session with Linda R. to learn Essay Writing online. Read reviews, see more subjects Linda R. tutors and schedule a session.