Frequently Asked Questions

What is Tutors Live?

Tutors-Live is a web site for matching the demand and offer of online and in person tutoring.

Thank Tutors-Live, people of all ages and in all countries can, at low cost or free of charge, improve their education, earn money by teaching, meet other people with similar interests and socialize in an intelligent and productive way.

For a full description of the site and its services, see also the following pages:

• About us
• How Tutors-Live Works
• Getting Started
• Subjects
• Statistics
• Tutors-Live International

Who can benefit from Tutors Live?

Many different categories of people can benefit from Tutors-Live:

• Students of any level, professionals, hobbyists and anyone who wants to learn about a particular subject with the help of a personal tutor
• Professional teachers, subject matter experts, professionals of any industry and discipline, hobbyists and, in general, any persons who would like to share their knowledge with other people for money and/or fun
• Tutoring companies that want to expand their commercial channels
• Organizations who need tutoring services for their personnel.

Are lessons online or in person?

Based on the needs and constraints of the student and the tutor and their locations, tutoring can be done online, in person (at the tutor’s or student’s place) or via email or telephone.

How does online tutoring work?

Online tutoring means that the lesson takes place using one of the many communication tools available on the Internet, like Skype, Windows Live, Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger etc..

Anyway, we recommend the usage of Talkini, a web-based platform which supports the full cycle of interactions between student and tutor (scheduling of lessons, video conference with automated payments via credit card).

Is online tutoring better than traditional, in person tutoring?

No telecommunication tool can be as effective as a face-to-face lesson, but the results of online tutoring are generally very satisfactory, also thanks to the high quality of the communication tools and Internet connections available today.

In fact, online lessons have some important advantages over traditional lessons: they can be much cheaper, don’t require students or teachers to travel, and can be much more flexible as regards their frequency, duration and scheduling. Tutoring session can be arranged very quickly, and the tutors can answer questions and give help in real time when the needs arise.

Does Tutors-Live provide a specific tool for online lessons?

No. There are many excellent free tools available online like Skype, Windows Live, Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger and other tools that are more specific for online learning. The choice of the tool to use is left to the student and teacher to agree.

Anyway, we recommend the usage of Talkini, a web-based platform which supports the full cycle of interactions between student and tutor (scheduling of lessons, video conference with automated payments via credit card).

Do I need to install any special software for tutoring or learning?

It depends on the tool that you want to use. As said above the lessons are done using common online communication tools, so for online lessons you will need to install at least one of them.

How do I become a registered user?

Use the Registration link, located on the page header. During the registration process you will be able to choose if you want to register as a student, as a tutor or both.

How can I view/edit my profile and add my picture?

Use the My account link, located on the page header. This is visible only if you are logged-in.

How can I unregister?

You can unregister by visiting the page My account and clicking on "Delete my account" at the bottom of the page.

I’m a student, how can I find a tutor?

Use the Find tutors page to view a list of selected tutors. The list can be filtered using many different criteria, such as subject, level, country, language, maximum fee and many more.

How can I contact a tutor?

In order to initiate a contact with a tutor, you will first have to register.

Just click the “contact” link of the desired tutor in the Find tutors page or the “Contact” button in the tutor’s full profile and fill in and submit the contact form.

Tutors-Live will send a message with your data to the tutor. Your name and email address will not be shown, but you can include them in the free text if you want. The tutor will normally answer directly to you shortly.

After the first contact, you can use whatever communication means you prefer (email, phone, chat or others) to agree on tutoring details like mode (in person, online etc.), price, payment method and lesson schedules.

What is a tutoring request?

A student can post one or more tutoring requests, i.e. records that describe particular learning needs (i.e. the subject to study, the study level, how many lesson hours are foreseen, maximum fee payable and other information including free text).

Candidate tutors can search for tutoring requests and contact the students who issued them, if they think they can comply with what is required.

Is it possible to connect with other students?

Yes, Tutors-Live actually encourages connection between students. Two or more students can get in touch for many different reasons like studying together, sharing knowledge, notes, exercises and ideas. And a student could also get paid for helping other students.

To find and contact other students, use the Find other Students page.

What if the subject I want to learn isn’t listed?

If the subject you want to learn is not listed in the subject list, please tell us about it by means of the contact page. Tutors-Live does not guarantee that it will be added to the list, but will give adequate consideration to all requests.

Nevertheless, you can still operate in Tutors-Live by specifying "Other subject" as subject studied, and describing it in the free text part of your profile or tutoring request.

In the Find Students page and Find tutoring requests page there is a search filter that matches a character string against the free text part of user profiles and tutoring request descriptions, and which allow you to be found by tutors or other students who are interested in that particular subject.

How can I know if a tutor is qualified?

There is much information about tutors on their profile, including education level, experience and reason for tutoring. However, Tutors-Live does not directly certify the tutors, so it’s important to read the full profile of the tutors and maybe ask them specific questions before agreeing for any lessons. Some tutors also have a personal web site and a video presentation, where they can provide additional information about their experience and qualifications, including, in same cases, recorded sample lessons.

What should I do if a tutor does not respond to my request for contact?

If you don’t receive a reply from a tutor that you have contacted in a reasonable amount of time (3-4 days), please let us know and we will take the appropriate actions. Ensuring that tutors respond to requests in a timely way is important for Tutors-Live.

Can I keep a list of my favorite tutors?

Yes. To do this, in the Find Tutors page, click the "add to fav" link associated with the tutors you are interested in. You can then select your favorite tutors by means of the My favorite tutors command under the "For students" menu.

Do I need to be a certified teacher to register?

No. Anyone who feels he/she has enough knowledge of a subject to teach other people can register as a tutor. However, Tutors-Live wishes to maintain a high professional level among the registered teachers and can contact tutors where appropriate to make sure that they have the necessary qualifications.

I’m a teacher, how can I find students?

There are two ways to find students:

• wait to be contacted,
• and/or use the Find tutoring requests page to view a list of tutoring requests.

See also: Increase your probability to be found by students.

What is a tutoring request?

A student can post one or more tutoring requests, i.e. records that describe particular learning needs (i.e. the subject to study, the study level, how many lesson hours are foreseen, maximum fee payable and other information including free text).

Candidate tutors can search for tutoring requests and contact the students who issued them, if they think they can comply with what is required.

How can I contact a student?

In order to initiate a contact with a student, you will first have to register.

Just click the “contact” link of the desired student in the Find students page or the “Contact” button in the student’s full profile and fill in and submit the contact form.

Tutors-Live will send a message with your data to the student. Your name and email address will not be shown, but you can include them in the free text if you want. The student will normally answer directly to you shortly.

After the first contact, you can use whatever communication means you prefer (email, phone, chat or others) to agree on tutoring details like mode (in person, online etc.), price, payment method and lesson schedules.

How can I increase the number of contacts that I receive?

First of all, you should make sure that your profile is complete with all information (both mandatory and optional), preferably including a picture of you.

Second, Tutors-Live recommends all tutors to have a personal web site and possibly a video presentation including a sample lesson, and to post the corresponding links in their Tutors-Live profiles.

If you don't have a personal web site yet, Tutors-Live can refer to you companies and professionals that can build one for you for a reasonable price.

Finally, try to avoid listing more than three subjects taught. Putting too many subjects may give the impression that you don’t have enough in-depth knowledge in any of them.

See also: Increase your probability to be found by students.

Is it possible to connect with other tutors?

Yes. Use the Find tutors page to view a list of tutors with the appropriate filters, then contact the other tutor using the same procedure as for contacting students.

What if the subject I want to teach isn’t listed?

If the subject you want to teach is not listed in the subject list, please tell us about it by means of the contact page. Tutors-Live does not guarantee that it will be added to the list, but will give adequate consideration to all requests.

Nevertheless, you can still operate in Tutors-Live by specifying "Other subject" as your subject taught, and describing it in the free text part of your profile.

In the Find tutors page there is a search filter that matches a character string against the free text part of user profiles, and which allow you to be found by students who are interested in that particular subject.

Can I keep a list of my favorite tutoring requests?

Yes. To do this, in the Find Tutoring Requests page, click the "add to fav" link associated with the tutoring request you are interested in. You can then select your favorite tutoring requests by means of the My favorite tutoring requests command under the "For tutors" menu.

Do I have to pay to register with Tutors-Live?

Registering with Tutors-Live is free for both students and teachers.

Does it cost anything to find and contact tutors or students?

All registered users can contact up to 2 users per day. Premium users can contact up to 10 users per day and have priority in search results. (see Becoming a Premium User).

How do teachers get paid?

Teachers can specify how they want to be paid in their profile. Payment methods may include, for instance, credit card, Paypal, money transfer and cash.

Does Tutors-Live keep a percentage of the price a student pays to the tutor?

No, the tutor is paid directly by the student and gets 100% of the money paid.

Is Tutors-Live responsible for making sure that teachers get paid?

No. All payments between students and teachers happen outside Tutors-Live and Tutors-Live is not responsible for them. However, in case of incorrect behavior of a student reported by a tutor, Tutors-Live may take appropriate actions, which may include unregistering the student.