Meet Tutoring Students Where They Are

A recent study by the National Survey of Student Engagement found that first-year students who feel their colleges provide high levels of academic support are more likely to want to return the next year. Effective tutoring strengthens subject comprehension and the confidence students need to persist. Student persistence leads to the successful completion of college courses and reaching the ultimate goal of graduation!

The Problem

As a college administrator, you want to offer your students the support they need to succeed in their classes. However, it can be difficult to connect with nontraditional students who are balancing multiple responsibilities. While many students understand the benefits of tutoring, connecting with tutoring services isn’t always feasible. Maybe they have a child to tend to before and after class, or a job that takes priority. They could also be shy or embarrassed that their performance in a class is lacking. Whatever the reasons, the data shows that tutoring for college students is key to academic improvement.

The Solution

Upswing’s platform offers a ’round-the-clock’ network of tutors across a wide range of subjects, plus the ability to add your own campus tutors as well. Through Upswing, students can schedule a session at a time that is convenient for them. They can also request to meet with a tutor immediately. Eliminating the need for students to wait for and commit to a future date and time for tutoring allows them to get the help they need, when they need it the most.

In 2021, Upswing saw more than 121,000 completed tutoring sessions. Roughly 10,000 of those sessions were held immediately upon a student’s request. Upswing tutors also reviewed just under 40,000 papers. Our data shows that when students are given an easily accessible and convenient way to reach out for help, they’re more likely to take it. With Upswing, it doesn’t matter when a student needs support as they will have a timely and seamless way to access the subject-specific help they need.

Upswing Tutor Qualifications

At Upswing, we are committed to hiring the best online tutors. Our tutor vetting process ensures that we hire tutors that not only have the experience and education needed to be effective educations, but that they also reflect our student populations. Nearly 30% of Upswing tutors are first-generation college students, and almost 40% attended community college.

Upswing Tutor Requirements:

• 3.5 GPA or higher
• Four-year, graduate and postdoctoral degrees preferred
• Undergraduates (junior level or above are considered)
• Tutoring or teaching experience preferred (over 70% of Upswing tutors have prior teaching experience)
• Successful completion of subject evaluations (as applicable)
• Completion of a virtual interview to confirm strong wifi connection and tech savviness

Once hired, Upswing tutors receive continuous support and supervision to ensure success. New tutors are closely monitored and sessions are reviewed semi-weekly. Asynchronous writing tutors receive 1-2 spot checks per semester. Synchronous tutors receive monthly stats updates and quarterly “report cards” which include all student feedback from the previous 3 months.

What makes Upswing different?

Upswing began as an online tutoring platform, and while we have expanded our offerings to include Ana, our SMS virtual assistant, advising, assignment review, and mental health support, tutoring remains one of our core solutions. What makes us different from other tutoring companies is that we integrate and enhance your current on-campus tutoring resources to ultimately help you streamline your entire tutoring program.

Choosing to put your campus tutors onto our platform makes it easy for your students to schedule sessions and for you to see usage data and student experience feedback. You can also supplement your tutor workforce by utilizing Upswing’s tutors, who are available 24/7, especially on nights and weekends. Our tutors cover over 400 subjects, including hard-to-staff disciplines like computer science, nursing, advanced math, and psychology.

We strive to eliminate the barriers both administrators and students face to reach their goals. With Upswing, you’ll find everything you need to manage your school’s tutoring services bundled in an easy-to-use platform.

To learn more about how your school can benefit from Upswing’s tutoring services, contact us today to schedule a demo.