We suggest to our kids to take 18, and to feel free to drop one if it’s not working out. If you start with 12 and need to drop a course, you can lose scholarships or even housing. My daughter dropped down to 13 last semester, is taking 19 this semester, knowing she could drop one in the beginning. So far one got her 4 + 1 masters in 4 1/2 years, another BS in 4, another bs in 3.
1 Like
My kids school prefers 12 credits semesters plus 6 credits summer for CS and Engineering. So 30 a year but in smaller chunks. And yes to signing up for more credits so you can drop a bad teacher or class.
2 Likes
That’s great if you can afford it, but it does add thousands to the bill. My kids might sneak in a class at CC over a break here and there.
1 Like
Two of our kids majored in mechanical engineering. One at a private university and the other at a big public school. Both used tutoring, office hours, school resources, study groups, etc. Unless there is some assignment that says absolutely no outside help, especially in tough courses, tutoring is the norm. However, the caveat to this is that students must be self motivated. Engineering requires thinking outside of the box and LOTS of problem sets. Getting tutoring should never replace putting the work in on the front end.
4 Likes
I studied structural engineering. I did great except with anything that involved electrical bleep, ha. I have a mental block. So I got tutors for physics and circuits. On the first exam required to eventually become a professional engineer, I picked “C” for the answer to all the circuit questions. 
Somehow I passed the test.
5 Likes
If you want your child to have a tutor, there is no reason why they can’t have one. As long as the student is doing all their own work, I see nothing wrong with this. Tons of students get tutoring and academic support in college. Professors offer office hours to provide extra support.
My son was failing an economics class at one point. He got a private student tutor, met with the TA and professor, and didn’t fail the class. Colleges want students to succeed. They like students to be proactive about their education. There is nothing unethical about getting private tutoring and colleges do not frown on it. Tutoring of any sort is a good thing and that’s why most colleges have academic support centers, often staffed with student tutors.
The advantage of hiring a tutor privately is that they will be able to devote more time to a single student. This is not unethical or against a college honor code that I am aware of.
8 Likes
I don’t think you need to hire a tutor preemptively but rather as a last resort if your kid cannot get adequate help from free tutors made available at most colleges for core courses, professors through office hours and study groups.
Join university Facebook groups run by parents. You will find lots of leads on good tutors. @NewtK
I’m not sure I agree with this. By the time a tutor comes in as a last resort, a student might be so far behind that they either struggle enormously to catch up, or they don’t catch up at all.
Academic support centers at colleges are not there as a last resort, and the same goes for private tutoring. Now, does a student need a tutor at the outset? Maybe not, but it certainly can’t hurt.
2 Likes
Well, the idea is that you utilize these resources from the get go and then seek out paid help if needed.
Schools with big time sports assign students an “academic liason” who helps with a number of things (like coordinating with profs for travel, scheduling, etc) and yes, tutoring. It’s inconceivable to me that this service would be provided to athletes yet prohibited for non-athletes.
With that said, there are a lot of ways to get support, so exploring those now and figuring out what works is an important skill. Office hours, study groups, peer tutoring, help sessions, paid tutors - thesr all work but not equally well in all situations for all students.
I have encouraged my kids to pay close attention to how much work they have ahead of them, and how they feel about their progress, and if they start to feel like they might need help, immediately seek out help. I think that is a good skill to have.
I wouldn’t encourage my kids to arrange for a tutor in advance, “just in case,” even if they feel confident about the class… and I also wouldn’t encourage them to wait until they are desperate and they need a tutor as a “last resort.” There is a middle ground where they need to be able to notice that they need help, while still having enough time to get that help.
3 Likes
Yes, and in all cases this should be a student driven process. Mom & Dad shouldn’t be arranging their child’s tutor in college.
3 Likes
Not to get into debate mode, but again, I don’t entirely agree with that. Some students need more attention than the free services provided by the college. And while I don’t necessarily think the OP’s student needs an on call tutor, I also see no harm.
A student in a very difficult class, who is perhaps not understanding the subject right away, can only benefit from early private tutoring. My POV is as a former tutor at a college and as a current private tutor. At the college, there were soooo many kids who needed much more help than I was able to give them in my limited time.
Bottom line, tutoring works. @Thorsmom66 totally agree that at college level, students need to be responsible for seeking out additional tutoring. Many students are unaware that the relevant department might keep a list of paid student tutors. That’s how my son got his Econ tutor.
5 Likes
I actually found my daughter a chemistry tutor freshman year, it was a bad weed-out (professor was one star on rate my professor, on the parent Facebook page it appeared that parents signed petitions to have him removed every semester (don’t agree with that), my daughter was actually frantic, went to every office hour, TA’s practice tests, ended up with her second B ever (first was freshman year in HS, it was also her last). She had him again the following semester, a tutor advertised on the Facebook page and many parents chimed in about how helpful she was. I gave my daughter her contact information and she booked her before the class started (thank goodness, she filled up quickly). Got an A. The professor was actually very nice, very smart, very old, retired the following semester.
4 Likes
My DD is a senior, EECS major at Berkeley. She never needed tutoring in high school. My husband (also Cal, also an EECS major switched to History) understood though that his experience 30 years ago could’ve been absolutely very different if he had access to tutoring. We encouraged my daughter to find help if she needed it and that it would certainly make all the difference. These days kids do understand there are resources available and they are much more accessible (online options, office hours are encouraged etc) but it is possible that they might or might not think they “need” it. I say, encourage your student to get help as soon they think they might need it. When my daughter struggled with multivariable calculus or some other higher level math her freshman summer we worked with her to find a tutor on Wyzant. Granted, not every student can pay for additional tutoring but please encourage your child to get additional help (peer, office hours etc). Getting tutoring for the more difficult math plus systems class in Electrical engineering last fall made all the difference in her passing those classes. Have your student find out if there are on campus resources or if they are struggling, then you can work with them to check out resources such as Wyzant to find an online tutor to get them through the difficult parts of their college classes. there is no shame or stigma in asking for help and certainly this is not a violation of honor code if you are not cheating.
3 Likes
If you pay a tutor a healthy tuition, as opposed to a school appointed tutor, what are the odds that the tutor does not accommodate whatever your needs are 
homework or otherwise…
2 Likes
Well…this is dishonest…just like the varsity blues folks. So…buyer beware. And your kid should know what is considered help, and what is considered someone else doing the work for you.
3 Likes
As you mentioned above, tutors aren’t supposed to do your work for you! She had two great online tutors. She would send them the problem sets or material that she was working on that week. It was really helpful to have someone to work through the problems she was struggling with. Sometimes (especially in the days of the online lecture, and especially at this big public institution) the instruction is spotty and students leave the lecture still not grasping the concepts. Extra time and another perspective are great gift. The tutor doesn’t need to be school appointed. Just good at understanding and explaining material so you can do the problem yourself.
2 Likes
OP, don’t worry. There is no college in the U.S. where working with a tutor is against the honor code. That includes the military academies. I have worked with more than 500 students who’ve faced a college discipline process at more than 100 different colleges – I suspect this is more experience in the field than any other counselor in the country. I have never had a student who got in trouble for working with a tutor.
Pre-emptively arranging for academic support in a tough field is smart. The worst case scenario is that the student gets an extra firm grasp of the fundamentals.
You pay doctors, but most of them won’t write you a prescription for recreational opioids. You pay accountants, but most of them won’t commit tax fraud. You pay lawyers, but most of them won’t advise you how to commit crimes safely. Paying a tutor doesn’t mean the student will seek inappropriate help or that the the tutor will give it. If you’ve raised your child to be an honest person, and they follow the rules stated by each professor, this is nothing to worry about.
12 Likes
Having someone do the work for you will not help with exams, which is usually most of their grades.
4 Likes