How to find maths students
2LikeIf you have a background in mathematics, becoming a maths tutor is one of the best things you can do. There is a lot of demand for maths classes and tutors who are just starting out with giving private maths tuition tend to make a pretty good living.
Getting maths students isn't difficult, but they don't just fall out of the sky, especially at the beginning or during a quiet period. For those times when students seem to be hiding under a rock, we have some tips to boost your maths tutoring career when you need it most.
How do you get more students for your maths classes?
There is no magic formula for getting students for private tuition, but there are things you can do that work most of the time. These are techniques that work for top professionals that could work for you too:
- Optimise your profile. Take the time to create a good tutor profile, making sure it's complete but not too long. You have to try to reflect on what makes you a good tutor and what makes you unique from the rest. No one knows how to sell yourself as much as you do, so invest some time in creating a unique profile and you are sure to succeed.
- Choose where to advertise. There are many places where you can look for students - by connecting with schools or tuition centres, by advertising in local papers or on social networks. However, the most effective is always through a website that specialises in private tuition such as FindTutors. When you invest in advertising, it is likely that you will reap the rewards.
- Take care of your students. There is no better publicity than word-of-mouth. A student who is happy with the results you've brought about with your private classes will likely recommend you to others. So take care of the students you have and connect with your former students. Keep your current and past students happy, and more will likely
- Use reviews. Contact students you have taught before who will leave good reviews or testimonials which you can integrate into your profile. This way you can improve your profile and get the effect of word-of-mouth recommendations online.
Doing your job well with each student is undoubtedly what will work best for you in terms of acquiring more students. Try to establish a great bond with your pupils and your students will no doubt recommend you to their peers. Take care of your work and put effort into everything you do to ensure that the return is manifold.
Gaining maths students through advertising
If you want to become a maths tutor, sooner or later you will have to make some kind of investment in advertising. Especially if you're starting from scratch, it's hard to know where you should spend your money in order to see results. There are several things you should consider:
- Where to advertise. It's important to get your timing right. Putting posters near school gates might be a good idea, but there are websites with a lot of traffic that offer you ads for a lower price point than printing hundreds of pieces of paper.
- Create a stand-out advert. Don't create an advert that looks the same as adverts from other tutors. Find your unique selling point and highlight it. Take your time with creating your advertising as it´s the first impression you give off to potential students, and is therefore important to get right.
- Evaluate the results. Never make an investment without checking whether it has worked or not. This is a big mistake made by many people that start a business who end up losing money. Try to see how much profit you have made from your advertisement and evaluate other ways of advertising if it is not profitable.
You may already be aware that in order to make money you have to invest money. However, we have to do this in a reasonable and strategic way and ensure that we´re not investing money recklessly, especially if you want to commit to this career for the long run.
Ways to gain visibility as a tutor
If you don't have much money to spare for advertising, the next best way to gain students is to invest your time. There are many things you can do to gain visibility as a tutor, but they all revolve around the same idea of enhancing your value as a tutor.
- Write about education. Use a blog or a website to write about topics relating to your classes. These can be specific, focusing on topics you teach in your classes such as theories or equations, or you can talk about something more general to gauge the interest of potential students, such as the history of maths or famous mathematicians.
- Make videos. There is no doubt that video content is truly the way forward in reaching younger generations. The success of the likes of TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube have proven this. There are tutors who have become very successful by filming themselves explaining mathematical concepts - whether that´s through a YouTube masterclass, or a short and snappy reel. You can do the same by adding your own personal touch. You are sure to reach people and gain some students from this method.
- Take care of your social networks. Social networks reveal how you present yourself and showcase your work to the world. Try to have a profile that´s professional but presents you as an approachable person, so that students are more likely to reach out to you.
By using an example outlined above, or even better, by using a combination of a few of the examples, there is no doubt that you'll gain more success as a tutor. Highlight what makes you stand out from the rest in your advertising and remember that your best marketing tool is through word-of-mouth recommendations, so try to give your students the best experience possible in their classes with you.