Job Discussion Forums

[Cleopatra]

[veiledsentiments]

Definitely... that kind of money was possible in the pre-exams rush, but for the rest of the year, tutoring tended to be sporadic and probably covered my basic food and taxi costs if I was lucky. But, I was also teaching at the university local hire. (as I said, my rent had been paid for the year by the exam period) In Egypt, I think I could have easily supported myself with lessons, and the income from the local hire contract would have been saved or used for traveling. But, a newbie can't waltz in and do that either... you need 2-3 years to get it organized.

You need to set strict rules and follow them. They have to pay before the lesson. Anyone who didn't call well before the lessons to cancel had to pay for both before the next lesson started. You lose some students this way, but you lose less money over time.

I rarely tutored in the Gulf as I felt that my income was sufficient and I preferred to relax in my spare time. Every once in awhile someone would want some test prep before they took the TOEFL...

VS

[Mark100]

[Imdramayu]

What is the going rate for private one-on-one IELTS-prep lessons in KSA? Cleopetra mentioned a range of SR150-SR250. Is that common in all 3 major urban centres (Jeddha, Riyadh, and Dammam)?

:D

[scot47]

You should get from 150 an hour but get payment in advance and make it clear what your policy is on no-shows. Saudi students often have a habit of not turning up when they should.

If I were doing this I would get them to agree to a timetable in advance, pay the money in advance and get then to agree that a no-show means they still pay for that hour.

[trapezius]

SR. 150/hour is appropriate... for Y2K. It is 2010 now, and the going rate these days is SR. 200/hour to SR. 250/hour. The best thing is to quote 250 and then bring it down to 225 or 200 if necessary. Under no circusmtances should you accept 150, because if your fame spreads and you get more students, it would be difficult to charge others 200 or 250, as it would probably be known that you charge 150 from someone else.

It goes without saying, here, that we are talking about upper class students here, i.e., their parents are most probably business owners or in high positions earning several tens of thousands a month.

And yes, it is the same in all 3 major urban centres.

[scot47]

150 is the lowest acceptable I would say.
That is the rate we get for teaching overtime hours so it would make sense that privates should pay more.

[15yearsinQ8]

i know a retired kuwaiti teacher who converted the family diwaniya into a classroom after her husnad died and is raking in big bucks offering lessons after school - her prices double the week before an exam - she has about 10 desks for semi-private and private lessons, white board, lots of visaul aids

expat teachers have tried to do this but it really means a 2 bedroom or more apartment - some concentrate only on TOEFL or just kids

it's possible, but expats need to
network, network, network
get another - strictly business - cell phone
know the arabic school curic - most major bookshops have the answers to all govt school textbooks available freely above the counter
know the little newspapers to advertise in
advertise as TEST PREP, and SHORT COURSES

it's possible but learning how to ferment grape juice is truly easier if you're in it for the money

[Cleopatra]

[trapezius]

^^

[Umm 'Abdil-Wahhaab]

I notice that most of the tutoring is done after work/school hours... is there any market for tutoring university students during daytime hours, perhaps when they arent in class?

[trapezius]

^ I really don't know, but when Saudi university students are not in class, they are either sleeping, playing video games, doing drugs, or hanging out with friends at malls, cafes, and the beach.

The ones who are actually studying are the ones who wouldn't need the help in the first place. And the one who do need the help don't care until the day before tests/exams.

[scot47]

Forget about making 500 SR an hour. Get real.

[Citizenkane]

[veiledsentiments]