On this page you can find my answers to various frequently asked questions. If you cannot find the answer you are looking for, feel free to contact me using the information here.
Contact
What is your preferred method of contact?
I am equally fine with emails, text messages, and WhatsApp messages. You can pick whichever is more convenient for you. Phone calls are also an option but I primarily recommend written communication since written texts provide permanent future reference and help minimize misunderstandings.
When (or what time of the day) should I contact you?
For all the aforementioned options (email, SMS, WhatsApp message) any time of the day is fine. If I’m in a session, sleeping, or unavailable for another reason, my phone will be in silent mode. Thus feel free to message/email me 24/7. But please note that naturally, I may be slow to respond during the night (EST).
Can I ask you calculus or physics questions via text or email?
On texts or quick emails, we’re restricted to typing our explanations in the form of pure text without being able to use any equations or figures. Most answers in calculus or physics involve equations and figures, and thus cannot be conveyed properly in pure text. If you think the answer you’re looking for can be squeezed into a short line of text, then you can message your question to me. But unfortunately most calculus and physics questions are not like that. Thus if you’re not sure that the answer you’re looking for could fit in a text message, I recommend saving your questions for sessions, which would allow me to properly explain my answers using my online tutoring setup. If you’re really interested in getting an answer quickly, you can consider booking a session for the earliest available slot on the “Book sessions” page in the menu.
Tutoring Sessions
How can I book a session?
You can use the “Book sessions” link in the menu. More details can be found in that link.
How should I prepare for a tutoring session?
This is a great question! A good preparation makes the tutoring sessions way more productive, thus is important. I wrote a blog post about pre-session preparation, please click here to read it.
What is your rescheduling/cancellation policy?
As long as I can tell that the reason for rescheduling or cancellation is genuine, I have no issues with them and apply no penalties. But if the reschedulings or cancellations get so common and start disrupting my schedule with other students, I reserve the right to apply a different policy.
How can I reschedule or cancel a session?
After you book a session with me, you will get a confirmation email. In that email you will find links for rescheduling and cancellation.
Do you provide mock/practice exams?
I have PDFs of plenty of past AP exams. I send them around two months before the exam, which gives you ample opportunity to practice actual exam conditions.
Assignments
The material you assign feels too hard and challenging, what should I do?
This may be a bit counterintuitive but, the fact that you are getting aware of the topics challenging you this way through tutoring is actually good news for us. If you did not realize these challenges and figured out that you struggle with these topics for the first time at a school exam or at the AP exam, then they could have permanent consequences. On the other hand, the tutoring sessions are like your “safety net”: No penalty for struggling with anything in your assignments. Take note of the topics/questions you’re struggling with, and we will work on them together. That’s one of the main purposes why I assign homework: To catch the gaps in your knowledge/understanding and fix them before they can have permanent negative effects on your school or AP exam scores.
The material you assign feels too easy and boring, what should I do?
Well, this is also good news! If you feel the material I assign is easy or boring, chances are it is because you’re good at the topic. However, the “I am good at this topic because these questions look easy” approach is a notoriously horrible way of measuring how good you actually are on that topic. You still need to do the assignments to prove to yourself (and to me, of course) that your confidence is not misplaced. If you are right and you actually are good at the topic (and problems feel boring for good reason), then you will breeze through the problems and the homework will not take too long anyway.
Logistics & Payments
What is your hourly rate?
My rate changes throughout the year depending on many factors but primarily on how busy my schedule is at that specific time. Thus there is no single rate I can state here, feel free to contact me to learn my current hourly rate.
What payment methods are available?
Zelle, Venmo and PayPal are among the payment options I accept.
Are there any other costs involved other than the hourly rate?
All the resources I will provide will be at no extra cost to you (Needless to say, you can still buy yourself materials and if you do, we will use them as well. But the resources necessarily required for the tutoring sessions will all be provided by me for free). You will be receiving plenty of stuff, and you may be encouraged to subscribe to certain online learning platforms, etc. but what they all have in common is they will all be free for you. Thus no, there will be no costs other than the hourly tutoring rate.
General
What if I’m not happy about something?
Let me know! That’s what makes tutoring different from conventional teaching, it is a 1-on-1 learning process and it is all about making things work specifically for you. I do my best to provide you with the best experience possible, and if you have any suggestions for improvement, I will always be all ears. Throughout the years of tutoring, I never had a problem that I and the student together were not able to solve, thus if you think you are having an issue it most likely is one that can be solved if you communicate it.
Why do you tutor AP Calculus and AP Physics only?
When I first started tutoring, I was tutoring a wide range of subjects. With a PhD in physics, I am qualified to teach pretty much any undergraduate physics class. I had tutees with interesting stories, such as a retired surgeon interested in learning quantum physics.
However, I realized that I was getting more requests for AP calculus and physics than I could accommodate in my schedule. I decided to specialize in them and focus on providing the best tutoring experience for AP calculus and physics without getting distracted by other subjects. I prioritized AP calculus and physics over other competing tutoring subjects because they are high-impact: Teaching quantum physics to a retired surgeon appeases his intellectual curiosity which is also fine, but helping high school students get great scores on the AP exams has a much more profound effect on their lives. This potential for a huge positive impact is one of the many reasons why I love tutoring for AP exams.