The number of hours a tutor works mostly depends on whether it’s their primary job or not, the demand and competition for the subject they teach, and their hourly fees.
Part-time tutors can work as little as a few hours per week while full-time tutors spend up to 40 hours per week on teaching.
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What do tutors do during working hours?
On top of teaching students, self-employed tutors need to perform a wide range of tasks. Since they work by themselves there is no one to do admin work for them, attract new students and plan lessons.
Lesson planning
As a tutor, lesson planning is key to success in the classroom. By taking the time to plan out each lesson, tutors can save themselves time and energy in the long run.
But how much time should be spent on lesson planning? This is a question that doesn’t have a clear answer. Some experts say that you should spend at least an hour on lesson planning for each hour you’ll teach. Others say that the amount of time you spend should be based on the class size and complexity of the subject matter.
It’s up to each tutor to decide how much time they want to spend on lesson planning. But one thing is for sure: taking the time to plan will pay off in the long run!
Marketing
For tutors, the number of hours spent on marketing should be at least 5 hours per week. This is because tutoring is a very competitive industry and to stand out, tutors need to put in the extra effort to market themselves.
Tutors can use a variety of marketing strategies such as social media, online ads, or even word-of-mouth. The most important thing is to be consistent with your marketing and make sure that you are reaching your target audience. By spending at least 5 hours per week on marketing, tutors can reach more students and grow their businesses.
Administrative tasks
Tutors spend significant time on administrative tasks, such as progress reports and scheduling. Without adequate time spent on administrative tasks, tutors would be unable to effectively monitor the progress of their students. In addition, regular communication with parents is essential to ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding goals and expectations. While it may seem like a lot of work, the time spent on administration is an important part of the tutoring process.
How to work less and earn more?
Assuming that we are talking about tutors who teach the same subject full-time, the main reason why one tutor might work more or less than another is how much they charge per hour.
If you want to get more profit you need to either work more hours or charge more. And while there is a limit to how many hours per week a human being can work without sacrificing your health there is no limit to how high your tutoring fee can go.
Usually, tutors who just started their career don’t have any reputation, reviews, or a portfolio to show to prospective students. The only competitive advantage they can use is the low price. So they work longer hours for a lower fee.
As you gain experience, get more reviews and understand your audience better, you get more demand from students which allows you to charge a higher fee, work fewer hours, and be more selective when choosing your students. All this while earning more.