Frequently Asked Questions

About Our Company

How long have you been in business?

• We were founded in 2009.

How do I know you’re credible?

• We are a Better Business Bureau (BBB) certified company with positive reviews on web-sites such as Yelp.com.  You can email us at info@myguruedge.com and receive a personal email or phone call from a leader of the company if you have additional questions or concerns.

Our Tutors & Tutoring Qualifications

Are your tutors employees of MyGuru? What is their legal status?

• No.  Each tutor is an independent contractor of MyGuru LLC. However, MyGuru is a boutique provider of customized tutoring, not a tutor matching web-site.  This means that while we can’t bear legal responsibility for any criminal act or accident that may occur while you receive tutoring from a MyGuru tutor, we do stand behind the quality of each tutor. We expect each tutor to represent our high quality brand, and we take full responsibility as a company for your satisfaction.
  Because of our recruiting and screening process (see below), student satisfaction tends to be very high.  But, in those cases where issues arise, we can work with the tutor to improve a situation (where possible), find a replacement tutor, provide a refund on unused hours, etc.

How do I know your tutors are good? What is your recruiting and screening process?

• We know that what differentiates us from all of the tutoring companies out there is the quality of our tutors, so we are a careful recruiter and judge of potential tutoring talent.
  We don’t have any rigid qualifications that might exclude an otherwise excellent tutor from our team, but typically we only work with tutors who:

• Have 3+ years of teaching or tutoring experience
• Have attended a highly selective, well regarded undergraduate or graduate institution
• Scored in the 95^th percentile or better on standardized tests (ACT, GMAT, etc.) – applies primarily if they will be tutoring or teaching for a standardized test
• Perform well in a phone interview with one of MyGuru’s founders, meaning they:
  • Seem to have strong interpersonal and communication skills
  • Can articulate why they enjoy tutoring
  • Have the potential to be both a tutor and a mentor in the appropriate tutoring situation
  • Receive consistent positive feedback from MyGuru students over time
  • Pass a background check

Do your tutors have to pass background checks?

• We have now completed background checks on most of our tutors.  If this is a concern to you, just ask. If a background check hasn’t been run, we’ll do so before connecting you with that tutor.

MyGuru Test Prep Materials

What test prep materials do you use?

• We keep things very simple. We don’t have any of our own “proprietary materials” as a company, although some individual tutors have their own practice problems or preferred materials that they like to use. For academic subject tutoring at the high school or college level, we use your lecture notes, book, and assigned homework.

For standardized tests, we use two types of materials:

1.  Whatever “official” prep book exists for that test, seen below.
2.  Full length, timed practice tests which are scored and reviewed with the tutor.

• ACT – Real ACT Prep Guide
• SAT – Official SAT Study Guide
• GRE – Official Guide to the GRE Revised General Test
• GMAT – Official Guide for GMAT Review
• LSAT – Official LSAT Super Prep
• MCAT – Official Guide to the MCAT Exam

Depending on the standardized test in question, there are often many sources of free practice tests.  The SAT book above comes with 10 tests, and the GMAT offers low priced paper-based tests on its web-site, to provide just two examples of how to acquire lots of practice tests.

If additional practice problems or materials are needed each tutor will have preferences and recommendations available for you.

If you already have other types of materials (i.e., from our competitors, or a pure test prep material provider), we can often work with those materials – most of these test prep books are very similar.

What is your company’s tutoring approach?

• Each tutor has their own style and approach, and obviously the experience is always customized to the strengths weaknesses of the student.  However, the following core principles are communicated to our tutors and are expected to be followed:

• Complete a diagnostic test in advance of the first session, or at least spend the first session developing a shared understanding of the starting point and objectives for the relationship
• When appropriate, help the student develop a study plan, so they know what to be focusing on during their private study time, when the tutor is not there
• Share (via email) materials in advance so the tutor can prepare for each new section
• Assign problems in between sessions which are then reviewed during the next session
• Track progress regularly by having the student take a  timed, scored practice test periodically on their own time which is then reviewed with the tutor
• Impart “tips and tricks,” but focus on building an understanding of core concepts first
• Never just “do” homework for the student – ensure they are understanding the relevant concepts independently of your instruction

Tutoring Scheduling & Payment

How do I schedule a session?  What’s the process?

• After you fill out a form on our web-site, call us, or email us, a MyGuru Managing Tutor will work with you to provide details on available tutors.  This might be through an email exchange, or a phone call. After that, you are connected with a tutor, and you’ll interact directly with the tutor to schedule a time and place for an initial session.   If you like, a brief phone conversation with the tutor can occur before anything is officially schedule or paid for – just ask the tutor.

Once a session is scheduled, you’ll be given a link to provide payment.  Base hourly rates vary from $45 to $125, depending on the subject, location, tutor, situation, etc.

You’ll receive an email that says something like –

“Your base hourly rate is now set at $55.  However, we do offer 5, 10, or 15% discounts for investing in 5, 10, or 15 hours in advance. So, $55 x 85% = $46.75 per hour for a long term relationship of 15+ hours.  In addition, all unused hours are refunded.  To read a bit about how we think about pricing, visit our pricing and payment page – http://www.myguruedge.com/pricing/

We do require pre-payment to confirm all tutoring sessions and packages.  However, you can of course cancel and receive a refund at any time, as long as you provide at least 24 hours of notice.   If you don’t provide this advance notice, we reserve the right to charge you a late cancellation fee, up to the hourly rate for the session. We do this to respect the schedules of our tutors.  Thanks for your understanding.”

Once you provide payment, the tutor is notified, and the session is confirmed.

What’s the cancellation policy?

• Per above, we require 24 hours of notice to avoid a late cancellation fee of up to the full cost of the session, but if 24 hours of notice is provided, any session can be cancelled with a full refund or rescheduled.

What are the payment options?

• Per above, you’ll be given a base rate, and will then receive a 5, 10, or 15% discount for investing in 5, 10, or 15 hours at a time.  But, any hours you don’t use are always refunded anyway – you aren’t locked in.  Payment is required in advance to confirm the session.

Most students pay with any major credit card using Google Checkout, which can be accessed via links on our web-site - http://www.myguruedge.com/myguru-payment-page/ or in email-based invoices we’ll send you. 

However, you can also pay via PayPal. Finally, you can pay via check, as long as we receive it prior to 24 hours before any given session.  So, some students pay for an initial hour with a credit card or PayPal, and send checks for larger blocks of time after that.  But, most students simply use any major credit card via the Google Checkout system.

We do not accept cash, as payment must be made in advance to confirm any given session.