The College Core Tutor Program is a peer-based tutoring program for UChicago undergraduates designed to provide one-on-one assistance and small group support to undergraduate students in scientific and quantitative subjects, including chemistry, mathematics, statistics, physics, economics, and biology. Our tutors are upperclassmen in the College with exceptional academic records or graduate students—many of them former Teaching Assistants in the Core science courses.
If you're not writing a paper, our tutors can almost certainly help! If you ARE writing a paper, check out the College Core Writing Tutors.
Features of the Program:
- The Program is exclusively a drop-in service. No appointments are necessary.
- Tutors are available Sundays through Thursdays between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m CST. Students are welcome to visit a tutor as often as they need assistance. The program starts Sunday, January 14, and runs through Final Exam week.
- Tutors can assist in two ways: they will explain conceptual material and will demonstrate how to solve problems. They will not, however, check your code for you or do your problem set for you.
- Tutors are expected to help with the priority courses in each subject (see below for a list of priority courses). During periods of low demand, they will help with advanced courses.
Current Schedule
Core Tutor Schedule Spring 2024
Core Tutors are available through finals week.
Please note Harper Memorial closes at 11pm. Our tutors will need to wrap things up by about 10:00pm but you may stay until 11:00pm.
How to Prepare
Know the course number and section for which you need help; you will be asked for this information before tutoring begins. Prior to your visit, you should:
- Carefully study the course material you have been assigned in order to grasp as much of it as you can on your own.
- Attempt to do the homework on your own before you come see a tutor. The goal of tutoring is to develop your ability to solve problems without assistance. Tutors can assist you most effectively when you present them with specific questions or difficulties you have with the course material.
- Bring your textbook, class notes, and if appropriate, a calculator.
- Tutors are most helpful when you are not under extreme time pressure. Don’t wait until the night before a due date or test to visit a tutor; tutors may be very busy then, especially in large, centralized courses such as organic chemistry.
Priority Courses
- BIOS 20173 - Perspectives of Human Physiology (Autumn)
- BIOS 20170 Microbial and Human Cell Biology (Winter)
- BIOS 20175 Biochemistry and Metabolism (Winter)
- BIOS 20171 Human Genetics and Developmental Biology (Spring)
- BIOS 20172 Mathematical Modeling for Pre-Med Students (Spring)
- 10000 Introduction to Microeconomics
- 10200 Introduction to Macroeconomics
- 20000-20100-20200-23950 Elements of Economic Analysis I, II, III, IV
- 11100-11200-11300 Comprehensive General Chemistry I, II, III
- 12100-12200-12300 Honors General Chemistry I, II, III
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Our tutors focus on the Math 150s Calculus sequence and Math 195 and 196. If time permits, they may help with more advanced courses as well.
Under instructions from the Math Department, our tutors do NOT provide assistance with the Math 160s or Math 159. If you need help with Math 159, Math 160s Honors Calculus, or the 200 Analysis sequence, the Math Department strongly urges you to seek help from you instructor.
Priority courses are the following:
- 13100-13200-13300
- 15100-15200-15300 Calculus I, II, III
- 19520 Mathematical Methods for Social Sciences
- 19620 Linear Algebra
- We are also helping with the 180's starting Autumn 2021. Please be understanding--there is significant overlap between 195-196 and the 180s, but there is material covered in each that is not in the other. Our Math tutors will do their best to help!
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Priority courses are the following:
- 22000-22100-22200 Organic Chemistry I, II, III
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Priority courses are the following:
- 12100-12200-12300 General Physics I, II, III (Variant A)
- 13100-13200-13300 General Physics I, II, III (Variant B)
- 14100-14200-14300 Honors General Physics I, II, III
- 20000 Elementary Statistics
- 22000 Statistical Methods and Applications
- 22400 Applied Regression Analysis
- 23400 Statistical Models and Method I
Priority courses are the following:
Econ tutors are prepared to explain concepts of economic analysis and to demonstrate how to solve problems. They will generally not assist with mathematics.
Priority courses are the following:
Priority courses are the following:
Priority courses are the following:
FAQs
- If you are interested in becoming an Economics tutor, please contact Professor Srinivasan Vasudevan in the Economics department (svasudevan2@uchicago.edu).
- If you are interested in becoming a Biology tutor, please contact Dr. Christine Andrews in the Biological Sciences Collegiate Division (candrews@uchicago.edu).
The College Core Tutor Program is designed to help undergraduate students enrolled in Core and other introductory courses. Tutors are generally willing to help students in advanced classes, but they are not required to do so, and the intended users of the program always have priority.
The College Core Tutor Program focuses on scientific and quantitative subjects. Tutors in the program assist students in chemistry, economics, mathematics, biology, statistics and physics introductory classes.
The College Core Tutor Program is separate from the Writing Program, whose tutors help students with their essay assignments for Core Humanities, Social Sciences, and Civilization courses.
Tutors in all subjects are normally stationed in the North Reading Room, which is reached via the 3rd floor of Harper Memorial Library (see map at the bottom of this page). Tutors are available Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings from 6 to 10 p.m. from the third week of each quarter through finals week.
Information on the Writing Tutors’ schedule may be found on their webpage.
No. Students are tutored on a first-come, first-helped basis. Therefore, you might have a short wait if several students want to see the same tutor.
The Tutor Program offers great flexibility with average help times. In periods of high demand, Core Tutors may limit their appointment with a single student to 30 minutes. In periods of low demand, Core Tutors will try to be available for as long as a student needs.
Some nights are busier than others, so you should expect a short wait until a tutor is available. With this in mind, you are encouraged to continue studying the course material with which you need help, or bring work from other classes, so that you have something to do while waiting. Tutors may place you in a waiting room while they help other students.
Tutors are expected to help mostly with material studied in class (e.g. concepts and principles) and not to focus on particular problems assigned as homework. When helping with homework, tutors will assist students by using analogies and general examples to help students solve the assigned problems on their own.
You should first see your course instructor and TA to discuss any problems you’re having with course material. In addition, educational counselors are available through the Academic Skills Assessment Program. A.S.A.P. counselors help students assess and strengthen writing and study skills by focusing on time management, reading comprehension, test strategies, and other academic concerns. For more information, contact the Student Counseling and Resource Service at 773.702.9800 or look at the A.S.A.P. website.
The College Core Tutor Program works hard to provide students with the best possible assistance. If you have complaints or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact the program director at cespinosa@uchicago.edu. All comments are confidential.
Hiring begins at the end of each quarter, and ends once all shifts are filled. If you would like to become a tutor for General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, or Statistics, please email (cespinosa@uchicago.edu) and attach a CV/resume, a short statement of purpose, and the subject(s) you are willing to tutor.