Online tutor
Online tutors support students who are studying courses over the internet.
What you'll do
Day-to-day tasks
You will:
- help students develop their subject knowledge and study skills
- create engaging courses and learning materials tailored to students' needs
- assess students' work and give constructive feedback
- keep parents up to date with their children's progress
- teach individual students or small groups
Working environment
You could work from home.
Career path and progression
You could work in other areas of online education with an education company, like:
- course development
- tutor management
- consultancy
You could also set up your own tutoring service.
With the right qualifications, you might move into schools teaching, further education or work-based training.
What it takes
Skills and knowledge
You'll need:
- knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
- the ability to create the best conditions for learning or teaching new things
- knowledge of media production and communication
- the ability to use your initiative
- customer service skills
- the ability to come up with new ways of doing things
- to be flexible and open to change
- the ability to work well with others
- to be able to use a computer and the main software packages confidently
Restrictions and Requirements
You'll need to:
How to become
You can get into this job through:
- a university course
- a college course
- working towards this role
- applying directly
- private training
You may need a degree in a specialist subject depending on the level of course you plan to teach online. For example, a degree in maths to teach A level maths.
You might also need to get qualified teacher status (QTS) if you're teaching academic qualifications. Some degrees include this.
If you have a degree in a subject without QTS, you can get it by completing one of the following:
- a postgraduate teacher training course at university
- a school-based training programme
You can search for teacher training courses on GOV UK.
Entry requirements
You'll usually need:
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths
- 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree
- a degree in a relevant subject for postgraduate study
More Information
You could do a college course like the Level 3 Award in Education and Training to get some of the skills needed for this job. This is suitable if you're not yet in a teaching role or have limited teaching hours.
Entry requirements
You may need:
- 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course
More Information
You can usually take qualifications while you work. The exact qualification you do will depend on your job but could include the Level 4 Certificate or Level 5 Diploma in Education and Training.
You can apply to companies directly if you've got the following:
- excellent IT skills
- teaching, training or tutoring experience
- in-depth knowledge of the subject you're going to teach
You can do a course with a private training provider, and some of these can be done online. You should check courses carefully to make sure they meet your needs.
Career tips
Tutors often find work through agencies or online learning platforms. Teaching time varies from a few hours a week up to full-time. Rates of pay also vary but can be between £15 to £40 and hour, depending on your experience, reputation, and the level and type of course you teach.
Further information
You can find out more about training to teach online from Teach in Further Education.
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External links
This page contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.