The COVID-19 pandemic has created a sense of uncertainty for everyone, even for the kids of Clemson University’s faculty and staff. They have an immense workload trying to juggle their work at Clemson and their lives at home. The Clemson University Virtual Tutor Corps (VTC) is a program that started in the semester of 2021 by Margret Ptacek.
Ptacek is the director of VTC and a professor in the Biological Sciences department. VTC provides virtual tutoring sessions for the kids of Clemson’s faculty and staff. All subjects of tutoring are available, even SAT and ACT prep, for students from K-12.
Jocelyn Wong is a sophomore bioengineering student at Clemson, and she has been working with VTC since March 2021, when VTC first started up. Wong found out about VTC through an announcement email, and she knew it was the right job for her on campus. She likes working with kids and had prior experience babysitting. She also likes to share her personal knowledge to better help students with the material.
The process with joining VTC is very simple. First, students that are eligible for the FWS program need to go to www.clemson.edu/fws to apply. There will then be a hiring appointment and they will go through the process of setting up a payroll and filling out forms, which is all virtual. There is also a small Youth Safety training to complete since the tutors are dealing with students who are minors. After joining, there are weekly meetings, and you can start tutoring kids as soon as you get information about what subject the kids need help with from the coordinator.
Wong has found many perks with being a tutor at VTC. She gets to hang out with kids, which she loves to do, and the pay rate is reasonable and higher than a typical on-campus job. The coordinators are also understanding when tutors need a break, when they need to take time off for an emergency, or when they need to study for an exam. Wong is also able to make time to tutor and get her homework done with the flexibility of being able to choose her own hours weekly and says, “since it is virtual, it creates even more flexibility with doing it anywhere you can.”
Being a tutor for VTC has given Wong the opportunity to not just know the kids she is tutoring, but she has gotten to know their parents, who are Clemson faculty and staff members. This has helped her build connections throughout different fields at the university.
Wong has learned a variety of professional skills by being a tutor with VTC. She has learned how to communicate in a thorough way to the kids and with her coordinator team. She knows how to properly write emails to the parents and has learned how to display the material on different technological platforms to help the students learn and understand the material.
Virtual Tutor Corps is always looking for students to join in this fun and engaging environment. This opportunity is open for all undergraduate students. Ptacek says, “This is an excellent opportunity including some professional development/teaching mentoring and a great resume builder.”
Many Clemson students qualify for the Federal Work Study, and it is highly encouraged to apply for this tutor position at VTC for 2021-2022. Even if students do not qualify for FWS and want to apply, they will earn many opportunities listed above that will benefit them in the future. If any students are interested in applying, email [email protected].
