Academic Tutoring Policies and Tutee Expectations

Tutees are expected to: 

• Adhere to Academic Tutoring policies and expectations. 
• Share relevant material with the tutor in advance of the appointment, such as specific questions, course materials, sample problems, information related to an upcoming assignment, etc.. 
• Communicate in a timely manner with the tutor and Student Success and Support staff. 
• Complete their own work in accordance with the academic integrity and collaboration policies defined by course instructors and Harvard Summer School. 
• Notify the tutor and the Student Success and Support office at least 12 hours in advance should the need for cancellation or rescheduling arise. 
• Conduct themselves in a manner consistent with Harvard Summer School policies and regulations and the Harvard Summer School Student Handbook. 

Tutees will assist in their own learning process by: 

• Preparing adequately for the tutoring session. 
• Reflecting on and communicating with their tutor about their learning style, needs, and goals. 
• Utilizing other HSS resources available for support. For example: course staff, office hours, Student Success workshops, Harvard Library, the Writing Center, and others. 

Tutors are expected to: 

• Host one-on-one appointment and as needed, group tutoring sessions.
• Help students clarify their learning goals and needs. 
• Communicate proactively with tutees. 
• Come prepared for the tutoring session. 

Tutors will assist students in the learning process by: 

• Reviewing course material. 
• Clarifying difficult concepts. 
• Helping with exam preparation. 
• Sharing expertise in their field of study. 
• Developing critical academic skills (e.g., time management, effective note-taking). 
• Recommending additional resources for support. 

• Students may request a maximum of 2 hour/week of tutoring per course, in a mix of individual and/or group session formats.
• Students may not book an appointment with fewer than 24 hours advance notice. 
• Cancellations within 12 hours of the scheduled tutoring session will be counted against the student’s 2 hours per week maximum. Students who cancel or miss multiple appointments may lose access to tutoring privileges. 
• Tutoring appointments are not permitted outside of 8:00am-10:00pm ET. If this occurs, the Student Success and Support office will cancel the tutoring session and let both the tutor and tutee know. 

• Tutoring may not be available in every subject or course. 
• For writing assistance and tutoring in courses within the departments of Creative Writing, EXPO-S, Journalism, Literature, and other writing-centric subject areas, contact the Harvard Writing Center at wricntr@fas.harvard.edu or visit their website. 
• We are unable to offer tutoring for profession-oriented courses such as those in the departments of Accounting, Digital Media and Design, Drama, Information Systems Management, Legal Studies, Management, Marketing, and others. 
• We do not offer preparation services for any standardized test (i.e., SAT, ACT, MCAT, GRE, etc.), Advanced Placement (AP) courses, or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses. 
• Requests for higher level/specialized courses must come through the Academic Tutor Request Form.
• Tutees may not book direct appointments with tutors that are not currently listed on the academic tutoring website.