What Is a Writing Tutor and How to Become One

By ZipRecruiter Marketplace Research Team

As a writing tutor, you critique and offer advice to students who are struggling with writing a paper or assignment. Depending on the level of the student, or whether they are learning English as a second language, you might focus on improving the student’s grammar, word choice, or the content and structure of the writing. It is often up to you to help develop learning strategies for the student, to aid the development of their skills. It can be important to note, often to the student themselves, that a writing tutor does not do the work for the student, but rather teaches them skills that enable them to do it on their own. Another aspect of the position is to help develop critical reading skills; reading and researching are a fundamental part of academic writing.

You have several options for becoming a writing tutor. First, if you are a student yourself, consider looking at your school’s writing center. Many colleges and universities offer a student-run program that allows students to help their peers with writing. If you aren’t a student, you can still become a tutor. Tutoring and test prep centers are often looking for skilled writers to help students; employers at these centers prefer candidates with some level of education, typically at least a high school diploma or GED certificate, though college coursework in English and literature will set you ahead of other candidates. You may also pursue voluntary certification through an organization like the National Tutoring Association.

To be a good writing tutor, you must constantly practice and improve your own skills. Writing is a craft and a skill that can be honed. Always be attentive to your student’s needs; everyone is different and has different methods of learning, and language skills often require hundreds of hours to master. The most important thing is to not do the work for the student. Not only is this plagiarism, it also does not help the student learn. They need your training to write strong, compelling prose on their own, a skill which can only be gained through practice and patience.