Spring Break
Graduate student establishes online tutoring service
UProdigy aims to serve students with low prices and high quality
By: Melissa Appel
Issue date: 2/28/08 Section: News
UProdigy online tutoring service is designed to make tutors more accessible to the average college undergraduate.
Syed Hussain, a graduate student at Harvard University, began the online program one and a half years ago. He started the program because of his personal experiences as a student, which made him realize the importance of tutors . Now he is on the other side of tutoring.
Hussain was an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan, where he double majored in math and economics. When he enrolled in a class called advanced partial differential equations, Hussain found that he was embarking on what he said was an "absurdly tough class." Hussain and 20 of his classmates routinely spent 6-7 hours in the school library attempting to work and understand the practice problems.
When Hussain and the others did not understand a concept, they searched for professors, or students with a doctorate in mathamatics, for tutoring services. These tutors offered their help, but only at elevated prices of up to $80 per hour. Besides the steep price, Hussain said that the tutors were not always available when he needed help.
Aggie students can easily relate. With the multitude of tutoring services available in varying prices and quality, students have different opinions about which factor is more important. Michelle Dvorik, a senior business management major, used 4.0 & Go and Tutor John. "Even though [Tutor John] was more expensive, I liked the small classes they offered and was willing to pay for it," Dvorik said.
Other students are less willing to pay that extra amount.
"If the tutor was high priced, I would think that they thought they were better than they really are," sophomore agricultural communication and journalism major Casey Wessels said.
"I knew that college students needed some sort of on-demand service where they could come at any time to get help," Hussain said.
Hussain graduated in December 2004 and is studying philosophy of religion at Harvard. Meanwhile, he has initiated his own company, uProdigy.com, with 13 entrepreneurs.
Syed Hussain, a graduate student at Harvard University, began the online program one and a half years ago. He started the program because of his personal experiences as a student, which made him realize the importance of tutors . Now he is on the other side of tutoring.
Hussain was an undergraduate student at the University of Michigan, where he double majored in math and economics. When he enrolled in a class called advanced partial differential equations, Hussain found that he was embarking on what he said was an "absurdly tough class." Hussain and 20 of his classmates routinely spent 6-7 hours in the school library attempting to work and understand the practice problems.
When Hussain and the others did not understand a concept, they searched for professors, or students with a doctorate in mathamatics, for tutoring services. These tutors offered their help, but only at elevated prices of up to $80 per hour. Besides the steep price, Hussain said that the tutors were not always available when he needed help.
Aggie students can easily relate. With the multitude of tutoring services available in varying prices and quality, students have different opinions about which factor is more important. Michelle Dvorik, a senior business management major, used 4.0 & Go and Tutor John. "Even though [Tutor John] was more expensive, I liked the small classes they offered and was willing to pay for it," Dvorik said.
Other students are less willing to pay that extra amount.
"If the tutor was high priced, I would think that they thought they were better than they really are," sophomore agricultural communication and journalism major Casey Wessels said.
"I knew that college students needed some sort of on-demand service where they could come at any time to get help," Hussain said.
Hussain graduated in December 2004 and is studying philosophy of religion at Harvard. Meanwhile, he has initiated his own company, uProdigy.com, with 13 entrepreneurs.
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