Working As A Private Tutor

When I was accepted into the PGCE programme at Oxford University, I was in Dubai. I don’t live there and I wasn’t there on holiday, but I was there for 3 months working as a private tutor. Private tuition had run alongside my jobs for the previous 4 years and it just so happened that, in the gap between quitting my job and the PGCE starting, a role came up in Dubai. It was exciting!

I returned to work in Dubai with the same family in the middle of my PGCE, balancing my course essay on my knees on the flight and returning after the Easter break with a tan and money in my pocket. But the more I worked in schools, the more I knew it wasn’t the right place for me.

I Quit

After my first year as a teacher, I quit. I knew that I wanted to work with students but working in a class of 30 wasn’t the way that I enjoyed. I hated going to school, dreaded it even. All of the usual issues: poor behaviour, unrealistic expectations, SLT, parents’ evenings.

I decided that I would give full time tuition ‘a go’. After a year of balancing online tuition from my home in Oxfordshire and brief trips to teach students in Kenya, Hawaii and New Mexico, I knew that this was the way that I could impact students. I was also getting more and more requests from students wanting subjects that I couldn’t cover, and from tutors wanting to pass me students even though I was full.

The Education Hotel Was Born 

The Education Hotel is my baby, although that baby is now 4 years old and has 65 tutors. We have grown through COVID, through 2 monarchs and through (almost) 2 world cups! Each year we have added new areas to the business and although we started out offering 1:1 tuition, we now offer group courses, sell resources and somewhere along the line I started an education consultancy too, called Top School and Uni.

These days, my earnings are more than could ever have been at school. Most days I tutor from home online (in my slippers) and I can choose when I work. I can even go to the loo when I want! 

I Wanted To Help More Families

The next big step for us is to welcome new Education Hotel business owners as we are franchising! I have loved building The Education Hotel to the point that it is at, but I want to help more families. We support about 80 families at any one time, but we could do so much more. For the next stage of growth, including leading school workshops and developing longer courses, I want people alongside me. 

I believe that teachers make great franchisees because they are willing to get stuck in. We can provide all of the training and support, but to succeed in running your own business, you have to have the passion and drive. This is something that my teaching friends have in spades! Teachers can communicate with students, families and tutors and juggle lots of roles, which as a small business owner, you are always doing. Teachers are also quick learners.

Franchising offers the business owner the pick of tuition roles, meaning that you are much more in control of your own day. You can build your own team of tutors, allowing you to help more students and also to earn money whilst you pick your kids up from school! Our franchise opportunity is a little bit special as we have some unique opportunities not seen in other tuition franchises. I would love to speak with you if you are interested in joining us.

How Does The Education Hotel Choose The Right Franchisee?

A quick statement from Director Jemma Zoe Smith:

Franchising isn’t for everyone. It requires hard work. That is why we want you to know everything that is involved with running a franchise before you commit to becoming part of our team. Even if you are convinced that it is the right decision for you and are desperate to get started, we will still ask for you to go through our ‘franchise discovery process’ – we will be as honest and open as possible about how The Education Hotel operates.

For me personally, I want to know that my franchisees will get up each morning, excited and proud to run their business. I want them to smile when thinking of joining The Education Hotel’s team, and to aspire to work with clients under The Education Hotel’s brand. I would like people who can’t wait to tell their friends about what they are doing and want to shout it from the rooftops!

You can find out more about the experience of being one of The Education Hotel’s franchisees by reading some of our other blog posts. Why not read a bit more and then enquire? I would love to hear from you.

Jemma – Director of The Education Hotel.

If you are looking to build your own tutoring business, click here: Tutoring Franchise Opportunity