BY HAYLEY MAJOR, Contributing Writer

As a student worker, I break up my 15 hours between working for the mass communications department and tutoring in French.

I am taking two, once a week classes this semester, so my hours for tutoring are extremely scattered; on Mondays, I am in the library’s Learning Center from 10 a.m.-11 a.m. However, my first class on Tuesday doesn’t start until later in the afternoon, so I tutor from 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

On Thursdays, I tutor those same morning hours, as well as an extra hour after class from 2 p.m.-3 p.m. These scattered hours might sound counterproductive, but students are encouraged to book appointments in 30-minute or one-hour increments so as to not be overwhelming.

Though tutors do have set hours posted on Piedmont’s website, a student can request to meet at an alternate time, if it works for both the student and the tutor.

Tutors set their own hours, unlike many other student worker jobs, which allows them this flexibility to work around students’ schedules. Personally, I have not had to adjust any of my hours thus far, but it is a nice perk of being a tutor.

As a French tutor, I focus on different principles than a science or math tutor might. As well as vocabulary and grammar, many tutoring sessions focus on pronunciation because the phonetic quality of French differs drastically from that of English.

When a student comes in, either by appointment or walk-in, we figure out what they specifically want to work on, in order to tailor the session. After the time is up, we fill out an evaluation sheet, recording what was worked on, how helpful the session was, and what study skills the student will implement in following days. Students are highly encouraged to set up another appointment to follow up and maintain progress. Even if I don’t have scheduled appointments, I am always ready for walk-ins.