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2020 Wyzant Reviews, Ratings, Competitors
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Strengths
- Teachers are vetted thoroughly
- Wide selection of tutors available
- In-person tutoring services
- Online tutoring tools
Weaknesses
- The pay-as-you-go option is costly for most students
- As a tutor, you can only teach if you reside in the US
- Lessons scheduling depends upon the tutor's availability
Key Details
YEARS IN BUSINESS
15
BBB Rating
A+
CUSTOMER SUPPORT
Phone, Email, Support Feature
MOBILE APP
2: For Students & For Teachers
Wyzant is an online tutoring platform that connects students with instructors that best fit their learning aims. The company was founded in 2005 by two Princeton graduates. It has since evolved into a decently sized platform that hosts over 80,000 instructors and covers over 300 subjects. It helps you find tutors both online and offline and caters to all students, starting from kindergarten to Ph.D. level.
Most Wyzant reviews online are positive, if not overwhelmingly so (and their Trustpilot rating is downright amazing). Read on to find out what makes Wyzant stand out among other similar companies.
In this review, we will cover:
- Platform Key Details
- Pricing and Plans
- Pros and Cons
- Help & Support
- Wyzant Customer Reviews
- Alternatives
Platform Key Details
The key aspects of the Wyzant platform can be divided into 2 main parts i.e., the tutors and the students. But there are other important resources as well. Wyzant is all about the 1-on-1 learning experience, as they believe it’s the best method to help students improve in their studies. Wyzant offers students tutors that can help with their regular studies, test prep tutors, language tutors, and a variety of other things.
Here is a breakdown of the different features and services that the Wyzant platform offers and how it caters to different individuals.
Wyzant For Students
For students, the process is simple. There are a few steps you have to go through to find the perfect instructor you need.
Step 1: You have to provide the following details:
- What subject you need help with
- Do you need online or in-person tutoring
- Your time zone
- The level you require the teacher for (elementary, secondary, college or graduate school)
- Your availability
Step 2: You get a list of tutors that best match your criteria. There are detailed tutor profiles, including their per hour tutoring charges, tutor ratings, profile picture, biography, policies (rates, background check info, etc.), schedule, subjects, and reviews.
Step 3: Send a message to the selected tutors through the website or the Wyzant app. You can book a lesson with your preferred tutor for a time that suits you both best. You pay only after you’ve had your lesson. Wyzant students can also leave reviews to evaluate how their tutoring went.
Wyzant For Tutors
Wyzant is a great platform for tutors. You need to reside in the US and have a valid social security number. You don’t need to be certified to create a profile on Wyzant as a tutor (though you would need to have adequate qualifications).
Working solely with local teachers, Wyzant has created a powerful platform and accumulated a wide range of professionals for in-person tutors. They can vet these tutors more thoroughly so that parents can be more at ease that the person they have hired is credible and reasonably trustworthy.
On the other hand, by only sourcing tutors from a specific region, even for online lessons, Wyzant has limited their online tutoring potential growth. Even if they have the best locally sourced tutors, they may not be able to compete in variety and pricing with platforms that can connect tutors and students from around the world.
Unlike many other platforms where tutors earn an hourly wage, Wyzant lets tutors set their own prices. It makes the market more competitive, but it also gives tutors more wage satisfaction. You can find tutoring jobs or students can look you up based on your profile and their particular tutoring needs.
For Higher Education
Wyzant for HigherEd is a separate product, which was created as a version of the original platform with its services specifically designed for adult students. Through this portal, Wyzant partners with graduate schools to design a special pilot program (tutoring plan) tailored for their students. The students that, for some reason, need an extra push to help them through their studies can benefit from the Wyzant tutoring network.
Students can choose their tutor, and graduate school administrators can get feedback on their students’ performance. Wyzant helps these students attain success and make it possible for them to pass the tests they wouldn’t have managed without extra help. For institutions, the cost is significantly lower than cultivating similar resources in-house.
Wyzant Resources
Although they’re complimentary to their core services as a tutoring platform, the learning resources and prep materials Wyzant has accumulated on its platform are indeed impressive. There are no video-based learning resources but you’ll find extensive ‘Lessons’ directory and a “Blog” section.
The best part about this platform’s learning resources is their ‘Ask an Expert’ section. The exact frequency is hard to determine, but it seems that at least 70-80 questions are posted and answered daily. Posting at a forum like this has the advantage that the answers are provided by subject experts, and there is no barrage of opinions or spam.
Online Learning Tool
Wyzant’s online learning tool is focused on continuous 1-to-1 lessons with your teacher through video, voice, and chat. It also has a shared whiteboard that serves as a medium to convey ideas and solutions.
Pricing & Plans
Since Wyzant is more akin to a marketplace for tutors, there aren’t any specific pricing plans.
For Teachers
- Flat 25% share that Wyzant retains from a tutor’s hourly price, and they get to keep 75%
- Teacher referral program – if a teacher refers a new student, and they attend lessons with that teacher, they will keep 100% of the fee that the student pays
For Students
- Pay-as-you-go structure where students only have to pay for their study sessions
- Tutors are free to determine their own price per hour – average $25 and $60 an hour
Service Fee
- There is a separate 9% service fee that is charged from students, in addition to the hourly fee charged by the teacher.
Good-fit Guarantee
- If students aren’t satisfied with the tutor they have chosen after the first hours of the lesson, they can discontinue studies with that tutor and get that hour’s fee refunded, along with the service fee.
Fee-Changing Policy
- If the tutor doesn’t ask your permission before changing their hourly fee, you will be charged for the price you saw on the teacher’s profile when you first made contact with them for the next three months. It’s a grandfather clause in Wyzant’s policy.
Cancellation Policy
- No cancellation policy, as you don’t have to subscribe to their services and only pay when you attend your lesson. However, each tutor might have their own cancellation policy, which might be published on their profile, or they can discuss it with you before starting the lesson.
Value For Money
- A lot of tutors on Wyzant may seem very costly, especially when you add the service fee. But the value you get lies in the expertise and variety of Wyzant tutors. At Wyzant, you have access to a wide variety of teachers and subject experts to choose from, and you can find someone who fits the bill precisely.
Usability and Help
The wyzant.com platform is easy to use according to most reviews, especially when you are looking for tutors or when tutors are looking for available jobs. The online platform also seems on par with most other platforms being currently employed.
If you have any queries, you can contact Wyzant’s support team via phone call at (312) 646-6365 or send them an email at support@wyzant.com. You can also submit feedback or report an issue using their website’s support feature.
Pros & Cons
Teachers are vetted thoroughly
In-person tutoring services are available
A wide selection of tutors available
Decent online tutoring tools
Best locally sourced tutors
The pay-as-you-go option is costly for most students
If you are a tutor, you can only teach if you reside in the US
Your lesson scheduling is dependent upon the tutor's availability
User Reviews and Testimonials
Wyzant is a BBB accredited business since 2007, though Wyzant has 1/5 stars rating based on 9 reviews.
The rating on BBB is in striking contrast with the Trustpilot rating: 4.6/5 based on 1,337 Wyzant reviews.
Other notable ratings are:
- Wyzant app (for students) on Google Play – 4.5/5 (706 votes)
- Wyzant app (for teachers) on Google Play – 3.9/5 (1,934 votes)
- SiteJabber – 3.9/5 (415 reviews)
The overall impression you get from Wyzant reviews and testimonials by real students is positive. Wyzant tutors are a bit less positive in their reviews, but apart from BBB, the overall online perception (based on Wyzant ratings) seems adequate enough.
Wyzant Competitors
There are quite a few alternatives to Wyzant’s services, especially if we consider the online tutoring landscape.
Chegg.com
Chegg is often preferred by people who are focused more on affordability. With Chegg, you can buy a specific plan (per lesson or per month). With two out of three plans, you can cancel anytime. In terms of online reputation, Chegg is worse off than Wyzant, and its tutoring reviews aren’t that great. Although accredited, it has a 1.1/5 BBB rating and 292 complaints. On Trustpilot, its score is 1.5/5 based on 1,043 reviews.
Preply
Preply is another service that is sometimes compared with Wyzant, but it’s focused more on languages than other subjects. It has a global reach, and it’s oriented towards online tutoring. For students, it’s less costly because there are hourly plans. For tutors, the platform’s share varies between 33% and 18%. It’s not BBB accredited, but it has a decent Trustpilot rating of 4.3/5.
Summary
Based on both Wyzant negative reviews and positive Wyzant ratings, we can conclude that it’s a decent online learning marketplace, but it’s not suited for everyone. Based on how strictly they vet their teachers, many tutors can be left stranded without getting approved and become disillusioned with the platform. A less costly plan may be better for students who are not aiming high achievement but rather trying to get by with their studies.
But for students looking for some of the best tutors and subject experts for one-on-one tutoring, regardless of the cost, Wyzant may be one of the best platforms out there.
If you live in the US and are willing to pay for high-quality tutoring, you may want to give this platform a go.
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FAQ
How does Wyzant online tutoring work?
You select the tutor that suits your needs and requirements. Chat with the tutor and set up a time for your lesson. You can be tutored online using Wyzant’s platform and tools.
Can I become a tutor with Wyzant if I don't live in the US?
No. Wyzant only accepts teachers that are currently residing in the US, because they are easier to vet and process.
Can I be tutored for Free by a Wyzant tutor?
Unfortunately, Wyzant doesn’t offer such services. However, you can get help from the resources available on their website or ask a question for free on Wyzant’s platform.