The University Tutorial Center (UTC) is a free, on-campus resource located at 101 Park Shops for students who may need extra help in classes of rigor such as chemistry, math and physics in addition to writing courses.
As NC State students delve further into their coursework, UTC Director Barbie Windom gave insight as to what the UTC has to offer students. According to Windom, the UTC provides tutoring sessions based on which classes students are having more difficulty with.
“We target courses that typically have a high DFW rate, meaning students either make a ‘D,’ ‘F’ or ‘withdrawal,’ and so those courses are chemistry, math, physics and writing classes,” Windom said. “We offer drop in tutoring programs where students can just come into the tutorial center during our hours where we are open, and we offer different types of appointments where a student books in advance and then has a scheduled time with a tutor.”
Tutoring sessions are not limited to the Park Shops location. Tutors can be sent to the class they are tutoring where they will take concepts directly from the lessons and apply them in their tutoring session.
“We also offer supplemental instruction (SI) to large lecture classes where a trained tutor is sent to the class and sits in on the lesson and then facilitates three SI sessions a week that are optional for the student to attend to get some extra practice,” Windom said.
According to Windom, the UTC plans on adding additional courses to their list of tutoring sessions, but a high demand for those courses is needed.
“We have looked into [adding additional courses to the UTC] in the past,” Windom said. “We have actually tutored economics in the past and didn’t have a very high demand for it, and that becomes challenging when you hire tutors for a course, and then you don’t have the demand for it because you can’t keep the tutor busy.”
The UTC will be using the DFW rate for all courses at NC State to assess which courses might be necessary to add in upcoming semesters.
“We’re in the process of running another assessment in terms of what courses have the high DFW rate, so we’re going to be looking at that again,” Windom said. “So yes, we will be exploring that in the future.”
Students who are interested in becoming a tutor with UTC must complete at least one semester at NC State, have a 3.25 GPA or higher and have earned at least a B+ in the course they are interested in tutoring. Student can then attend information sessions and apply for the job. Selected individuals must take the USC 210: Intro to College Tutoring class as a part of being an employee.
According to Windom, the goal of the UTC is to help students become independent learners.
“Our motto is ‘where successful students meet,’” Windom said. “The students who want to learn skills to be able to use their resources more effectively and to dig into their own coursework find it very useful. What is not useful is if a student wants someone to give them an answer; we don’t do that here.”
Emily Trentham, a second-year student studying environmental sciences and political science, received tutoring from the UTC in her Chemistry 101 class last year.
“The UTC helped me in my Chem 101 class by providing extra resources, so we could go over concepts outside of the classroom,” Trentham said. “I was also provided with more examples, which helped reinforce the concepts we learned in class. I think the Tutorial Center helped me learn the material better and to overall do better in my courses. I would highly suggest getting a weekly assigned tutor for any class you may need extra help in.”
Trentham first heard about the UTC from various professors and other resources around campus who encouraged getting a tutor in classes with more rigor.
“In my first semester, I went on the UTC website and found an online form to fill out that would match my schedule with a tutor hired by UTC where they would then provide a weekly scheduled tutor,” Trentham said. “I’ve had overall positive experiences with people in the office and the tutors I have been assigned. I think it’s a great on-campus resource for students since it is free and can make a significant difference in your education.”
In the fall of 2020, the UTC will move to D.H. Hill Library into the new Academic Success Center on the second floor to be located in a more centralized area and expand their opportunities with students.
