Award-Winning HSPT Tutors
serving Chicago, IL

Karin McKie, MFA, compiles curriculum and personalizes teaching for a broad spectrum of students. I know there is no better, nor more crucial, calling than helping learners communicate their voices and realize their educational dreams. I specialize in tutoring all standardized tests, including the LSAT, SAT, PSAT, ACT, GRE, HSPT, ISEE, Accuplacer, STAAR, TOEFL/IELTS, ASVAB, all AP/IB English and history classes, and more. I also created and published a simple reading annotation system and related strategies specifically to tackle timed tests, as well as teaching critical reading, comparative literature, public speaking, and theater. As a professional writer and editor, I coach students in persuasive writing for schoolwork, college application and supplemental essays, internship and job applications, and the like. For decades, I've taught and lectured at universities, schools, and with individuals in Chicagoland and the Bay Area, and to online students of all ages around the world. I customize study plans with learners and their advocates to utilize existing abilities and add new techniques to reach personal and scholastic goals. I have a BS in Communications and Theater, and an MFA in Creative Writing. I have completed Continuing Education courses at Stanford, Northwestern and DePaul Universities. I'm a professional features writer and culture critic. I've edited Perspective design journal and Reed literary magazine and have performed memoir essays I've written on Chicago Public Radio. I come from a family of teachers and was fortunate to grow up at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, where my anthropologist mom was Education Director. Since early childhood, I've been immersed in multicultural and ELL education. I've devoted my personal and professional time to diversity and storytelling, starting at public TV station WETA in my hometown outside Washington, D.C., where I was certified as a trainer with Sesame Street's Preschool Education Project. I've also taught creativity and teambuilding through improvisation to all ages (as well as creating a kids summer camp), reading for the SAG Foundations BookPALS (Performing Artists for Literacy in Schools) program, plus reading and writing skills to at-risk students through the Park District's Kraft Great Kids Program. I've assisted many of my arts marketing clients, including Barrel of Monkeys and Kidworks Touring Theatre, with youth literacy programs at schools and libraries throughout the Windy City.

I am a retired math teacher, who just has too much time on her hands!!!

I am a graduate of Loyola University Chicago, where I majored in political science. I am currently a law student at Chicago-Kent College of Law, and aspire one day to practice corporate law with a focus on financial compliance.

I am a student at DePaul University currently working toward a Bachelors of Arts in Public Relations and Advertising with a minor in Journalism. Previously in my academic career, I tutored students at a bilingual elementary school in southwest Detroit. I also worked extensively as a tutor among high school age students during my time as an upperclassman. I specialize in literature, language arts, and writing. Currently, I hold a job as a Peer Writing Tutor at DePaul University's Center for Writing-based Learning. I enjoy tutoring because it allows me to share my passion for learning and ensure that others are optimizing their educational experience. I encourage students to dig deep and form original ideas, rather than taking shortcuts. This way, lessons have a meaningful and lasting impact.

I am a student at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois, majoring in French and minoring in English. Upon completing my bachelors degree, I intend to pursue a masters degree in French-English translation. I have a passion for languages and the crucial role they play in our world, and I am endlessly looking for more opportunities to learn. I am inspired to tutor because I value education as one of the greatest opportunities a person can be given, and I love seeing the ideas and ambitions of language students. My favorite subject to tutor is French, as the language is incredibly dear to my heart. The French language has so much history and rich culture, and it is easy to be inspired by its beauty. In my spare hours I enjoy immersing myself in the worlds of literature, exploring the real world around me, and creating art, food, and poetry.

I am a math and science tutor with years of experience and a passion for helping young students realize their potential and achieve their goals.

I am about to begin graduate school as a PhD Student in Condensed Matter Physics. I am currently working at an experimental physics lab at the University of Maryland, College Park.

I'm patient, personable, and have an incredible gift for explaining things in a way that makes sense. I majored in Math Education (with a minor in Computer Science), and I have more than eight years of experience teaching math and other STEM subjects.

I am a graduate of Indiana University Bloomington. I received my Bachelor of Arts in Slavic and East European Languages and Cultures with a focus on Russian, Russian Literature, and International Relations. Since graduating, I have worked at a YMCA Learning Center as a Preschool Teacher Assistant, camp counselor, after-school counselor, art program leader and childcare provider for all ages. I tutored children (K-8) in the after-school program in all subjects, overseeing study time and assisting students with homework. I also worked as a data analyst for the Data Recognition Corporation: reading, assessing and scoring standardized tests in a variety of subjects for grades K-12. I worked on WIDA projects where I evaluated and scored English proficiency tests (verbal and written) for multilingual learners. As a WIDA analyst, I gained insight into the national system of standardized testing. While I tutor in a broad range of subjects, I am especially interested in Literature, Language, History and Philosophy. I am passionate about teaching and about learning, and I firmly believe that the pursuit of knowledge is lifelong.

I am happy to tutor for Varsity Tutors. I study English literature and philosophy, so reading and writing are my strongest suits, but I am glad to help in any of my listed subjects. Please send me a message to let me know how I can be of assistance!

I am a recent college graduate with a goal of becoming a physician. I majored in Neuroscience and and have a passion for math as well. I think a good way to help students learn is to get them to stay motivated by being encouraging and showing them the fun in learning. Everything may seem hard at first, but hard work really does pay off in the end. I think the best way to learn is to be open minded and willing to learn.

I am an incredibly dedicated tutor with years of experience and education to help students reach their academic goals. Beginning in high school, I tutored elementary through high school students in mathematics and the sciences. In college, I taught a weekly class to local high school students interested in learning about neuroscience. Since college, I have continued tutoring students on a weekly basis in a wide variety of subjects.

I am pursuing an accelerated Master's Degree in Economics, and a Bachelor's in Chinese language at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. I have been pursuing my passion for teaching and tutoring for over four years. I have taught both privately and in group settings on subjects such as Calculus, Economics, SAT, Math, and much more! I am great with any type of standardized testing: specifically, SAT, SAT II on Math 1 and 2, and HSPT. I genuinely love tutoring these subjects as well as math and writing. I believe strongly that my role as a tutor is to help my students approach the material with an anxiety-free, systematic approach. I know just how to make the testing environment one where a student feels both perfectly at ease and well equipped to succeed. I know first hand that testing and learning can be all too ridden with stress and have great techniques to reduce that. My approach to teaching is simple: kindness, calmness, clarity, and fun. I keep my students consistently engaged with questions. I know how to rephrase questions and bring them back in ways that each student is interested in to see maximum results. Most importantly, I find ways to make the material interesting and easily relatable to my students. A personal investment in material is a great way to see progress!

I am currently in the process of applying to Law School. I have tutored middle school and high school students in subjects ranging from 5th grade reading to geometry to the SAT. While I am happy and able to tutor a number of subjects, I am most passionate about Test Prep because these scores are very important to students, and I enjoy helping them to conquer the test and succeed. My teaching philosophy can be described as a coaching style in which, like athletics, I believe learning the subject matter, good techniques, and constant practice are the best ways to achieving better scores.

I am a senior at Queens College majoring in Urban Studies. I am writing a thesis on South Asians living in New York City. I have spent the last two semesters mentoring kids from a local shelter every Saturday during the school year. My specialties are SAT prep, SHSAT Prep, English and Social Studies. As a tutor, I am persistent and creative in my teaching techniques. I will explore every option to teach students the material.

I am working as a Cross-border consultant and consult for businesses who want to get into the Chinese market and do business with Chinese companies. Language and culture is a big part of my life both professionally and personally. My articles in mandarin have been published in multiple newspapers and magazines when I was studying in China. Chinese literature and history have always been my greatest passion. I want to help everyone really understand the Chinese culture and learn to use this beautiful language to express themselves whenever they are traveling, studying, doing business with Chinese. I am really good at other subjects too, I passed the GMAT exam with 99% math/quantitative section. Math has always been one of strongest academic subject too. Tutoring is a great responsibility, further to me it can also be one of life's most rewarding experiences. I am naturally attracted to different cultures and love to share mine with everyone. I was also a Junior Olympian (swimmer) for 8 years and love to go outdoors as I love nature.

I am not teaching, I enjoy going to the movies, spending time with my five younger brothers and sisters, and volunteering within MENSA. I believe that learning can always be made fun and is extremely rewarding when you put in the work. I look forward to sharing my love of all these subjects with you as a future student, and I look forward to meeting you!

I am especially enjoy working with students on Math, English, and Writing. I always work on first ensuring that students understand the underlying fundamental concepts before tackling more complex problems. I love to use real-world, relevant examples to make concepts come to life, and I always try to instill a love and excitement for the subject by making my sessions as animated and exciting as possible. In my spare time, I love to read, do yoga, and go running in Prospect Park.