Services & Policies

Recommended Lesson Durations:  For most students, our recommended lesson length for private tutoring is 1.5 hours.  However, we recommend shorter meetings (approximately 1 hour each) for younger students in grades K-8, and/or your initial lesson with a new tutor.   (The only exceptions are online tutoring sessions and music lessons, which are usually either 30 or 45 minutes long.)  Our tutors are also available for private lessons of 2 hours or more, but we do not recommend this unless absolutely necessary.   

For our test-prep courses and group tutoring sessions, we recommend 1.5-hour classes for groups of 2 students, 2-hour classes for groups of 3-5 students, and 2.5-hour classes for groups of 6-8 students.   (As a general rule, the more students in the class, the longer the session needs to be to cover the same amount of material.)

Locations:  Two options are available. The first option is to travel to the tutor: each of our tutors offers lessons at a public or office location near his/her home.  Or, if you prefer, nearly all of our tutors also offer tutoring in the comfort & privacy of your home.  We also offer online tutoring & group courses in select locations.   

Scheduling:  We will try to be as flexible as possible when it comes to lesson times.  Our tutors understand that many students have very busy schedules, and we are happy to accommodate each student's needs.  We schedule lessons on a first-come, first-serve basis, and are available for lessons 7 days a week, 9AM-9PM.   Many of our tutors also have their personal tutoring calendars posted on their tutor profile pages. 

Adult Supervision Requirement:  Client agrees to provide adult supervision for any tutoring session involving a minor that is not conducted in public location during business hours. 

Money-Back Guarantee: If you are not happy with your tutor after your first lesson, then we will be happy to provide you with a full refund and/or find you a new tutor. 

Although we are happy to provide you with this guarantee, it has rarely proven to be necessary.  Over the last decade, less than one percent  of McElroy clients have requested a refund.

After-Hours Consultations:  If you have any questions about your student’s progress, then you should always feel free to contact your tutor between lessons by phone or email. However, please keep in mind that your tutor has many other students and clients, and may not be able to answer your questions immediately.  Unless you have agreed to pay your tutor for his/her consulting time, we ask that you please limit any phone conversations with your tutor(s) to approximately five minutes in duration.  Otherwise, please try to reserve other questions for the time of the actual tutoring session.   You can also call our headquarters anytime (office hours 9 AM to 2 PM PST) at 866-584-8886, or email us at staff@mcelroytutoring.com, and we will respond promptly to your inquiries.

Payment:   Although we never require that you pay for more than one lesson at a time, lessons must be paid for in full at least 24 hours in advance.  We accept Mastercard, Visa, PayPal, Google Checkout, and personal checks.  If you prefer to pay by check, then you must purchase a minimum of 10 hours up-front.  We also offer package discounts: for every 5 hours of tutoring you pay for in advance, you will receive approximately 5% off the total cost of tutoring, all the way up to 25% off for 25 hours.

Rate Changes and Notifications:  Our tutors and consultants have varying hourly rates, but we will not raise anyone’s rates without notifying you in advance.  For inquiries as to a tutor’s hourly rates or billing accuracy, please do not hesitate to call our office. If you ever discover an error in your billing, then we will be happy to adjust your account accordingly. All package deals are refundable; however, refund amount owed will be calculated at the tutor’s standard "pay as you go" rate. College consulting packages are not refundable, but the balance may be transferred to another consultant.

24-hour cancellation policy:  Any lesson may be canceled or postponed, so long as the tutor is given 24 hours advance notice.  However, if notice is not provided to the tutor at least 24 hours before the scheduled start of the lesson, then client agrees to pay for full price of the lesson.   We understand that this is a harsh penalty to pay if the absence is unavoidable, but this policy has proven to be necessary in order to protect our tutors. Some of our younger students have a tendency to be unreliable, so it is the parent’s responsibility to make sure the student arrives prepared and on time for each lesson.  If the student cancels the lesson, then we will consider this a cancellation. If the student is more than 30 minutes late to the lesson, then we will also consider this a cancellation.  We suggest keeping the tutor’s cell phone number on hand, as the best way to contact tutors is directly by phone. The sooner you cancel, the sooner the tutor can try to fill that time slot and prevent losing his/her income for the day. Please keep in mind that our tutors can usually fill your time slot with another student if given sufficient notice.  If you prefer, then you may call our office to cancel during business hours.

Study Materials/Miscellaneous Charges:  We are happy to provide any necessary books and materials for your student. All books/materials will be billed for at the current Amazon.com retail price.  If you purchase a pre-paid package of 15 hours or more, then we will include your materials for free (up to a $30 value).  We are also happy to ship these books to your home address at no extra charge.  Miscellaneous charges may include photocopy fees (20 cents per page) and/or diagnostic exam proctoring fees ($20 per hour of testing).  

College & Admissions Consulting:  Brian R. McElroy (Founder and President, Harvard class of 2002) is our Director of Private Tutoring, Essay Editing & College Consulting Services. His consulting rate (consulting is defined as any business not conducted in person, such as email or phone conversations) is $146-$195/hr, after the free 15-minute initial consultation. Please call Brian McElroy directly at 1-866-584-8886, extension 4, or email him at mcelroy@post.harvard.edu. If you would prefer that he respond to your inquiry by phone, then please include a phone number in your email. Otherwise, he will respond via email and bill you for the time it takes him to respond. If you would like to put a cap on Brian’s response time, then please mention this in your email. If you choose to work with another one of our College Consultants, then the same policies will apply at their respective hourly rates.  Our office staff is also available during business hours to answer any other questions you may have, at no extra charge.  You can email us at staff@mcelroytutoring.com or call us toll-free at 1-866-584-8886, extension 1.