Former Unimelb tutor, Bcom (Hons) Unimelb (Actuarial Studies and Finance), Economist at the Department of Treasury and Finance tutoring students in Maths and Statistics

Find out more about Arsh

• When did you develop an interest in your chosen field and in private tutoring?

  I have always been a curious student which is why I was always interested in learning concepts beyond the curriculum. I also discovered that the best way to learn new concepts was to explain them to someone else. Through this process of explaining concepts to my friends and peers I discovered that I was skilled at teaching. Moreover, I found the joy of breaking down complex concepts into simple ideas for my students really rewarding. This is when I decided to start my journey in private tutoring.

• Tell us more about the subject you teach, the topics you like to discuss with students (and possibly those you like a little less).

  I take lessons for students studying maths and finance at all levels. I really enjoy discussing practical ideas and real-world case studies with my finance students. I believe that is the best way to master finance subjects. For my maths students I believe practice is key so once I’m done explaining concepts to students I encourage as much practice as possible. A less ideal scenario for me is when students request lessons to go over the entire course material moments before an exam or assignment since I believe that hinders true learning and doesn’t provide the best results. However, I still help those students achieve the best result possible in that situation and encourage starting early for future subjects.

• Did you have any role models; a teacher that inspired you?

  My Real analysis teacher in University was a role model for me purely because of the way he approached problems. He always dissected concepts/ problems into parts that he understands immediately and parts that needs some work. His general approach towards mathematics was really interesting and he was a huge advocate of not being intimidated by problems but rather embrace their uncertainty. Not only did this make mathematics much more enjoyable for me but also made facing challenges in life a better experience (something that I did not realise at the time).

• What do you think are the qualities required to be a good tutor?

  I think the most important quality for a good tutor is to be empathetic and understanding towards a student. Only then can you truly understand their issues and have the right perspective towards resolving them. Having been in a student’s shoes myself this has really helped me become a better tutor.

• Provide a valuable anecdote related to your subject or your days at school.

  As I preach to my finance students , practical knowledge is far more important than theoretical knowledge. While studying Investments at Unimelb I used to do a lot of case studies which made understanding the concepts a lot easier. In the final exam, there was a question from a concept outside of the curriculum. I could easily relate that question to an extended concept I had learned in one of the case studies I did. Since the question was relevant to the current affairs in the financial world, I could provide a really good answer. This would not have been possible without my efforts in understanding how the course content was related to practical applications.

• What were the difficulties or challenges you faced or are still facing in your subject?

  The biggest challenge I faced with my subjects was time management since the timing of assignments and exams was often clustered so it became really hard to prioritise. The best way to overcome this was by starting early and making sure that I wasn’t behind schedule even when there were no deadlines.

• Do you have a particular passion? Is it teaching in general or an element of the subject or something completely different?

  I am really passionate about the financial markets which makes the experience of teaching finance and maths really rewarding as I can dig into my knowledge from that industry while teaching.

• What makes you a Superprof (besides answering these interview questions)?

  Having summarised most of my thoughts in the above answers, I would simply put this in a single sentence. Being a Superprof is not just about being the best tutor, its also about understanding your students. Having been a student myself, I think what makes me a superprof is caring about my students results as if they were my own.