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Invariably the most informative advice tends to offer insights from those with personal experience, so my contribution comes from a British perspective. Here, the term personal tutor is used to describe a member of Faculty who is both an academic advisor & a pastoral carer. Personal tutors have responsibility for approximately 20 students & they are remitted one hour per week from their 24 hour teaching time-table to perform their duties. To be more direct, your College will be trying to get your personal tutor to do as much as possible in the least amount of time. Therefore, their time is very limited as they attempt to spread themselves thinly across a range of competing demands.

The allocation of tutor groups is designed so the personal tutor teaches you for at least one of your three or four subjects if you are taking A' levels. That way, the tutor gets to know you & a rapport can be established. When this principle fails for what ever reason, things tend to go wrong. Without regular interaction between both partners, trust & mutual understanding has little opportunity to flourish. No matter how skilled the tutor is in exercising their softer skills, or emotional intelligence, you remain to all intense & purposes, strangers.

So what general tips might be useful in making the relationship as productive as it can be?

Firstly, keep the tutor informed about your academic progress & any significant personal problems that may arise. Remember, if the tutor doesn't know about it, they cannot give you praise when things go well, or offer you advice & support if you're not meeting expected learning goals, or having difficulties at home.

Secondly, whilst the tutor will not have the time to meet for a comprehensive discussion very regularly, I see no reason why you shouldn't send them an e-mail if you have any concerns, or more happily, to celebrate your successes. As Faculty members are organisationally socialised to respond to this medium, what better way to make sure your tutor advises you, or carries out a task in a timely way, than by dropping them an e-mail.

Thirdly, don't ignore problems, bury you head in the sand or miss their scheduled appointments as these are comparatively rare opportunities for quality one to one time.

Fourthly, make sure you, or your parents or guardians make the personal tutor the central point of contact with the institution. This avoids all kinds of misunderstandings, dissatisfaction & general chaos. Additionally, in times of trouble it is the personal tutor that the organisational hierarchy want to hear from & take notice of, not the member of support staff you left a message with, or other teachers for that matter.

Fifthly, remember that your tutor has to answer for your progress & your behaviour. My advice is to be as honest as possible with them & ask for certain things to remain confidential if you prefer. If you only give half the picture, or mislead the tutor in an attempt to avoid responsibility for something you did, or didn't do & they go out on a limb for you, they can end up looking foolish. The next time you need them in a sticky situation they may be less willing to help.

Finally, I am not naive enough to think that all tutors are attentive, effective & possess bundles of empathy. However, my advice is to try & work with them, not against them. Most tutors want to do a good job out of professional pride, if not through some other more altruistic motivation, so give them a chance.

Learn more about this author, Julian Salisbury.
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