Rates & Policies

Private Tutoring Post-Paid Hourly Rates

Rates depend on the tutor’s experience and education level in addition to the location of the services provided:

Elementary Learning Program (Home) – From $76/hr, $87 average*
Elementary Learning Program (Office) – From $64/hr, $75 average*
Subject Tutoring (Home) – From $95/hr, $115 average
Subject Tutoring (Office) – From $80/hr, $100 average
Test Prep (Home) – From $115/hr, $135 average
Test Prep (Office) – From $100/hr, $120 average
College Counseling (Home) – From $145/hr, $180 average
College Counseling (Office) – From $130/hr, $160 average

For in-home tutoring we operate within an approximate 10-mile radius from our office, including West University, Bellaire, Montrose, River Oaks, Heights, and Memorial.

Online tutoring is offered at the same rate as in-office tutoring.

* After applying monthly credit earned by meeting at least 8 hours per month; see ELP policies below for details.

Private Tutoring Small Groups

For 2 or more students studying the exact same material, the following discount applies on hourly rates:

20% at 2 students
30% at 3 students
40% at 4 students
50% at 5 or more students

Private Additional Surcharges

Non-Recurring Lesson – above rates plus $35/hr
Test Prep Registration Fee (SAT/ACT/ISEE) – $150
Piqosity Subject materials – $45

Study Lounge and Study Space

Study Lounge (2-hour block) – $100
Study Space (4-hour block) – $50

Test Prep & Summer Classes

Class & package fees vary by timing and material; see pages below for more detail:

1. Tutor Satisfaction. Our staff is comprised of the most brilliant, professional, and charismatic peer tutors around. However, if after two sessions of a minimum 1-hour each and two unique tutor Analysts, you or your student is not satisfied—for any reason—you will not be expected to pay a penny.

2. No Guarantees. While we are confident in our tutors, instructors, and curricula, we cannot guarantee that students will improve their grades or scores. It is impossible for us to make such guarantees as there are many components to success that are beyond our control such as innate ability, motivation, and natural disasters.

3. Scheduling and Non-Recurring Sessions. A regularly invoiced session should be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance on a recurring basis; for example, “every Monday at 4pm for the rest of the semester.” A “Non-Recurring” session may be requested on an ad-hoc basis; for example, “this Tuesday just to prepare for a single test.” If available, the Client will be billed at their normal rate plus a non-recurring surcharge (see rates).

4. Cancellations. An appointment may only be canceled if confirmed directly with the tutor Analyst or Client Manager. The client may cancel any appointment 24 hours in advance of the previously scheduled time without penalty; otherwise, appointments will be treated as “Missed Appointments.”

5. Missed Appointments. A missed appointment is any appointment not canceled or rescheduled 24 hours prior to the scheduled time. The customer will be billed for one hour at their normal rate. Failure of the student to be present at the meeting location within 15 minutes of the appointment will be billed as a cancellation.

6. Time Billing. Billing for hourly services begins at the scheduled time (provided that the tutor Analyst is present). Clients are charged by the hour in five-minute increments. Clients may also be invoiced for time that the tutor Analyst spends on activities for the benefit of the student even if the student is not present. This time will be billed applying the “Preparation Discount.” Examples include but are not limited to:

The Analyst edits a paper at his/her residence
The Analyst reads a novel to present to the student
The Analyst prepares extra coursework for the student to complete during a session

7. Session Minimums. The minimum charge per each unique one-to-one session is 1 hour.

8. Monthly Invoices. Post-paid clients will receive invoices by e-mail or US mail for the previous month on or around the 7th of the current month. Clients may settle their invoices in one of five ways:

Credit card self-entered online;
Credit card information provided over the phone;
Credit card left on file for automatic billing;
Check mailed to General Academic at 2427 Bartlett St., Houston, TX 77098;
Balance drawn down from a previous payment or deposit.

9. Automatic Payments. We allow for “automatic billing” when clients leave their card on file with us. Credit card information is digitally encrypted and stored in a third-party managed and verified “vault.”

Cards are charged on approximately the 7th of each month for services rendered in the previous month.
For invoices exceeding $500 a month, cards may also be charged on or around the 17th of each month.

10. Prepayments. Clients may prepay for private services and are required to prepay for courses. We will refund prepayments by request with the following stipulations:

Any previous discounts or bonuses provided in exchange for the prepayment will be subtracted from the refund amount.
We will issue the refund in the same method as the original payment. For example, we will refund credit cards directly for prepayments made with a credit card. When the credit card is no longer refundable (for cancelled cards), we will issue a payment by check less a 3% fee.

11. Penalties for Late Payment. A surcharge may apply for all invoices paid later than fifteen days after the invoice date. Collection costs will be added to the total for invoices not paid within 60 days.

This late surcharge is not to exceed $1 a day or the amount limited by applicable law.
Clients will pay all reasonable costs and expenses of collection, including debt collector and attorney’s fees.

Study Lounge and Study Space

1. Registration Required. We maintain a 4:1 student to tutor ratio for the Study Lounge and limit space to 8 students for the Study Space. Students must register online to attend the Study Lounge and Study Space, and walk-ins are not allowed.

For the Study Lounge, students may stay longer than 2 hours, but they must register for multiple blocks. For example, a student may register for 1:00-3:00PM and 3:00-5:00PM on a Sunday.

2. Arrival and Departure. Students may arrive and depart at any time during their registered block (or blocks) of time, but we do not prorate the cost. For example, a student registered for 1:00PM arriving at 1:15PM and departing at 2:45PM is still billed for the full 2-hour block.

3. Cancellations. You may cancel your registration up to the time of your appointment at no charge (we ask that you cancel 24+ hours in advance). However, after 3 same-day cancellations and/or no-shows, we reserve the right to block future registrations.

4. New Client Contact Required Before Attending. Clients and students that do not have a prior relationship with us (i.e. private tutoring or classes) may register for the Study Lounge and Study Space services, but we require that we must first reach out to discuss the services and your needs before your student attends the Study Lounge or Study Space. We will reach out to you via the phone and email contact details you provide in your registration.

5. Study Space Discount. Students who attend a private session with their tutor and attend a Study Space session in the same day receive a $15 discount on the Study Space service ($50 > $35). This includes private sessions that occur during or outside of the Study Space 4-hour block. As stated before, the Study Space session is not prorated.

6. Standard Policies. Our standard rates and policies apply to the Study Lounge and Study Space unless otherwise superseded above.

Course Policies

1. Schedule. We reserve the right to make schedule, curriculum, and instructor changes as necessary. Registered parents will be informed of any changes and be given the opportunity to receive a full refund of any applicable pre-paid tuition and/or fees.

2. Minimum Enrollment. Courses and Boot Camps require at least two enrolled students in order to follow the published schedule. In the event that only one student enrolls, we will still offer Courses at the originally paid tuition but reduce the scheduled class time by one-third; however, clients may also receive a full refund if they prefer. Boot Camps that do not make will be canceled, and clients will receive a full refund.

3. Make Up Classes. When a student misses a class, we will work with the Client directly to schedule a make-up session. The instructor will document what material was missed so that the make-up session can be planned accordingly.

All makeups must be completed within 30 days of the last day of the class, after which point no additional support will be offered free of charge.
If for whatever reason (weather, sickness, etc.) a class is cancelled, it will be made up on a date and time agreed upon by the majority of the students in the class.

4. Class Materials and Outside Requirements. All necessary curriculum materials are included with the course tuition and fees. Instructors will assign homework, but it is not mandatory. However, we always encourage outside practice, and it is in your student’s best interest to complete this homework. In particular, we strongly recommend learning vocabulary at home when taking our ISEE courses.

5. Distracting Devices. Students should not use mobile phones or other electronic devices during class unless necessary or allowed by the class instructor. Students violating this rule may have their devices confiscated until a parent or responsible guardian retrieves them.

6. Payment and Refunds. Payment is due on or before the first day of the class. Should a student need to withdraw from the class, we will pro-rate the refund up until the course’s midway point after which no refund will be offered.

7. Standard Policies. Our standard rates and policies also apply to courses unless otherwise superseded above.

Counseling Package Policies

These policies apply to our Early Guidance and College Counseling package (EGCP).

1. Additional Services. EGCP includes 6, 1-hour counseling sessions. Other services including additional counseling, private tutoring, test preparation, and college applications support are charged for additionally at the applicable rates.

2. Future Credit. Beginning in the summer before the student’s 11th grade, up to 50% of fees paid for EGCP may be applied to SAT and ACT test prep and/or college applications and essay support.

3. Early Termination. Parents may cancel their EGCP at any time and receive a pro-rated refund of $200 per each remaining, unused counseling session. Early termination forfeits any future credit or previous discounts received.

Elementary Learning Program (ELP) Policies

These policies apply to our Elementary Learning Program (ELP).

1. Rewards Program. Beginning in May 2024, clients with one or more students attending ELP sessions can earn a monthly credit that will be applied automatically to the cost of ELP sessions that take place in the following calendar month. Clients may earn credit every month, regardless of whether credit earned in a previous month is applied to the cost of that month’s lessons.

Credit is awarded as follows:

When a student attends at least 4 but fewer than 8 hours of ELP tutoring sessions in one calendar month, the client earns a 10% credit
When a student attends 8 or more hours of ELP tutoring sessions in one calendar month, the client earns a 20% credit

For example, a student who attends 8, one-hour ELP sessions in the month of May at a rate of $90/hr will earn a credit of $144 that will be applied automatically to the cost of ELP sessions attended in the month of June. Unused credit will remain attached to the client’s account for future use.

2. Materials Fee. ELP sessions may take place in-office or in-home, but in-home requests for particular grade levels may incur a one-time registration fee to cover physical materials such as math manipulatives. Prospective ELP clients will be informed of this fee before lessons begin, and the fee will be included on their first monthly invoice.

In-office ELP sessions utilize shared materials that are thoroughly sanitized after each use, and thus do not require a materials fee. Clients may request their own set of materials to keep, in which case a one-time registration fee will be included on their first invoice as outlined above.