Organic Chemistry Tutoring with Victor

Still struggling with organic chemistry even after videos, practice, or peer tutoring?

Let’s get you un-stuck and make sure things start to making sense!

I specialize in organic chemistry tutoring.
That’s the only subject I focus on—from introductory courses to advanced and graduate-level material.

Individual organic chemistry tutoring with me is a structured, dedicated engagement designed to build reasoning skills, improve problem-solving ability, and close the gaps that keep you stuck. I always start with a detailed diagnostic of your current situation, followed up by developing a concrete plan of action tailored to your needs. In our sessions, you’ll learn how to approach organic chemistry problems, think through mechanisms, and stay on top of the material as the course progresses.

I specialize in organic chemistry and work with students across all levels.
My tutoring focuses on building reasoning skills, problem solving, exam strategy, and gap-closing.
Individual tutoring is always structured around your goals.

Why Students Struggle In Organic Chemistry

Material Complexity and Cognitive Overload

Complex information presented in organic chemistry without the right framework easily overwhelms students, making it difficult to process and retain new concepts effectively.

Gaps in Foundational Knowledge

Concepts in organic chemistry build one on top of another. Missing fundamental concepts makes it impossible mastering more advanced organic chemistry topics.

Ineffective Study Strategies

Relying on rote memorization in organic chemistry rather than active engagement often leads to a false sense of security and poor long-term retention.

Instructional and Assessment Mismatch

Organic chemistry is unique in the sense that what is taught in class is not what is being assessed on the test. In class, you learn theory. On the test, you are assessed on your ability to apply it to solve problems.

How Organic Chemistry Tutoring with Me Addresses These Issues

Most typical tutoring is reactive—you bring a problem, and the tutor helps you solve it. My approach is structured.

In our tutoring sessions we’ll focus on building the reasoning skills, problem-solving process, and foundational understanding that allow you to work through new problems on your own, not just the ones we cover together. This is why I structure tutoring as a semester-long engagement rather than isolated sessions.

1

Diagnostic Assessment

With every student, I start with a comprehensive diagnostic to identify your strengths, gaps in your understanding, and your learning style. I bring 20 years of teaching experience, extensive research into teaching and learning, and specialized training in education and cognitive psychology to every initial diagnostic and subsequent tutoring session.

2

Personalized Study Strategy

Each student learns differently. I’ll help you set long- and short-term goals and develop a strategy for how to approach studying and practice that works for you.

3

Focus on Problem Solving and Continuous Feedback

Organic chemistry tests focus on assessing your ability to solve problems, not regurgitate definitions or textbook material. My organic chemistry tutoring meetings use an application-first approach. Even when we go over new material, I’ll always introduce it through a practice example rather than lecturing. Every meeting, I’ll give you candid, direct feedback on your progress and what needs to improve, no sugarcoating.

4

Proper Organic Chemistry Framework and Research-Based Teaching Strategies

Organic chemistry is a science of patterns. I’ll help you build and learn to use the mechanistic and reasoning patterns you’ll need to understand the material, master the concepts, and ace your tests. I use research-based teaching strategies, not anecdotal approaches, and have a proven record of success with my teaching approach.

Ultimately, whatever your current level or aptitude is,
your success is my primary objective!

Why Choose Organic Chemistry Tutoring With Me?

I have an outstanding academic preparation in chemistry (MS and PhD in chemistry and chemistry education with emphasis on organic chemistry education), and I have published my research in the fields of inorganic chemistry, coordination chemistry, organic chemistry, organic mechanisms, and chemical education. I’m a highly trained and specialized professional educator and an active member of the American Chemical Society, American Educational Research Association, National Association for Research in Science Teaching, and American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Now when we are done with the mandatory “show-off” part, the short story is: if you want to maintain an excellent permanent academic record, master the organic chemistry material, and develop the essential problem-solving skills to succeed in organic chemistry, you’re in the right place!

I understand that you sought out organic chemistry tutoring because you’re struggling with the subject. I also understand that learning organic chemistry takes time and considerable effort.

Regardless of how hard or frustrating it can be, I’m on your side, and I’m here to help you on this journey. I’m skilled at explaining concepts from different perspectives to accommodate your specific learning style. I pride myself on my rigorously individual approach to tutoring, tailoring my lessons to your individual needs, goals, and academic preparation.

Over the years I have helped hundreds of organic chemistry students from all over the country. My current list of schools includes 70+ universities ranging from Harvard, MIT, Duke, Princeton, Vanderbilt, UC-Berkeley, UMich, Ohio State, Cornell, to small community colleges and liberal arts schools all over the US and Canada.

Now, the long story…

I love chemistry. I’ve decided to become a chemist when I was six years old and I stayed true to it through my entire life. When I was first introduced to organic chemistry, it quickly became my true passion that later resulted in my first organic chemistry degree and a few publications.

Following a regular academic path, I learned the ins and outs of academia. I dealt with the administration, the collaborators, the researchers, the conferences, the lectures, labs, faculty meetings… you name it. Yet, the most rewarding aspect of it all for me was teaching and working with students. The biggest challenge I faced daily was to reach every student in the classroom. For some, my teaching was too fast and involved, for others it was too slow and didn’t challenge them enough. The “golden middle” really doesn’t work in a 400-student auditorium. So, I quit academia and became a full-time private organic chemistry tutor.

I love being a tutor as it allows me to help each individual student and not the theoretical “average” in the crowd. After spending over a decade working with students from the top-tier schools I became intimately familiar with the organic chemistry curriculum and the requirements at every level. I’m also very familiar with many instructors and their “quirks” thus I can anticipate their tricks and questions on the exam.

…ok, I suppose it wasn’t actually that long LOL 🤣

I’m a very straightforward no-nonsense teacher. My job is to help you succeed in the hardest class in a college curriculum and I’ll do whatever it takes to guide you towards this goal. You can always count on my candid feedback on your progress and what needs to be done to reach your academic goals.

I’m very patient. I understand that you sought out organic chemistry tutoring because you’re struggling with the subject. I also understand that learning organic chemistry takes time and considerable effort. Regardless of how hard or frustrating it can be, I’m on your side and I’m here to help you in this journey.

I’m skilled at explaining concepts from different perspectives to accommodate your specific learning style. I pride myself on my rigorously individual approach to tutoring, tailoring my lessons to your individual needs, goals, and academic preparation. I routinely prepare customized testing and practice materials for my students targeting specific strengths and weaknesses.

I work with my organic chemistry students online. I use a host of online teaching tools to facilitate the meeting and make it easy, productive, interactive, and enjoyable!

You can learn more about how online tutoring works by clicking here.

The online format allows you to save time on traveling, saves you the headache of traffic, and bring you the convenience of meeting from home (or any other place you feel most comfortable in). Many of my students work with me in between their classes while they are on campus or when they come back home from classes.

How would you like to meet with you tutor right from your home with a cup of home-made coco in your hand wearing you favorite plush slippers? Well, that’s what I offer you by meeting with you online!

Regular weekly individual tutoring fee is $200 per hour. This rate includes the feedback and support between meetings and is subject to continuous billing policy.

On-demand (hourly) tutoring is available on a very limited basis at $300 per hour which includes pre-meeting prep and post-meeting followup. You can always send me a message and see if I have an opening. I’m typically booked at least a weak ahead of time, so last minute scheduling is very unlikely.

I do not offer discounted rates. If you have just a few questions, you’re always welcome to join the membership and send me a message. I typically answer questions within 24 hours.

Yes. While individual tutoring works best when we start at the beginning of the course, I can assess your current situation and determine whether one-on-one work would be effective given where you are in the semester. I do not accept individual tutoring clients if you only have a week or two before you final.

While I don’t do “free trials” for private tutoring, your first meeting is protected by a good-fit guarantee: if after the first meeting you feel like we’re not a good fit, let me know and I’ll give you a full refund. I reserve the right to do the same—if I don’t believe I can help you, I’ll issue you a refund and refer you to a different tutor.

I’m not here to be a substitute for your class, your textbook, and your professor. If you expect me to lecture you the material and learn about the concepts from me instead of initially learning them in class, I’m not your guy. I’ve made literally hundreds of tutorials specifically so I don’t have to lecture the same material over and over again.

I also expect you to watch my tutorials on the specific topic you wanna discuss before the meeting. Of course, it doesn’t mean I expect you to master the topic before showing up. Rather, I expect you to familiarize yourself with the concept, so we can build a strong foundation through targeted practice. This way, we can have a productive meeting focused on building your skills and understanding, and not me lecturing you about the concept for the first time. So, I expect you to go to your lectures, read your textbook, watch my tutorials, and bring questions!

I often give my students practice questions to master their skills. I continuously give my students feedback on their work and adjust the tutoring based on their progress. The more “homework” you do (or share with me what you’ve been working on in class), the better I can tune the meetings to work on any gaps in your understanding.

I practice the guided inquiry (Socratic method, conceptual framework building, and a dozen other fancy names for the same idea) style of teaching. The core of my teaching approach is active participation, so instead of me showing how to approach and solve problems, I’m going to guide you through the whole process and have you solve the problems. This way, you’ll build your skills and understanding much faster than passively observing me doing the work. So, you can expect >90% of our meetings to be dedicated to deliberate problem solving and problem-solving strategies.

In order to improve, you also need to be challenged the right amount. This is called a “zone of proximal development” in cognitive science. As soon as I see you’re comfortable with a certain type of problem or reaction, I’ll push you towards the next level. This way, each meeting is a meaningful practice/challenge-solving session and not a mere repetition of something you are already good at.

What Students Say:

👉 More Testimonials Here 👈

Drop Me A Line & Let’s Get Started:

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