PrepNow Tutor - Eric G.
Following in his family tradition, Eric graduated high school and joined the Navy. He served as an avionics technician and was promoted for merit during his service. "I am particularly proud of my Navy service," Eric says, "as it is a tradition in my family going back centuries." After an honorable discharge, Eric earned an associate's degree in physics, followed by a bachelor's degree in materials science and engineering from the University of California at Berkeley. A member of Phi Theta Kappa, Alpha Gamma Sigma and Epsilon Pi honor societies, Eric served as vice president of his PTK chapter and earned his physics degree with honors.
Eric started tutoring while at Berkeley, and found he enjoyed sharing not just his knowledge, but his strategies. "I find that math in particular is taught by math people for math people," he says, "and I recognized that there is a great need for people who are not necessarily naturals at math to develop those skills." Eric believes that the mathematics disciplines can benefit from the diversity of perspectives that would result. "I feel that I have a unique ability to bring subjects to those who might struggle with them but have a new and different perspective to offer," he says.
He now has more than six years of experience teaching and tutoring physics, chemistry, algebra, trigonometry, and calculus, including vector calculus and complex functions. He has also taught electronics and mechanical engineering.
Eric's ability to turn complex topics into simple everyday analogies is one of his strengths as a tutor. "I find that math and science are the topics students most struggle with, in part because they are abstract," he says, "and having an everyday experience they can relate to makes the subjects more real and tangible." He also considers his sense of humor an asset to his tutoring. "Humor helps to diffuse the tension that many students feel when dealing with math and science courses," he says.
In high school, Eric played football. At Berkeley, he was a member of several competitive engineering teams, including SAE super-mileage vehicle, SAE formula team and steel bridge team. These teams design, build and race vehicles and compete in assembling a bridge designed and built by the students. Eric is an avid cyclist and studied Tae Kwon Do for several years. He enjoys music, in particular singing. In his spare time, he is a holographic artist!
