How we ensure quality.
Every Forum tutor clears the same nine-step pipeline. Here's exactly what each step checks.
Minimum bar: BA required, 100+ hours teaching experience, B2 English (CEFR).
The pipeline
Nine steps. No shortcuts.
All nine apply to every tutor — Certified and Independent alike. No one skips a step.
Application
Applying is free — there's no upfront fee. To cover the third-party checks in our vetting, the platform recoups its one-time vetting cost by retaining the tutor's earnings from their first completed session; from the second completed session onward, the tutor keeps their full payout.
Résumé screening
Every applicant submits a current résumé/CV with their degree and teaching history. Our team reads it — alongside the subject diagnostic — before any paid vetting is authorized for that candidate.
Identity verification
We confirm every tutor is who they say they are before they ever meet a student — required for everyone, no exceptions.
Criminal background check
Every tutor clears a criminal check before they can teach — no country is exempt. Only a clean result passes.
English language assessment
Every tutor — including those for whom English is a second language — completes a structured English assessment. The platform threshold is B2 or above on the CEFR scale, for both spoken and written English.
30-question subject diagnostic
Applicants sit a 30-question multiple-choice diagnostic in each subject they choose, with items spanning five difficulty bands (Essentials → Elite) calibrated to the published curriculum. Performance across the bands yields a percentage score plus a recommended tier — the highest difficulty level the applicant demonstrably handles.
Recorded teaching sample
Every candidate records a short async video answering a fixed set of teaching prompts. Our staff review the recording for clarity, pacing, error-handling, and rapport — the qualitative things a credential can't tell you.
Contract & tax setup
Every tutor completes contractor, tax, and payout onboarding so payments are set up compliantly for their country before their first session.
Onboarding & methodology training
Every tutor completes Forum's onboarding course — platform pedagogy, child-safety policies, and the live-classroom toolkit — and must finish it before taking their first session.
The credential floor
What every tutor brings.
Hard minimums vs. preferred qualifications — published, never moved.
BA degree
RequiredSubmitted with your résumé and reviewed by our team.
Master's degree
PreferredNot required, but common at the Certified Specialist and Senior tiers.
Teaching license
PreferredPreferred for US states with licensure requirements; verified when present.
Teaching experience
100+ hoursDocumented prior teaching, tutoring, or instructional work on your résumé.
English (CEFR)
B2 minimumAssessed on both spoken and written English against the CEFR scale. B2 or above is required to continue.
30-question subject diagnostic
Required30 questions per subject spanning five difficulty bands. Performance recommends a tier and must clear the admission floor.
Two tracks
Certified vs. Independent.
Every tutor completes all nine vetting steps — identity, criminal, English, teaching sample, and training. The Certified/Independent distinction is about how they work with Forum, not how they're vetted.
Certified Tutors
Forum's premium, platform-backed tier. Certified Tutors clear the same full vetting as every tutor — then go further: held to Forum's highest standards, with ongoing methodology training, team development, and dedicated support behind every session.
- All nine vetting steps — same as every tutor
- Deliver packages, monthly plans, programs, and test prep
- Platform-set rate; directly contracted and backed by Forum
Independent Tutors
Fully-vetted, self-directed professionals. They clear the exact same vetting as Certified Tutors — every step, nothing skipped — and families book them directly.
- All nine vetting steps — same as every tutor
- Pay-as-you-go; set their own rate within the tier band
- Onboarded as 1099 contractors for tax + payout compliance
Honest by default
Why no testimonials?
We're a new platform. We don't have years of student outcomes to point to, and we won't fabricate user counts, satisfaction percentages, or testimonials before we have real ones to share. The internet is full of made-up five-star reviews. We'd rather be the platform that doesn't do that.
What we will tell you is exactly how we vet — the nine steps above, exactly what each one checks, and the credential floor we publish. That's checkable. Stats aren't, until you can see the underlying data.
The real proof is your first session. Our money-back first-session guarantee applies to every Certified Tutor booking. If the session isn't what you expected, you don't pay. Try us with no risk; let the work speak for itself.
Ready to find a tutor?
Browse tutors who've cleared every step above. Or apply to teach and clear the bar yourself.