Brandeis Undergraduate Guided Study (BUGS)
Brandeis Undergraduate Guided Study supports undergraduates through one-on-one and small group tutoring support led by trained peer tutors. We value peer-to-peer support and know it can enhance the educational experience of both learners and peer educators. Tutors are dedicated to providing knowledgeable guidance in order to empower students in their learning and help them achieve their academic goals and hone their academic skills. We strive to create an inclusive, accessible and collaborative environment in which every student feels supported and valued.
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BUGS Program FAQs
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BUGS tutoring sessions are designed to help you feel comfortable with the course material that you’re learning. What’s covered in a BUGS session depends on the needs of the student, and can range from diving deep into the material from one class to broadly reviewing material from multiple units. While BUGS tutors cannot answer specific questions for you on a homework assignment or test, they can work with you to understand the concepts behind an assessment and walk you through practice problems.
Tutoring is held in person or virtually (via zoom), depending on the student's needs. Students can specify when booking a tutoring session whether they would like to meet in person or virtually. The tutor's meeting location, or zoom link for virtual sessions, is indicated when booking.
Sessions booked with a tutor typically last between 30 minutes to an hour.
Tutoring is provided at no cost to students and is open to all Brandeis undergraduate students. The BUGS program is supported by the Academic Services Office.
Your BUGS session will be most helpful if you have prepared ahead of time and have an idea of what material you would like to review or questions you would like to ask. To get the most out of your time, try to do as much as possible of the following prior to your BUGS session:
- Do your homework, including attempting parts that appear most difficult.
- Review all related material in your textbook(s) and class notes.
- Make a list of questions — try to be specific.
- Prioritize your questions in case you are not able to get to everything in one session.
- Think about how you study for this class so you can talk over additional strategies with the BUGS tutor.
BUGS tutors have either successfully completed the courses they are tutoring for, or have otherwise demonstrated mastery of the subject material (for example, a language tutor may be a native speaker of that language, or a subject tutor may have earned a high score on an AP examination of that subject).
You can email the BUGS tutor and inquire about the possibility of scheduling an alternate time to meet.
You can apply to be a BUGS tutor through
Workday. Available listings can be found by navigating to the “Career” page, clicking on the “Find Jobs for Students” button, then searching “BUGS” in the search bar at the top of the page.
If you’re having an issue with tutoring, you can contact Julia Mani, Director of Peer Academic Support, at jmani@brandeis.edu.
