I love to help students in high school and college understand difficult concepts in physics, chemistry, and math. As a tutor, I believe my greatest strengths are patience, ability to connect with students, and a mastery of the material.

I graduated with honors in Chemical Engineering from the University of Southern California.

From 2000 to 2004, while a student on USC’s campus I tutored many undergraduates in calculus, physics and chemistry classes through the Engineering Peer Tutoring Program. I was awarded a Trojan Recognition Award for excellence in scholarship, leadership and service on campus.

After graduating in 2004, I worked in finance for two years.  Although challenging, I did not find the work as enjoyable as helping individuals one-on-one.  

In 2005, I moved to Phoenix, Arizona and began tutoring students full-time, including one 10th grader that raised his grade from an F to a C after just one session. Most students experienced a full letter grade improvement, if not more.

In 2008, I moved to Manhattan and started my own tutoring center called Schaeffer Tutoring. I tutored Park Avenue Elite high school students and the pre-med students of NYU and Columbia. I also became the math and chemistry tutor for child actors on the soap opera One Life to Live. I worked on set, tutoring the actors around their shooting schedule. I helped one young actor achieve a perfect score on his New Jersey State Standardized Test, earning him an invitation to take the SAT exam . . . as a sixth grader!

Making my way back to the west coast, I returned to the Phoenix area this past year and was busier than ever! In summer and fall of 2009, I tutored over 50 students ranging from ages 7 to 63, many of whom I met with on a regular basis. 

In addition to tutoring I love to spend my time cycling, running, hiking, and traveling. The pictures above are from some of my travels to the Grand Canyon, Cinque Terre, Italy, and of course, Machu Picchu, Peru!