National 5 tutors
National 5s are the SQA qualifications most students in Scotland take in S4, graded A to D, with the exams in late spring. A National 5 tutor works one-to-one on the course and the exam paper the student will sit, online with a shared whiteboard, and many students go on to Highers with the same tutor.
Practise National 5 between lessons, free
We also build cookie, the revision app, and every student and every tutor here gets it at no extra cost. This is what it has for National 5 to use between lessons.
- Practice questionsExam-style questions from your notes or the specification, marked with partial credit and a worked solution.
- Past papersThe boards’ own papers and mark schemes, with grade boundaries, and you can do one in cookie with a timer.
- FlashcardsCards that come back just before you would forget them, including decks other students have shared.
- NotesRevision notes people have shared, to read, download or add to your own and turn into flashcards.
- Revision planSpreads your topics and papers out over the weeks before each exam, around your lessons.
What a National 5 tutor works on
Usually the subjects a student is close to a grade boundary in, worked from SQA’s own past papers and marking instructions, which SQA publishes for every subject. Maths and English are the most common, then the sciences and the subjects students go on to take at Higher.
Many National 5 courses also have coursework, such as an assignment or a project, that counts towards the grade. A tutor can explain what it asks for, but the work itself must be the student’s own.
From National 5 to Higher
A National 5 at a good grade is usually what a school asks for before a student takes the subject at Higher in S5, so a tutor who knows both can help a student see where the course is heading.
Our National 5 tutors
Common questions
Do tutors know the SQA course rather than GCSE?
A tutor’s profile lists the levels they teach, and National 5 is one of them, so you can choose someone who teaches the Scottish course rather than its English equivalent.
Can a tutor use SQA past papers?
Yes. SQA publishes past papers and marking instructions for every National 5 subject, and working through them is the backbone of most lessons.
Can a tutor help with the coursework?
With understanding what it asks for and planning it, yes. The work must be the student’s own, and a tutor keeps to SQA’s rules.
How much does a National 5 tutor cost?
From £30 an hour, set by each tutor and shown on their profile, and priced in pounds, so a bank outside the UK may add a conversion fee. Most tutors offer a free 15-minute intro, and their profile says so.
What happens in a lesson?
A lesson is live and one to one, in a room in your browser: video both ways, a shared whiteboard with proper maths notation, a graph plotter and screen sharing, on a laptop, tablet or phone with nothing to install. The tutor can put questions, notes and past papers on the board, and you can photograph your written work with your phone to put it there. The board is kept for 365 days, so either of you can open it again, print it or make notes, flashcards or questions from it, and the tutor writes a short report afterwards.
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How it works here
We are selective about who teaches here: we look for tutors at top universities, we read every application ourselves, and everybody completes an identity check before they are listed. Lessons run in the browser with live video and a shared whiteboard. Rates start at £30 an hour, most tutors offer a free 15-minute intro and their profile says so, and every student gets cookie's study software at no extra cost.