Welcome!
Think of this as “City Smarts 101.”
Carefully make your way through the following four units, and you’ll be ready for graduation.
Unit 1: Contact and Payment Information
Unit 2: Our Policies
24 Hour Cancellation & Changes Policy
Please inform your tutor well in advance of any cancellations or changes (ie. shortening or rescheduling a lesson).
We charge in full for late cancellations and changes – no exceptions.
Occasionally, we hear from a parent whose child has cancelled a lesson without their knowledge. Please make sure your child understands our cancellation policy as well.
Please note that our cancellation policy applies even in the event of sickness, and it applies on holidays too. In every instance–we require 24 hours notice to avoid a charge. This policy is not meant to be punitive or onerous. Rather it ensures that we can pay our tutors for last minute disruptions to their schedule. We thank you in advance for sharing this commitment.
Adult Supervision Policy
We ask that a parent or adult guardian be present for all in-person tutoring sessions.
If a parent or adult guardian will not be present, please fill out our supervision waiver.
Late Payment Policy
We ask that you pay within 14 days of receiving an invoice. We reserve the right to add a 15% fee to all late balances. After 4 weeks past due, it is our policy to pause all tutoring services.
If for whatever reason you anticipate that you will be late, please give us a call, and let us know whats going on.
Lesson Length Disclaimer
While most appointments will adhere to the agreed upon lesson length, there are instances when an instructor needs a little more time to finish an explanation or exercise. Rather than cutting learning short, we encourage our instructors to see each lesson through to its logical and appropriate conclusion.
If you prefer for the tutor to end each appointment strictly on time, please let them know in advance.
Unit 3: A Few Notes On Payment
We send out invoices twice a month.
Twice a month, you will receive an invoice from our administrator detailing your balance. Because we utilize a one week invoicing delay, your balance may not include your child’s most recent lesson(s).
Our tutors do not accept payment directly.
Our tutors do not accept payment directly, nor are they equipped to answer billing and payment questions. For billing assistance, email info@citysmarts.net or call us.
Credit Card Payments
Each invoice includes a link to pay by credit card.
To set up automatic recurring payments, check the box “Save Card for Future Payments on Your Behalf” at check-out.
Zelle Payments
If you’ll be paying by Zelle, please include a memo indicating which invoice you’re paying.
Ensure invoices do not go to spam.
Please add info@citysmarts.net to your email address book so your City Smarts invoices do not end up in your spam folder.
Unit 4: Extra Credit
Let your tutor know if you’d like a progress report.
Tutoring is an investment in your child’s education, and you should be engaged in his or her progress. Our tutors love sitting down with parents to share their observations and recommendations. Seriously, they live for this stuff.
However, please be mindful of their time. Let the tutor know in advance that you’d like to set aside some time for a chat. Understand that if your conference takes place outside of the typical tutoring session, your tutor will need to be compensated for that time. Otherwise, plan on setting aside a few minutes at the end of your child’s normal session for parent-tutor chat.
Mock Tests
City Smarts proctors mock exams on Sundays throughout the year at our classroom in Carroll Gardens (we offer a virtual option as well). If your child is doing test prep with us, we strongly recommend integrating periodic mock tests. Mock tests help students adjust to the rigors of a testing environment, and they allow us to quantitatively measure their progress. There is no better way to provide you the feedback you need on score increases.
Parents can sign up for mock tests here.
Tutoring versus Consulting
We require our tutors to be insanely good at the tests & subjects they teach. We do no require them to be experts in the admissions process itself.
If you have questions about things like admissions chances, score cut-off, or school choice, feel free to give us a call.
Germ-Free Learning
We believe that learning is infectious, but lessons don’t need to be. If your child has a cold or a fever, please err on the side of caution and inform the tutor. In many cases, our tutors will be able to provide virtual instruction in lieu of an in-person lesson.
