These terms apply to you if you list yourself as a tutor or accept tutoring requests. They are part of our Terms of Use. If they conflict with the Terms of Use on a tutoring matter, these terms win.
1. What Study Market does for tutoring
Study Market only introduces tutors and tutees. That is all.
- Lessons happen off the site. We do not host, run, supervise or monitor them.
- The tutoring agreement is between you and the tutee (and their parent, if they are under 18). Study Market is not a party to it.
- We do not vet tutors. We do not do background checks, qualification checks or reference checks.
- We are not responsible for lessons, for what is taught, for payments between you and a tutee, or for anything that happens between you.
2. Your tutor profile
You list your subjects, hourly rate, area and availability. You also give a private phone/WhatsApp number and email address.
- Be honest about your marks, qualifications and experience. Do not claim to be a qualified teacher if you are not.
- Your phone number and email are private. They are shared only with a tutee after you accept their request.
- Keep your rate and availability up to date.
If you are under 18, you cannot accept tutoring requests until your parent or guardian has confirmed their consent.
3. Requests from tutees
Tutees ask for a tutor for free. When a tutee sends you a request, you see the subject, grade, what they need and their area. You do not see who they are.
You can accept or decline a request. If you do nothing, it expires after 5 days and the tutee is told to try another tutor. There is no penalty for declining or letting a request expire.
Your tutor profile (name, school, photo, marks, subjects, rate and area) is public, because tutees choose a tutor from it. Being featured in our marketing is optional, as for sellers.
4. Placement fee
When you accept a request, you pay a placement fee.
- The fee is a flat R100 for each tutee you accept, whatever your hourly rate.
- Your first placement is free.
- The fee comes from your Study Market wallet first (tutor credit, then earnings). Anything left is paid by card, with the usual payment processing fee added.
The fee is for the introduction. It is not a payment for lessons. Lesson payments are between you and the tutee. The fee is not refundable, except through the credit-back rule in section 5, or if we decide otherwise or the law requires it.
5. Credit-back if the tutee goes quiet
If the tutee hasn't replied to you 7 days after you accepted, you can tap "Tutee didn't respond" on your tutoring dashboard.
- We then email the tutee to check. If they confirm they haven't been in touch, or they don't answer within 48 hours, your placement fee comes back to you as credit.
- If the tutee says you did get in touch, the claim is closed and no credit is given.
- There's nothing to claim on a free first placement.
- The credit goes to your Study Market wallet. It is not withdrawable and can only be used for future placement fees.
- We check claims. If we see abuse, we flag it. Examples are claiming credit when the tutee did respond, or when you ignored them. We may refuse the credit, remove credit already given, and suspend your tutor profile or account.
6. After you accept
When you accept, you and the tutee can both see each other's name and contact details. If the tutee is under 18, the introduction email also goes to their parent.
Use those details only to arrange tutoring. Do not use them for anything else. Do not share them with anyone else.
7. Safety rules
These rules protect tutees and tutors. You must follow them.
- First sessions must be online or in a public place. Never meet at a private home for a first session.
- Under-18s must tell a parent before meeting. If you are under 18, tell your parent or guardian. If your tutee is under 18, do not meet them unless their parent knows. Introduction emails to parents help with this.
- Never ask a tutee to meet you somewhere secret or private.
- Tell someone you trust when and where you are going.
- Keep your conversations respectful and about learning.
- Stop and leave if you feel unsafe. Report it to us at hello@studymarket.co.za. In an emergency, call the police.
- We do not vet anyone. Use your own judgment, and a tutee's parent should use theirs.
8. Conduct with young people
Many tutees are children. If your tutee is under 18:
- Behave professionally at all times.
- Do not ask for or send inappropriate messages, images or favours.
- Do not give or ask for alcohol, drugs or anything illegal.
- Do not be alone with a child in a private place for a first meeting.
- Do not encourage a child to hide anything from their parent or guardian.
- Follow the law. If you have been convicted of an offence against a child, or you are listed on the National Register for Sex Offenders or the Child Protection Register, you must not use Study Market as a tutor.
We may suspend any account at once if we have a concern for a child's safety, and we may report it to the police or other authorities.
9. Keeping contact details private
- Do not put your phone number, email, social media handle or any other contact detail in public text. This includes your bio, subjects, reviews and messages.
- We block contact details in public text. Do not try to get round the block, for example by spelling numbers out in words.
- Do not ask a tutee to cancel a request so that you can deal with them directly to avoid the placement fee.
10. Reviews
Tutees who were placed with you can review you. Reviews must follow the rules in the Terms of Use. We can hide a review that breaks them. Do not pressure a tutee to write or change a review.
11. Taxes and the law
You are responsible for any tax on what you earn from tutoring and for following any laws that apply to you as a tutor.
12. Suspension
We may remove your tutor profile, or suspend your account, if you break these terms or the safety rules, or if we receive credible reports about your behaviour.
13. Contact
Questions or safety reports: hello@studymarket.co.za.