Vu is one of ArborBridge’s most treasured tutors. In his sessions, he is able to seamlessly blend SAT a or ACT instruction with his unique brand of mentorship. Vu’s charisma, dedication to his students, and brilliance make him the perfect model of our services.
We recently caught up with Vu in an interview about his work at ArborBridge.
Q: How long have you been with ArborBridge and what tests do you tutor?
Vu: I’ve been with ArborBridge for about a year now, though it feels like much longer! I started off occasionally tutoring some Math and Physics, but since then, it’s branched out quite a bit. These days, I tutor the SAT, ACT, ISEE, SSAT, HSPT and GRE. Subject-wise, I go all the way up to AP Calculus & Physics. Most of my time is devoted to SAT prep, which I love! My students & I turn a scary, soulless standardized test into an opportunity to learn and grow… to fight and succeed.
I also have a particular vendetta against the SAT Math 2 Subject test. Having personally scored a 770 a maddening three times in a row while I was in high school, I’ve since guided nearly every Math 2 student I’ve worked with in achieving a perfect score of 800. Revenge is mine!!!
Q: Why do you tutor?
Vu: Because I believe in building stories. I’m really lucky to have had people who have believed in me when I didn’t, helping me grow throughout my life. I feel a duty to keep passing that torch on to anyone who desires it, especially the underdogs. It doesn’t matter who you are. Every person has something that drives them. My joy lies in helping them find that drive – to uncover a light of their very own.
Q: How do you connect with your students?
Vu: Before trying to teach my students anything, I make it my first priority to get to know them as people. What scares them? What makes them laugh? What excites them? Building trust is so important. After that… it’s all about creating and sustaining a positive, fun, yet challenging energy together.
Q: What has been the greatest reward working with international students?
Vu: While the U.S. may be a relentlessly sought-after place for universities and education, I’ve found that many of my international students give me something I could never have gotten growing up here in America – a perspective from around the world. My students surely learn from our work, but I learn just as much from the beautifully diverse personalities and stories they share with me all along the way.
Q: What advice would you give to a college-bound high school student?
Vu: Don’t forget why you’re doing all this work. If you don’t know yet… do everything in your power to find it. Work hard for it. Success feels so much better when it belongs to you.
Q: Your best experience as a tutor was when…
Vu: …despite all doubts, issues, and deficiencies (both real & perceived), a student I had been working with for just over a year climbed his way out of depressive obscurity, from an initial SAT score of 920, working all the way up to 1780. He went from barely knowing his times tables, wanting to drop out of school… to taking on AP Calculus, Computer Science, and most importantly, believing for the first time that he is capable of success on his own. He smiles now. He wants to go to college.
Q: Who do you admire and inspires you the most and why?
Vu: My mother. She made a lot of things out of nothing, armed with only love, tenacity, and faith. Any one of those will take you to places you’ve only dreamed of. But in concert… they build a life. She did that for me.
Q: You are not ___ without…
Vu: Tuesday … without a good bucket of fried chicken. 99 cents for a leg & a thigh at Popeye’s. Heaven.
Q: Your motto is…
Vu: “Wherever you are… be all there.” (African proverb)
-Vu
Vu graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with a degree in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science. Prior to attending MIT, he had already developed a love for teaching as a tutoring program director throughout high school, continuing to teach and mentor after college. Vu specializes in helping his students achieve tremendous gains with the SAT, ACT & ISEE. His focus is to create a collaborative discussion with his students to maximize critical thinking, translating not only to better test scores, but also higher overall academic achievement.
Over the years, he has combined an engineering approach and his experiences as a musician into a teaching style that not only forges a mastery of subject material, but also nurtures a genuine confidence and desire for growth — an often overlooked, yet vital aspect of high level performance.
