Selective hiring, under 2% accepted
Fewer than 2% of tutor applicants meet our standards. We verify credentials, subject-specific IB and AP experience, and teaching ability before anyone meets a student.
Published standards for families in the USA and Canada
The Hack Your Course Standard
This page states, in writing, how our IB and AP tutoring service actually works: who teaches, how tutors are vetted and matched, where the academic-integrity line sits, and how billing stays simple. Every claim here is one we are prepared to be held to.
No guaranteed grades or outcomes, ever. What we guarantee is the standard of the service itself.
Four pillars
What every family can expect
Since 2014, about 90% of our students have been in the IB Diploma Programme, with the rest in AP and other advanced coursework. That focus is only possible because the service is built on four fixed standards.
Career educators, not side gigs
Our roster is built on certified career educators, including experienced IB teachers and examiners, rather than students tutoring between classes.
Meet our Math & Science tutors · Meet our Language & Humanities tutors
Managed matching, one flat rate
Hack Your Course assigns the best-fit tutor for each student. Every tutor, examiners included, is billed at the same flat rate, so the match is driven by fit, never by a price tier.
Monitored quality
We read every session report, stay in close contact with tutors, and personally know our client families, so problems surface early and matches improve over time.
The integrity line
Guidance always; ghostwriting never
The IB requires authentic student work in every essay, Internal Assessment, and exam. Our boundary is written into how every tutor works, in every subject.
Tutors always
- Teach course content, assessment criteria, and command terms.
- Train essay, problem-solving, and exam technique on practice material.
- Ask planning questions that sharpen IA, EE, and TOK thinking.
- Run timed past-paper practice and explain what a stronger answer includes.
- Comment on student-written drafts without rewriting them.
Tutors never
- Write, rewrite, paraphrase, or line-edit assessed work.
- Choose a student's IA or EE topic, sources, or argument for them.
- Generate any essay, commentary, or investigation for submission.
- Guarantee a mark, grade, predicted grade, or admission outcome.
Students should also follow their school's rules for external support and disclosure. Read the IB's academic-integrity guidance.
Simple by design
Pricing and billing, stated plainly
Families should never need to negotiate, decode tiers, or commit up front to find out whether tutoring works for their student.
Pay-as-you-go billing
No prepaid packages and no long-term contracts. Families are invoiced monthly for the sessions already taught, with an automated payment method on file.
One flat rate for every tutor
$70 USD per hour for American clients, $90 CAD per hour online for Canadian clients, and $120 CAD per hour for in-person sessions in Vancouver and Toronto. There is no examiner surcharge and no credential-based tier.
First Session Satisfaction Guarantee
For long-term engagements where Hack Your Course selects the tutor, a family that is not satisfied after the first session is not charged for it.
Clear cancellation policy
Sessions cancelled or rescheduled with at least 24 hours' notice are never charged. The same clear rule applies to every family and every tutor.
Verify the standard
Our integrity boundary follows the IB's own expectations, and our track record is public. Reviewed August 20, 2026.
Questions about our standards
Will a Hack Your Course tutor write my IA, Extended Essay, or TOK work?
No. Tutors teach, plan, question, and comment on student-written work; they never write, rewrite, paraphrase, or line-edit assessed work. The student remains the author of every submission, in line with IB academic-integrity expectations.
Learn more: IB academic-integrity guidance
How selective is tutor hiring at Hack Your Course?
Fewer than 2% of tutor applicants are accepted. We verify credentials and subject-specific IB or AP experience, assess teaching ability, and keep monitoring quality after hiring through session reports and close contact with tutors and families.
Learn more: Meet our Math & Science tutors · Meet our Language & Humanities tutors
Who chooses the tutor, and do IB examiners cost more?
Hack Your Course manages the matching: we assign the tutor whose background best fits the student's course, level, and needs, and we re-match if the fit is not right. Every tutor is billed at the same flat rate, so an examiner or senior teacher never costs more than any other tutor.
Learn more: IB & AP tutoring in the USA and Canada
Are there contracts or prepaid packages?
No. Billing is pay-as-you-go: families are invoiced monthly for the sessions already taught. There are no prepaid packages, no long-term contracts, and no hidden fees.
What does tutoring cost?
One flat rate for every tutor and subject: $70 USD per hour for American clients, $90 CAD per hour online for Canadian clients, and $120 CAD per hour for in-person sessions in Vancouver and Toronto.
Is there a satisfaction guarantee?
Yes. For long-term engagements where Hack Your Course selects the tutor, a family that is not satisfied after the first session is not charged for that session. The guarantee is designed for engagements where we choose the match and can demonstrate our value over time.
What tools do online sessions use?
Online sessions run on interactive whiteboard platforms, and graphing tablets or equivalent stylus input devices are required for all Math and Science sessions so tutors and students can work through problems properly in real time.
Where is Hack Your Course available?
Tutoring is offered online across the United States and Canada, with in-person sessions available in Vancouver and Toronto. Founded in 2014, Hack Your Course serves families in Greater Vancouver, Toronto, and Seattle and holds 200+ verified five-star Google reviews and a Consumer Choice Award.
Learn more: IB & AP tutoring in the USA and Canada
Hold us to this standard
Tell us the student's courses, levels, and goals. We will match the best-fit tutor under exactly the terms written on this page.
Contact Hack Your Course