Opportunities

Spring 2025 Pronunciation Tutoring Position in Cornell’s English Language Support Office

 Duration: Spring semester 2025 and beyond

Time Commitment: average 4-6 hours a week

Compensation: $18 an hour 

Submission deadline: ongoing

Cornell’s English Language Support Office (ELSO) offers one-on-one pronunciation tutoring for multilingual graduate and professional students and postdocs. Tutors offer support on various aspects of spoken English to help improve clarity, communication, and intelligibility such as:

• identifying pronunciation areas of difficulty and what is affecting overall intelligibility
• practicing specific areas of pronunciation (sounds, intonation, fluency, word stress, linking, field terminology)
• determining pronunciation goals and making a plan for individualized practice
• locating resources that help support pronunciation needs

For more information about the ELSO tutoring programs, visit: https://knight.as.cornell.edu/elso-tutoring. 

Paid training for the position will occur during the first 5-7 weeks of spring semester 2025. The tutor will also meet every other week with the program coordinator, Melissa Myers, and the other pronunciation tutors throughout the semester. Following any necessary training, the tutor will offer 4-6 hours of consultations weekly (minimum; opportunities for increased hours). There are limits to the number of hours students in the Graduate School may dedicate to hourly student appointments. Learn more.

Essential to the job is an open mind toward working with diverse populations, strong interest in language, empathy and patience. Graduate students from across the fields are welcome to apply; preference will be given to those in fields related to international studies, linguistics, education, communication, and theater. 

Required for the Position 

• Current Cornell graduate or professional student
• Strong interpersonal communication skills
• A willingness to learn more about English pronunciation and speech patterns
• An interest in engaging with people from diverse backgrounds and disciplines

Preferred for the Position

• Experience with tutoring
• Teaching experience
• Experience working with multilingual students
• Experience using an additional language or additional languages
• Traveling or living abroad 

The pronunciation tutor will be responsible to:

• Participate in approximately 15 - 20 hours of paid training by reviewing material and resources on pronunciation, shadowing current tutors and by attending meetings with the instructor and head tutor prior to tutoring
• Attend biweekly meetings with the instructor and other tutors
• Meet with scheduled multilingual graduate students in 45 minutes one-on-one sessions to provide feedback on a variety of pronunciation skills (hours are flexible and determined by tutor) 
• Keep records of tutoring appointments 
• Keep abreast on a wide variety of pronunciation resources to support clients

To apply, submit both a cover letter and resume/ CV through the Workday listing on the student job board.