Two years full-time teaching experience at the University of Limerick, Ireland where I taught undergraduate and postgraduate classes on a variety of topics, including statistics & econometrics.

Find out more about Joe

• 1) When did you develop an interest in your chosen field and in private tutoring?

  My interest in economics started during my undergraduate studies when I was becoming more interested in how the world works and looking for answers to questions like "Why can't we just print more money?" and "Why was that the plan the government has decided to go with?" This then spurred an interest in statistics and data analysis necessary to answer these questions.
  
  I became interested in private tutoring after finishing my teaching role at the University of Limerick in Ireland. I love teaching and want to continue it on the side, catering to dedicated students, while I work on my PhD.

• 2) Tell us more about the subject you teach, the topics you like to discuss with students (and possibly those you like a little less).

  I love economics and everything to do with it. I love teaching it through simple discussions when I can, because I think that it's a simple subject that has been needlessly overcomplicated. There is an abundance of examples of economics happening in everyday life that people already understand, and if they just knew how to apply this to the abstract theory that they have to learn in university, they would find their coursework so much easier.

• 3) Did you have any role models; a teacher that inspired you?

  A role model of mine is Thomas Sowell, who has made his career by explaining complex economics and ideas in language so simple that a child could understand it. I strive to emulate his approach, not only to be a good teacher, but because I think the world would be a better place if more people understood economics.

• 4) What do you think are the qualities required to be a good tutor?

  A good tutor knows that each student is different in terms of needs and abilities. Everyone learns differently and as a tutor I need to figure out the best approach with each student. Good tutors also need to see where a student is struggling with their material, because it may not always be obvious to the student what it is that they don't know that they don't know, and be able to focus attention on those points to make sure their student is getting the most out of their lesson.

• 5) Provide a valuable anecdote related to your subject or your days at school.

  When I began my final phase of school in Ireland I had to take accounting. I was determined to drop it at the first chance I got because back then I had a very closed mind set and believed that I would never understand the material. But my teacher took me very slowly, step by step, through all the material, explaining in excruciating detail what each term meant and what each calculation was for. We did this at a pace I could manage and, more than just learning accounting, I learned that I could learn anything if I just had it explained to me in the right way, and it's this knowledge that has gotten me this far today in my academic journey. I got an A1 in accounting too.

• 6) What were the difficulties or challenges you faced or still facing in your subject?

  Economics can be a very counterintuitive subject and, even when you do work out the answer, it's not always obvious what the answer means. This is what most people struggle with, and it's an unnecessary struggle when all they need to grasp what they're looking at is for someone to explain in plain English what is going on.

• 7) Do you have a particular passion? Is it teaching in general or an element of the subject or something completely different?

  I am very passionate about economics because, fundamentally, to understand it is to understand how the world works. The big decisions from government and business that affect our lives are all, at their core, a question of economics!
  
  Therefore, I like to see my role as a teacher and tutor as one of spreading valuable information that doesn't only help people get good grades and pass exams, but helps them better understand the world and how it affects them.

• 8) What makes you a Superprof (besides answering these interview questions) ?

  A genuine passion and dedication for what I do and a hunger to improve the world through doing it.