In the world of athletics, it is very common for a student to seek the assistance of an expert in order to identify possible performance problems and to learn new technical skills. In addition to the training and attention given by their school's athletic coaching staff, students often work long term, one on one with a professional trainer. This approach is often used so that students can reap the benefits of a personalized plan that first addresses often never taught fundamentals and then progresses in time to more advanced techniques. Many believe in order to become the best possible athlete, one must work for many years with this sort of attention to personal performance development. High schools and colleges rarely offer students this sort of assistance academically which leaves many students without the proper insights and skills needed to reach their highest potential. Small, easily addressed issues are often ignored for years, causing students unnecessary stress and to under perform academically.

 An academic coach, like an athletic coach in the field, looks to improve all areas of a student’s performance by closely examining the individual attributes of a student as opposed to just the "lesson to be learned". An academic coach can observe and record the current performance of a student and then develop and execute new plans of action as well as motivate and evaluate future performance. During this process, academic coaches work with students one on one to create and implement long term plans that develop academic skills in areas such as time management, note taking and active reading techniques, test taking strategies, writing and composition, goal setting, self-assessment and evaluation, etc. Upcoming school assignments are incorporated into these areas so that students can instantly apply the academic coach's techniques towards their academic development. 

academic coaching vs. tutoring

An academic coach provides a student with a host of benefits well beyond the narrow field of tutoring. Rather than assisting students with “subject matter” specific issues, an academic coach is an active educational manager who carefully works to assist students to become more proficient scholastically long term. Coaching involves personal attention to a spectrum of student needs including regularly scheduled student counseling, weekly instructor communications, and monthly program progress reports. Unlike a traditional tutor, an academic coach may work with a client within programs lasting one month, six months or twelve months that are aimed to create the strongest possible student of any subject.