Please see profile for reviews & testimonials! Professional maths & physics tutor & 1st class master's graduate of the University of Cambridge. Expertise supporting Oxbridge maths, physics, engineering and computer science applications including admissions tests (STEP, MAT, TMUA, NSAA, ENGAA, PAT) and interviews. STEP examiner for Cambridge Assessment.
Recent Students: 15 |
Total Hours: 1661 |
Last Online: |
All-time Students: 90 |
Total Classes: 1599 |
Signed Up: |
Recent Students: 15 | Total Hours: 1661 | Last Online: |
All-time Students: 90 | Total Classes: 1599 | Signed Up: |
I'm a professional mathematics and physics tutor and a graduate of the University of Cambridge (BA & MMath, both in mathematics). I am have particular expertise supporting Oxbridge applications and have achieved renown in the British and international market for remarkably high success rates, having coached students who have received admission to almost every college which admits undergraduate students. I have also taught several students who have placed at the top of the year for STEP.
Easy-going whilst believing all of my students are capable of achieving excellence, my lessons place a focus on worked examples and going "beneath the bonnet" of problems, to deeply understand the underlying theory - which is essential for improving ability at taking on unseen questions. A large portion of lessons are spent extracting useful ideas and principles from completed questions which is essential to cultivating a keen mathematical problem solving instinct. I try to guide my students to solve questions for themselves that they may not have thought possible - and it's the highlight of the job to see their reaction when they realise that they have done so!
Outside of teaching I remain a practising mathematician focused on the application of mathematics to theoretical physics. I study quantum field theory, which is the union of Einstein's special relativity with quantum mechanics. More specifically I am particularly interested in the mathematical properties of scattering amplitudes, which are the functions describing the probabilities of different particle interactions. Since September 2022 I'm a postgraduate researcher working towards my PhD, though I continue to offer private tutoring. Beyond academic pursuits, my dream is to have a pet potbelly pig!
World-renowned expert in British university entrance exams & interviews with high success rates (STEP, MAT, TMUA, NSAA, ENGAA, PAT). Thousands of hours working with students from six continents (students from Antarctica especially welcome!). My students are over five times more likely to receive an offer from Oxford/Cambridge than the typical applicant!
Experience marking STEP four times as an examiner with Cambridge Assessment.
While I specialise in university admissions (including admissions tests and interviews, for which I have accumulated a very large record of real recent interview questions), I also have a great deal of experience tutoring mathematics and physics for GCSE, A-Level and IB. I'm familiar with the requirements of each exam board and can tailor a preparation programme to the needs of my individual students. I'm also able to teach most undergraduate mathematics modules (real & complex analysis, number theory, geometry, group theory, numerical analysis, combinatorics, PDEs/ODEs, variational methods, etc.) as well as essentially any theoretical physics modules up to and including master's level (electrodynamics, classical dynamics, quantum mechanics, quantum field theory, special/general relativity, string theory, etc.).
extremely helpful as always! Thanks!
Superb!
Superb! Thank you.
First rate tutoring. The sessions are enjoyable and very useful. Highly recommend this tutor.
Very helpful.
Very good
Great!
The concepts were explained very well and any doubts were addressed. The interview technique was new as never had to explain my thinking while doing a question. A very productive lesson
Rowan's thorough explanations have really helped me improve in STEP. His ability to explain the thought process behind answers makes it very intuitive and easy to follow. In addition, his knowledge of the exam as a whole and insights into the marking process are unrivalled. Simply brilliant.
Very helpful as always, feeling much better about my exam now!
"Super happy to report that I got in with 1,S :) THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of your help and support this year! Even from when we started interview prep you always made me feel like it was something I could achieve and that you'd support my application in any way you could :) Thank you for marking all those papers and answering my millions of questions too!"
- STEP and Oxbridge interview student who received admission to Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge, in 2023
"Thank you for being such a great teacher! I'll always remember your lessons with the utmost interest. Your lessons have not only been useful from an educational standpoint however also contributed to my broader abilities in communication."
- TMUA and Cambridge Computer Science Interview student (2022, results keenly awaited!)
"Rowan took my daughter from feeling that STEP was going to be an impossible mountain to climb to getting the grades she needed to get into Cambridge. Calm, positive and encouraging, he made all the difference.”
- Parent of a STEP student who received a 1 in STEP II and III and thus met her offer to read mathematics at the University of Cambridge
“Rowan helped improve my confidence and made me believe I actually had a chance of passing STEP! I really enjoyed the style of our sessions and Rowan was able to explain difficult concepts very clearly. I ended up getting the grades I needed to meet my Cambridge offer and am really grateful to have had his support.”
- STEP student who received a 1 in STEP II and a 1 in STEP III in 2022, thus meeting her offer to read mathematics at the University of Cambridge
"I was a student of Rowan’s for about 4 months, from the time I got my STEP offer, to the actual STEP exam. I got a 1, which was really great considering I didn’t take A-level further maths and got my offer pretty late in the year.
As a STEP examiner, Rowan had a huge amount of experience with past questions, which was especially helpful because my biggest struggle ultimately came down to the format of the questions themselves. It really helped to have someone with lots of background and experience in STEP specifically because the questions are very unique compared to other exams.
Additionally, what helped a lot for me personally was the different ways Rowan was able to explain topics. He explained questions and concepts in multiple ways which is especially helpful for STEP questions, where that approach is one of the most important aspects of the question.
I highly recommend the 1 on 1 sessions, as well as setting them up on a frequent, recurring basis, as opposed to whenever the mood hits. This helped relieve a lot of stress for me because, like most people, I had to almost entirely self-study for STEP, so the 1 on 1 sessions provided a sense of structure and real professional support."
STEP student who achieved a 1 in STEP II in 2022 (and met his offer to read Computer Science at Imperial College London)
"Rowan by par is an outstanding tutor. He is extremely knowledgeable about the A-level curriculum, the interview preparation, MAT & STEP exams and he is very patient with the student. The way he tailored his teaching to cater for our son's needs was very impressive. Rowan is probably the most hardworking tutor I have come across. Rowan is well versed with the admission process and his help in this matter has been invaluable to our son. Rowan has a database of interview questions for various colleges. Rowan marked questions from MAT and STEP past papers and gave invaluable feedback. Our son thoroughly enjoyed the sessions with Rowan and it boosted his overall confidence. Our son was well prepared for the Cambridge interview and needless to say he passed MAT as well as STEP and secured a place in Cambridge to study Mathematics. I would highly recommend Rowan to any student looking for help with Mathematics."
- Parent of a Cambridge applicant who received and met an offer from Girton College to read mathematics in 2022 (1 in STEP II and STEP III)
"Rowan is the real deal, a rare blend of being a sufficiently brilliant mathematician to have a complete, deep and intuitive grasp on the difficult problems set in STEP but also a great teacher who is able to explain the thought process in a way students can understand. My son had taken some STEP lessons with other tutors but felt he was languishing and making no real progress. Once has started working with Rowan he was invigorated and before long felt his entire thought process had been transformed. He particularly liked Rowan's heavy emphasis on how to think through each problem from the first reading through to the complete solution, and said that after a few classes he was starting to think through his homework problems just like Rowan demonstrates each week in the lesson. I cannot recommend him highly enough."
- Parent of a student who took STEP II in 2022 (1 in STEP II and S in STEP III)
"Rowan was incredibly helpful for my MAT prep: firstly, the explanatory materials he’s created for past tests are comprehensive and clear, often providing several distinct ways of looking at any one problem, to make sure that you really get it. As a past examiner, he also has great insight into how questions are constructed and what examiners really expect. Lots of tutoring experience makes Rowan a good resource for strategic advice, and a really efficient tutor as well. Sometimes tutoring is about personal fit, but I think virtually anyone could benefit from Rowan’s tutoring!"
- MAT student who received admission to read Computer Science at Brasenose College Oxford in 2021 (82% on MAT)
"Rowan is an incredible tutor! For the TMUA, my son was underperforming when doing past papers, and was struggling to understand the provided solutions. As a result, he was unable to do well in other past TMUA papers. As soon as he started with Rowan, my son picked up several essential exam techniques and thoroughly understood the questions. This resulted in him seeing a drastic increase in his score. Additionally, Rowan was able to provide my son with shortcuts to difficult questions that would render them trivial. I would highly recommend Rowan to any other student preparing for admissions test as he is truly one of a kind!"
- Parent of a TMUA candidate who received admission to King's College, Cambridge, to read Computer Science in 2021 (9.0 on TMUA Paper 1 and Paper 2)
"I just received the offer from Magdalen! I wanted to thank you for everything that you have done for me. You have believed in me all the way through the process of the application. Thank your for your help and fabulous teaching."
- Oxford applicant who received an offer from Magdalen College, Oxford, to read mathematics and statistics in 2021 (75% on MAT)
"On behalf of []’s mum and me, I just wanted to pass on a heartfelt thanks for your significant contribution to [] securing his place to study at Gonville and Caius. Without detracting from []’ own mathematical abilities or his huge dedication to the task in hand, I have no doubt that your input was instrumental to him achieving the required marks in his STEP exams.
It became clear as soon as [] started his sessions with you that he had found an exceptional tutor. Your mathematical prowess, your complete understanding of the STEP process (as well as your knowledge of which Colleges accept which students with which grades) and, most importantly, your unwavering positivity were a huge benefit to []. He always looked forward to his sessions with you and came away from them enthused and upbeat."
- Parent of a Cambridge applicant who passed STEP and thus met his offer to read mathematics at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, in 2019 (1 in STEP II and STEP III)
"Rowan has been an absolutely excellent tutor in Maths! He is extremely committed to the success of his students and is able to teach them even the most complex concepts in a way that they can clearly understand.
He has even helped our students succeed on the MAT and Oxford interview, giving them unparalleled insights about interview questions and outstanding preparation throughout the process.
I highly recommend him as he truly is one of the best tutors in Maths I have ever worked with."
- Adam Girsault, co-founder and director at a leading European admissions consultancy
"Rowan is a fantastic tutor - he carefully and methodically explains concepts and makes the lessons interesting. He is focused on developing a really solid understanding rather than just looking at the method."
- Parent of a long-term GCSE/A-Level Maths student who achieved a Grade 9 in GCSE mathematics in 2018
"You have probably heard from [] that he has been admitted to Exeter College, Oxford! I really wanted to thank you for the amazing work that you have done with him - he would not have been able to achieve such a result without your precious help!"
- Parent of Oxford applicant who received an offer from Exeter College, Oxford, to read mathematics in 2020 (85% on MAT)
Verified
- PhD in Theoretical Physics, University of Southampton
(Ongoing since September 2022)
- MMath in Mathematics, University of Cambridge
(2020-2021)
- BA in Mathematics, University of Cambridge
(2017-2020)
- A-Levels in Mathematics, Further Mathematics and Physics at A-Level, Saint Olave's Grammar School
(2016-2017)
- GCSEs in Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy, Geography, Religious Studies, French, Computing, English Literature, English Language
(2015-2016)
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