Fun Facts

TCU is the 13th school that I have attended in my life.

I am as fluent in Arabic as I am in English.

I served as a resident assistant in a TCU residence hall.

I mentored a Big/Little program for incoming freshman during my sophomore and junior years at TCU.

My last name means "One who teaches" in Arabic.

My initials are TA, which also stands for Teaching Assistant (OK, I'll stop).

About Me

My name is Tariq AlFarra and I am about to become a fourth year biology student at TCU. I grew up in mansfield">Mansfield, Texas for most of my life. Someday I hope to become a physician, and I am currently in the process of applying to medical school. I have always been very passionate about the sciences, and they have been my favorite subjects since high school. Another passion of mine is teaching. I find it very rewarding to sit down with students and help them with their academic needs in order to make a difference. I accomplish this by maintaining a positive attitude, motivating students to achieve, and using my personal experiences to relate to the struggles that students face. I am the type of person who does not give up, and is willing to find a solution to every problem. In my medical school letter of recommendation, my advisor described me as a person who puts forth 100% effort in every task I am given.

I tutored Biology I and II for the TCU College of Science and Engineering during the 2012-2013 academic year. My role was to sit in on all lectures and hold 2-3 tutoring sessions per week. I logged over 300 hours of tutoring during this year.

My approach to tutoring is to encourage the student to attempt to learn the material as best as they can on their own, and then come to me with any gaps I can fill. If a student is not understanding a complete concept, I start with the basics and build up to the concept at the students pace. My only goal in the end is that the student walks out of a tutoring session knowing the material I taught them so well that they could teach it if asked to. This often requires a high level of patience, but is well worth the effort.