Tutor Profile

Matthew

Private English and Entrance Exams Tutor in Bristol

I am a University Challenge winner, a first-class Oxford graduate, and the recipient of a full two-year graduate fellowship to Princeton.

I have thirteen years’ experience as a specialist tutor in History, English and the wider humanities, working with students from A level through to university. I also advise students on university admissions, helping them secure places at leading universities in the UK, US and internationally.

I care deeply about my students’ progress and aim to help each student develop the knowledge, confidence and intellectual independence to fulfil their potential.

I speak French, Mandarin and Cantonese, and have extensive experience working with an international client base.

I am now based in Bristol, having recently relocated from London. I have previously lived and worked in Paris, New York, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai.

Teaching Experience

A LEVEL AND INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE

Since I started tutoring in 2013, I have more than 5,000 hours of experience tutoring History, English, French, Art History, and Philosophy across all of the major exam boards. I can also teach other humanities and social science subjects including German, Latin, Politics, Religious Studies and Sociology as part of a full A level or IB program.

OXBRIDGE ENTRANCE

I have specialist knowledge of the Oxford Admissions system, especially the requirements of the History faculty, having worked as an examiner for the History Aptitude Test and a college subject interviewer. I can supervise all aspects of an application from course and college choice, through the writing of an effective UCAS personal statement, to admissions exams and interview practice. I specialise in tutoring Oxford's HAT and Cambridge's HAA, and have also tutored the TSA (for PPE), ELAT (for English), and MLAT (for Modern Languages).

My Oxbridge students have won places on the following courses: History History of Art English & Modern Languages (French) Modern & Medieval Languages (French & Spanish) Philosophy, Politics & Economics Classics

UK, US AND INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY ADMISSIONS

My tutees have won offers from leading world universities including Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Columbia, Duke, Melbourne, and the Sorbonne, as well as top UK universities including Durham, St Andrews, UCL, LSE, King's, Warwick, Edinburgh, York, and other Russell Group institutions.

I have also provided guidance and feedback on graduate applications which have helped my clients win places on Master's programs at Oxford, Cambridge, and UCL in disciplines as diverse as Criminology, International and Comparative Education, Bioscience Enterprise, and Human-Computer Interaction.

I am well positioned to oversee the whole US college admissions process. I have worked for a top London US admissions agency and have a deep familiarity with the higher education field in America, having spent three years studying there, and can provide informed advice on college selection and entrance essay writing.

As someone who has studied and worked in a variety of different international contexts and languages, I am particularly interested in helping students who are transitioning between different national education systems.

UNIVERSITY

I have taught undergraduate tutorials and classes in History at Oxford, and am a qualified higher education teacher (SEDA-PDF). My research specialty is the cultural and intellectual history of Modern Europe, and I have a particular interest in historical method and the philosophy of history. My former undergraduate students have gone on to win major international scholarships and places on PhD programs at Yale and Edinburgh. In the 2025-26 academic year, one of my tutees graduated from Manchester with high first class honours and won a university prize for her dissertation.

I have provided support to undergraduate and masters-level students in History, English, French, Philosophy, and Art History, advising on how to research and write coursework essays. I have particular experience helping students maintain or improve their grades to a good 2.1 standard, making sure that they satisfy the entry conditions to graduate programmes.

Tutoring Approach

At the heart of any effective tutorial is a good relationship between teacher and student. I hope my students will find me to be approachable, open, and genuinely curious about their enthusiasms and points of view, whilst also being rigorous, insistent upon high standards, and goal-oriented. Good results come from good processes, and my aim is to model the processes of thinking and writing for students to see and learn from.

Parents can trust me to deliver regular and frank feedback on their child's progress, and to raise any concerns in a timely manner.

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Qualifications

MA Modern European Philosophy

Masters · Kingston University · Distinction · 2025

MA French Literature

Masters · Middlebury College · 4.0 GPA · 2019

William Alexander Fleet Fellowship

Other · Princeton University · 2013

MSt Modern British and European History

Masters · University of Oxford · Distinction · 2011

BA History

Bachelors · University of Oxford · First Class Honours · 2010

Reviews

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GordonFirst Tutors

I could not have asked for a better tutor throughout my A Levels. He's been instrumental in helping me shape my personal statement, coursework, and exam structure, which ultimately led to me securing 5/5 UCAS offers. What I really appreciated was how approachable,responsive and flexible he is. Sessions were always relaxed, and he explained things in a way that made even difficult topics feel manageable. His guidance really boosted both my confidence and my results. As an Upper Sixth student, I'd definitely recommend him to anyone who wants to improve their grades and maximise their ces of getting into good universities.

MarianneFirst Tutors

I have been working with Matthew for sixth months and already seeing great results. Matthew is an extraordinary tutor with a passion for his subject, combined with an incisive mind and excellent critical thinking skills. He brings enthusiasm and energy to every tutorial session, coupled with a wide-ranging knowledge of history and insights into how to research, plan and draft an essay at degree level. He has been very helpful in explaining how to decipher feedback on essays, how to research effectively and how to take notes and organise research into a coherent argument. He is highly qualified and extremely intelligent, yet delivers sessions with a sense of humour and patience. He sets high standards and enables you to work towards achieving them, and is generous with feedback and guidance. Matthew is super smart, personable, punctual and reliable and I cannot recommend him highly enough.

JuliaFirst Tutors

Simply superb! Matthew is professional, inspiring and empathetic. He is tutoring our son for French and English A Level and despite our son’s challenging is having a significant impact. Highly recommend.

AnnabelleFirst Tutors

Matthew is a highly competent and inspirational tutor, providing well organised and thorough lessons in a patient and encouraging manner. He successfully guided our daughter through the Cambridge application process, preparing her for the admissions test and the interview. His regular constructive feedback was invaluable and we are very grateful to Matthew for all his care and attention. We would highly recommend him as a tutor.

SusanFirst Tutors

I cannot praise and recommend Matthew enough! My daughter just missed her Oxford History offer last year and against school advice did not take up her reserve university place, but chose to reapply and take the HAT exam again. With Matthew’s tutoring sessions for both the exam and interview she achieved a high mark in the HAT exam and received another offer to read History at Oxford! Thank you so much!

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Tuition onlineTuition at tutor's homeDBS checkedTuition at student's home (Travels up to 5 km)
  • The highest level of qualification that this tutor has provided us with a copy of is a Masters (or equivalent)
  • This tutor has an average feedback rating of at least 4.75/5 from 20 or more reviews.
  • This tutor has a history of responding quickly (avg < 6h)
  • This tutor states that they speak three or more languages (in addition to English)
  • This tutor is a Professional (self-declared)
  • This tutor offers a 50% discount on their first / introductory lesson.
  • This tutor is happy to teach online
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