Science help from an undergrad student. Bilingual, EN/ES

Leonel S.

I am in my fifth year of a bachelor's degree in Biology with a concentration in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Puerto Rico at Aguadilla. I tutor biology, biochemistry, neuroscience and genetics, and I also tutor Spanish. I work comfortably in both Spanish and English, so students can switch between the two whenever it helps them understand something faster.

My tutoring started in August 2024 through MSEIP-SOLARIS, a program where I was assigned one mentee, a freshman around 18 years old, and worked with him until May 2025. We met one on one almost every day and I covered all of his courses with him, including biology, chemistry, Spanish and English. From August 2025 to May 2026 I led a group of three sophomore students in a neuroscience research lab alongside my professor, where I was responsible for teaching them the concepts and techniques behind the project. Since September 2026 I have been mentoring two twelfth grade students in their own research projects while also guiding them through the transition into college, and I will continue with them through May 2027.

When I sit down with a student, the first thing I do is find out exactly where they are. I ask what topic they are on, what they already understand about it, and then I have them give me an example of everything they know. That tells me quickly where the real gap is instead of where I assume it is. From there I build the explanation around what they already have, and I keep bringing them back to the material through active recall so they are the ones producing the answer rather than watching me produce it. Working almost daily with one student for a year taught me that this is what makes the difference. Students remember what they had to pull out of their own head.