The Experiences and Challenges of Personal Tutors in Higher Education: A Qualitative Study

Rebecca Upsher; Selin Hasgul; Katherine  Embleton; James L. Findon; Francesca  A. Cotier

doi:10.71179/v4tecb79

Authors

Rebecca Upsher King's College London Author
Selin Hasgul King's College London Author
Katherine Embleton King's College London Author
James L. Findon King's College London Author
Francesca A. Cotier King's College London Author

Keywords:

Personal tutoring; academic advising; higher education; qualitative study; student wellbeing; quality education

Abstract

Universities increasingly rely on personal tutoring to support student wellbeing, belonging, and academic progression, yet the role remains structurally ambiguous and inconsistently resourced. This qualitative study examined the lived experiences and challenges of personal tutors at a large UK Russell Group university. Twenty-one tutors from diverse academic disciplines participated in one-to-one semi-structured interviews, which were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Three themes were generated: Relational Labour, encompassing the emotional and interpersonal labour required to build and sustain student trust; Navigating the role characterised by inconsistent training, reliance on informal peer support, and the strain of managing complex student issues alongside competing academic duties; and Structural fragmentation, highlighting fragmented communication systems, role ambiguity, and the absence of coordinated structures for tutor support. Collectively, the findings show that personal tutoring functions as an undervalued form of emotional and organisational labour, sustained by individual goodwill rather than institutional design. The study demonstrates the need for clear role definitions, recognition of workload, competency-based training, and integrated support systems to safeguard tutor wellbeing and improve the quality of student support.

Author Biographies

Rebecca Upsher, King's College London

Rebecca Upsher is a Senior Lecturer on the BSc Psychology programme at King’s College London. Her area of research interest is supporting student wellbeing and learning within the context of higher education curriculum, pedagogy and assessment. Rebecca is the deputy senior personal tutor for the programme, designing the curriculum for tutorial sessions. She runs a special interest group, holding monthly presentations from experts on supporting student wellbeing within the curriculum.
Selin Hasgul, King's College London

Selin Hasgul has a bachelor’s in Psychology at Kings College London. Research on the impact of personal tutoring constitutes part of Selin’s research project in her final academic year. Her research interests, which have prominently guided her research project, centre on the investigation of leading organisational change and its impacts on employee well-being. Upon completing her undergraduate degree, Selin intends to pursue postgraduate studies in this field.
Katherine Embleton, King's College London

Katherine Embleton is a King's College London BSc Psychology graduate. Her dissertation supported research regarding personal tutoring in higher education. During her undergraduate degree, she completed a research experience studentship on the Early Development in Tuberous Sclerosis. She has an interest in the detection and treatment of early psychosis and is currently completing a MSc in Early intervention in psychosis.
James L. Findon, King's College London

James Findon is a Senior Lecturer who teaches on the BSc Psychology programme at King’s College London. James holds a PhD in Neuroscience and Psychology from King’s College London. He is chair of the Psychology Education Research Group which coordinates and promotes pedagogic and scholarly research in the department. He also leads a lab which studies the interplay between brain and body with a particular focus on mind-body interactions in the context of neurodevelopmental conditions and the role of physical exercise in mental health.
Francesca A. Cotier, King's College London

Francesca Cotier is a Senior Lecturer on the BSc Psychology programme at King’s College London. She completed her PhD at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 2016. Her thesis considered the relationship between social defeat and psychosis proneness in a Chinese population. She then continued to work at HKU as a post- doctoral fellow in the laboratory of Neuropsychology and Human neuroscience for a period of almost two years. Francesca's primary research interests lie in identifying the social and cultural determinants involved in the development and maintenance of Psychosis.

References

Allodi, M. W. (2010). The meaning of social climate of learning environments: Some reasons why we do not care enough about it. Learning Environments Research, 13(2), 89–104.

Augustus, J., Goodall, D., & Williams, B. (2023). Does the role of personal academic tutor have an impact on staff wellbeing? Research in Post-Compulsory Education, 28(4). https://doi.org/10.1080/13596748.2023.2253656

Bartram, B. (2007). The sociocultural needs of international students in higher education: A comparison of staff and student views. Journal of Studies in International Education, 11(2), 205–214.

Bassett, J., Gallagher, E., & Price, L. (2014). Personal Tutors’ Responses to a Structured System of Personal Development Planning: A Focus on ‘Feedback.’ Journal for Education in the Built Environment, 9(1), 20–34. https://doi.org/10.11120/jebe.2014.00008

Braine, M. E., & Parnell, J. (2011). Exploring students’ perceptions and experience of personal tutors. Nurse Education Today, 31(8), 904–910. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2011.01.005

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2013). Successful qualitative research: A practical guide for beginners.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589–597.

Broglia, E., Millings, A., & Barkham, M. (2021). Student mental health profiles and barriers to help seeking: When and why students seek help for a mental health concern. Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 21(4), 816–826.

Calabrese, G., Leadbitter, D. L. M., Trindade, N. D. S. M. da, Jeyabalan, A., Dolton, D., & ElShaer, A. (2022). Personal Tutoring Scheme: Expectations, Perceptions and Factors Affecting Students’ Engagement. Frontiers in Education, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2021.727410

Clouder, L., Karakus, M., Cinotti, A., Ferreyra, M. v, Fierros, G. A., & Rojo, P. (2020). Neurodiversity in higher education: a narrative synthesis. Higher Education, 80(4), 757–778.

Dreyfus, S. E. (2004). The five-stage model of adult skill acquisition. Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, 24(3), 177–181.

Eden, C. A., Chisom, O. N., & Adeniyi, I. S. (2024). Cultural competence in education: strategies for fostering inclusivity and diversity awareness. International Journal of Applied Research in Social Sciences, 6(3), 383–392.

Gillespie, M. (2005). Student–teacher connection: a place of possibility. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 52(2), 211–219.

Grey, D., & Osborne, C. (2018). Perceptions and principles of personal tutoring. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2018.1536258

Hayman, R., Coyles, A., Wharton, K., Borkoles, E., & Polman, R. (2023). Undertaking the personal tutoring role with sports students at a United Kingdom university. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 47(3). https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2022.2108693

Hughes, G., & Byrom, N. C. (2019). Managing student mental health: The challenges faced by academics on professional healthcare courses. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 75(7), 1539–1548. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13989

Hughes, G., & Spanner, L. (2019). University Mental Health Charter. Student Minds. https://www.studentminds.org.uk/charter.html

Hughes, G., Upsher, R., Nobili, A., Kirkman, A., Wilson, C., Bowers-Brown, T., Foster, J., Bradley, S., & Byrom, N. (2022). Education for Mental Health Toolkit. Advance HE. https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/education-mental-health-toolkit

Kift, S., Nelson, K., & Clarke, J. (2010). Transition pedagogy: A third generation approach to FYE. The International Journal of the First Year in Higher Education, 1(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.5204/intjfyhe.v1i1.13

Lavy, S., & Naama-Ghanayim, E. (2020). Why care about caring? Linking teachers’ caring and sense of meaning at work with students’ self-esteem, well-being, and school engagement. Teaching and Teacher Education, 91, 103046.

MacMahon, S. J. (2020). Human connection and learning: Understanding and reflecting on the power of the social dimension for learning. ACCESS: Contemporary Issues in Education, 40(1), 15–23.

Malterud, K., Siersma, V. D., & Guassora, A. D. (2016). Sample size in qualitative interview studies: guided by information power. Qualitative Health Research, 26(13), 1753–1760.

McManus, S., Bebbington, P., Jenkins, R., & Brugha, T. (2016). Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult psychiatric morbidity survey 2014. NHS Digital. https://doi.org/https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/adult-psychiatric-morbidity-survey/2014

Raby, A. (2020). Student Voice in Personal Tutoring. Frontiers in Education, 5. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2020.00120

Tabor, E., Patalay, P., & Bann, D. (2021). Mental health in higher education students and non-students: Evidence from a nationally representative panel study. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 56(5), 879–882. https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.09.18.20196782

UK Advising and Tutoring Association. (2023). UKAT Professional Framework for Academic Advising and Personal Tutoring (2nd ed.). UKAT. https://www.ukat.ac.uk/framework

Upsher, R., Dommett, E., Carlisle, S., Conner, S., Codina, G., Nobili, A., & Byrom, N. C. (2025). Improving reporting standards in quantitative educational intervention research: introducing the CLOSER and CIDER checklists. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 14(1), 2.

Walker, B. (2020). Professional standards and recognition for UK personal tutoring and advising. Frontiers in Education, 5, Article 531451. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2020.531451

Yale, A. (2020). Developing Positive Personal Tutor Relationships. In Mentoring in Higher Education: Case Studies of Peer Learning and Pedagogical Development. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-46890-3_5