My Davidson | A Student Blog How to Take Advantage of Embedded Tutors at Davidson College
October 7, 2025
Senior economics major and applied mathematics minor Kyle Berlage ’26 shares his experiences as an embedded tutor at Davidson College. Learn more about Davidson’s distinctive program of embedded tutors who are neither graduate students nor lecturers, but rather undergraduate students endorsed by the professor to help their peers succeed.
About the Author
Kyle Berlage ’26 is an economics major and applied mathematics minor from San Diego, California. He is a Senior Admission Fellow, Chidsey Leadership Fellow, and the Vice President of Mock Trial. He also plays Common Hour Volleyball.
“Once I visited Davidson, I felt a sense of belonging so strong that the distance didn't seem to matter. The experience of being at Davidson combines a number of incredibly important factors for me. The academics are unparalleled, the community is welcoming, and the campus has a seemingly endless list of facilities which I use daily. Being at Davidson is not about who is the smartest or endless competition with your peers. Rather, Davidson is a place where you can develop and find your passions unlike anywhere else.”
Davidson is a challenging academic environment, but that does not mean you must go through it alone. Small class sizes and universal office hours enable easy access for students to professors. However, a key supplement is the presence of Embedded Tutors (ETs), a position I’ve served in for three years in three different economics courses. ETs are not graduate students or lecturers; they’re fellow Davidson students, endorsed by the professor to help students succeed, as they did previously. It’s a vital service for students, free for all who seek help, and paid for by the John Crosland Jr. Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL).
Before becoming a tutor, I was a first year in “Introductory Economics,” attending my ET’s weekly office hours. The course was very challenging, with quizzes every week and constant new material. Seeking help from my ET pushed me to succeed in the class and carried me through the following semesters. I had completed seven economics courses by the time I received an email from Prof. Vikram Kumar while I was spending my winter break in Mexico City. He offered me a position as an embedded tutor for his course “Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory.”
After utilizing the resources of embedded tutors, it was incredibly gratifying and humbling to become one. I saw the course I previously took in a new light. It proved to me the old saying, “you don’t truly understand something until you can teach it to others.” The experience bore new responsibility; my answers to student questions would shape their performance in the class. Often, students had questions on the most difficult aspect of a concept I hadn’t reviewed for over a year. It required me to relearn and explain concepts quickly, but also to admit when I was confused, too. Some of my most rewarding experiences in the job have come from moments in which students explain the parts they understand, and out of the previous confusion, I’m able to bridge the gaps.
I returned my junior spring to tutor both “Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory” for Prof. Kumar, and “Statistics & Basic Econometrics” for Prof. Pedro Casavilca Silva. This semester, I tutor “Econometrics” for Prof. Mark Foley. Tutoring such a wide array of economics courses has not only deepened my understanding of the curriculum, but also deepened relationships with professors, fellow tutors and fellow students. Being embedded in a professor’s course means constant communication with them regarding course material, student success and my personal life. It’s fantastic to have such qualified tutors to teach with, and such dedicated students to help. Being an ET has become a significant part of my college experience, and given me newfound appreciation for Davidson’s unique living-learning community.
