Chemical Engineering Tutor Job — Remote, Freelance, Rs 500-1,500/hr

The Chemical Engineering tutor job at MEB involves running 1:1 live online sessions and providing homework guidance within those sessions, mainly for students in the USA and the Gulf. Most requests come from undergraduates working through core unit operations, thermodynamics, and reaction engineering courses at accredited universities, where problem sets are quantitative, timed, and unforgiving. Sessions typically require deriving design equations, working through MESH calculations, or troubleshooting a process flowsheet in real time on a shared digital whiteboard. A pen tablet is not optional in this role — drawing McCabe-Thiele diagrams or sketching a heat exchanger configuration by hand on screen is routine.

What the role involves

• Teaching 1:1 live sessions over video call on topics spanning the full undergraduate chemical engineering curriculum, from thermodynamics to process control.
• Explaining the derivation and application of design equations for distillation columns, heat exchangers, reactors, and mass transfer units — not just plugging numbers into a formula.
• Guiding students through their own problem sets by explaining the underlying method, helping them set up the problem correctly, and prompting them to carry the solution themselves.
• Working under hard deadlines: students often contact MEB the evening before a problem set is due, and sessions must be productive from the first minute.
• Communicating clearly in English with students who are not familiar with Indian teaching conventions — plain, precise language and a logical step-by-step approach are required.

Topics you will be expected to teach

• Fluid mechanics and momentum transfer (Bernoulli equation, pipe flow, packed beds, fluidisation)
• Heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation, heat exchanger design, LMTD and NTU-effectiveness methods)
• Mass transfer and separation processes (distillation, absorption, extraction, McCabe-Thiele and Kremser methods)
• Chemical reaction engineering (reaction rate laws, CSTR, PFR, PBR design equations, conversion and selectivity)
• Chemical thermodynamics (phase equilibria, equations of state, fugacity, VLE, Gibbs free energy)
• Transport phenomena (coupled momentum, heat, and mass transfer; boundary layer theory)
• Process control and instrumentation (Laplace transforms, transfer functions, PID control, stability analysis)
• Material and energy balances (steady-state and transient, recycle and bypass streams, adiabatic flame temperature)
• Chemical process design and simulation (process flowsheeting, pinch analysis, equipment sizing)
• Safety, hazard analysis, and process risk assessment (HAZOP, relief valve sizing, flammability limits)
• Polymer engineering and materials (polymerisation kinetics, rheology, polymer processing)
• Electrochemical engineering and corrosion (electrode kinetics, Butler-Volmer equation, galvanic cells)

A problem you should be able to solve

A continuous stirred-tank reactor (CSTR) operates at steady state for the liquid-phase elementary reaction A → B, with a first-order rate constant k = 0.25 min^-1 at the operating temperature. The volumetric feed flow rate is 10 L/min and the inlet concentration of A is 2.0 mol/L. Determine the reactor volume required to achieve 80% conversion of A, and confirm whether a single CSTR or two equal-volume CSTRs in series would require less total reactor volume for the same overall conversion.

If you cannot set this up and solve it in under five minutes without looking anything up, this role is not the right fit.

Who we are looking for

Subject mastery

You must be able to derive, not just use, the design equations for the standard unit operations. If a student asks why the CSTR design equation takes the form it does, or how the McCabe-Thiele construction follows from an operating line, you must be able to explain it from first principles, live, on a whiteboard. Knowing which equation to apply is the minimum; understanding why it applies is the standard MEB holds its tutors to. Strong candidates will also be comfortable moving between topics — connecting thermodynamic phase equilibria to a distillation problem, for instance, or linking reaction kinetics to reactor sizing.

Speed and accuracy under deadline

Chemical engineering problem sets at US universities are numerical and multi-step. Students arriving for a session the night before a submission deadline need a tutor who can read a problem statement quickly, identify the method, and walk through the solution without hesitation. If you need several minutes to recall how to set up a material balance around a distillation column or how to apply the Ergun equation, the session will not be productive. MEB measures tutor performance partly on whether students leave a session able to complete the remaining problems themselves — that requires clarity and pace.

Education and background

A degree from IIT, IISc, NIT, or an institution of equivalent standing in chemical engineering or a closely related discipline is strongly preferred. Candidates from other universities are considered only where there is clear, documented evidence of exceptional subject depth — for example, a strong postgraduate record or a track record of teaching the subject at undergraduate level. Graduate students currently enrolled in a chemical engineering programme at a reputable institution may apply; their subject test will determine eligibility.

Setup, availability and communication

You need a reliable laptop, stable broadband, a working camera and microphone, and a pen tablet. Sessions are conducted on a shared digital whiteboard; drawing process flow diagrams, sketching equilibrium curves, or annotating a flowsheet without a pen tablet is impractical. Most work falls between 5 PM and 9 AM IST because the majority of MEB’s students are in North America and the Gulf. You do not need to be available every night, but you must be reachable promptly when you are available. English must be clear and direct — jargon that is standard in India but unfamiliar to an American undergraduate will slow the session down.

Do not apply if

• You need a guaranteed monthly income or a fixed-shift schedule.
• You cannot work regularly between 5 PM and 9 AM IST.
• You do not own a pen tablet, or you are unwilling to use one.
• You need to look up the design equations for a CSTR, a shell-and-tube heat exchanger, or a binary distillation column before you can begin a session.
• You are uncomfortable teaching students whose questions arise from curricula that use SI and US customary units interchangeably, or who cite textbooks like Fogler, Geankoplis, or McCabe and Smith.

What this job is not

This is not a salaried position. There is no monthly retainer, no minimum number of hours, and no guarantee that work will be offered in any given week. The volume of work depends on what students book and how MEB distributes assignments among available tutors. This is not a route to completing graded coursework on behalf of students — tutors explain methods and guide students to their own solutions; they do not write up solutions for submission. This is not a fixed-shift role where you clock in and out at set times; it is freelance work that fits around your existing commitments, provided those commitments do not prevent you from being responsive during late-evening and night hours IST.

Pay and payment terms

The rate for this role is Rs 500 – Rs 1,500 per hour. The exact rate for a given session depends on the academic level of the content, the complexity of the problem, the deadline, and the type of work assigned. The fee for each piece of work is agreed before the work begins. You may accept or decline any assignment offered to you. Payment is made on time. There is no guaranteed minimum and no retainer. Freshers are eligible to apply, but only where subject depth in chemical engineering is clearly exceptional — the subject test will determine this.

How work is assigned at MEB

Work at MEB is offered job-by-job as student sessions are booked. Assignments are distributed fairly among available tutors who have demonstrated the required subject depth. You will not be asked to compete for sessions by undercutting other tutors on price; the fee structure is set by MEB. Because most of MEB’s students are in the USA and the Gulf, the majority of sessions fall in the late evening and overnight hours IST — typically one or two working nights per week, though this varies with demand. There is no obligation to accept every assignment, but consistent availability during the MEB working window is what leads to regular work.

Academic integrity rules for tutors

MEB tutors guide students to understand and solve problems themselves. A tutor’s role is to explain the method, clarify the underlying concept, and support the student in working through the solution — not to complete graded assessments on the student’s behalf. Tutors must not share personal contact details with students, and must not negotiate fees directly with any student outside the MEB platform; either action ends the engagement permanently. All tutors are required to read and follow MEB’s full academic integrity policy before their first session. The policy is published at https://www.myengineeringbuddy.com/trust/academic-integrity/.

Selection process

1. Submit your application using the form on the tutoring jobs hub.
2. MEB shortlists applications based on subject depth, educational background, and prior teaching or tutoring experience in chemical engineering.
3. Shortlisted candidates complete a subject test and a short mock session conducted on a shared digital whiteboard, using a pen tablet — this is where subject mastery and communication are assessed together.
4. Candidates who pass onboarding are added to the tutor pool, and work is offered job-by-job as it becomes available.

For questions about the application process, contact MEB on WhatsApp at +91 8971 383660 or by email at meb@myengineeringbuddy.com.

Questions from applicants

Is a degree specifically in chemical engineering required, or will related engineering disciplines be considered?

A degree in chemical engineering from a recognised institution is strongly preferred. Candidates with degrees in closely related disciplines — such as biochemical engineering, petroleum engineering, or chemical technology — are considered if their subject test demonstrates clear depth across the core chemical engineering curriculum, including unit operations, reaction engineering, and thermodynamics. A degree in mechanical or civil engineering alone is unlikely to be sufficient unless the candidate has a well-documented postgraduate specialisation in chemical engineering topics.

Does MEB expect tutors to use specific simulation software such as Aspen Plus or MATLAB during sessions?

MEB sessions are primarily conceptual and analytical rather than software-driven. Tutors are expected to be able to work through problems by hand on a digital whiteboard. Familiarity with MATLAB or Aspen Plus is an advantage for handling process simulation questions, but it is not a requirement for selection. The core requirement is the ability to derive and apply the underlying equations, not to operate simulation packages on behalf of a student.

How quickly after applying can someone expect to hear back from MEB?

Applications are reviewed as they are received. Shortlisting is not on a fixed timetable — it depends on current demand for the subject and the volume of applications in queue. Candidates who are shortlisted will be contacted to schedule the subject test and mock session. If several weeks pass without contact, it is acceptable to follow up via WhatsApp at +91 8971 383660.

What happens if a student session goes beyond the agreed time?

The duration and fee for each session are agreed before the session begins. If a session runs over the agreed time, the additional time is compensated at the agreed hourly rate. Tutors are not expected to continue indefinitely beyond what was agreed; it is appropriate to flag to the student and to MEB when the agreed time has been reached, and to confirm whether the session should be extended.

Can a tutor who has been onboarded for chemical engineering sessions also be considered for mathematics or other engineering subjects?

Yes, provided the tutor applies separately for the additional subject and passes the corresponding subject test. MEB does not assume that proficiency in one subject transfers automatically to another. A chemical engineering tutor who also holds strong credentials in thermodynamics, calculus, or fluid mechanics can apply for those subject roles through the same application process on the MEB tutoring jobs hub.

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