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FAQs
#1 Who are your tutors?
I have worked hard to find native, fluent Deaf or CODA tutors to teach you their languages. The course and tutoring prices reflect my promise to pay our tutors fairly for their time and effort. You will love their enthusiasm and professionalism as they teach!
#2 Why do each tutor's videos look different?
What I love about our tutors is that they work hard to film their courses with the best equipment available to them. The courses may not always appear as fancy as some other learning platforms, but that's what makes InterSign University real. These are real tutors, in diverse countries, who are genuinely excited to share their language with you!
#3 Why don't you teach more in the filmed courses?
The filmed courses are meant to give you a strong foundation in the language; basic phrases and words that will enable you to have basic conversations. But as we all know, languages cannot be learned fully through recorded classes. That is why you have the option to learn directly from a tutor in that country. through live tutoring. This way, if you are simply curious about the differences in sign languages, you can take as many courses as you'd like. But if you truly want to become fluent, you can work directly with a tutor to delve deep into the grammar and history of a language!
#4 What am I paying for when I purchase a course?
Similar to learning platforms like Udemy and Skillshare, the tutor receives a commission from each student that registers for a pre-filmed course. This is set up in a way that provides a passive side income for those who are willing to put forth the hard work upfront to film their courses (with very little effort afterwards to maintain their videos). The rest of the fee goes towards paying for the website, learning platform, marketing, and the labor to build their courses.
#5 What am I paying for when I purchase live tutoring?
Tutors are paid $20/hour for tutoring. I wanted to make sure they received higher payment than the industry average and that they would be adequately compensated for their honed skills. Typical tutoring sessions are 30 minutes each. The remainder of the fee goes towards the person reaching out and scheduling the tutor and student across time zones.
#6 Is this a Deaf or hearing business?
Our tutors are Deaf or CODAs. Our courses are for all in the international sign language community: Deaf, CODAs, interpreters, hearing parents, sign language students. I have been blessed to be involved in the Deaf community for more than 15 years and wanted to make sure that this was a business made up of those in the community.
#7 How can you afford to pay tutors fairly?
I am the only person behind this website. We keep our overhead low that the funding can go directly to paying the tutors fairly and promoting the courses so that more students can become sign language 'polyglots'. My goal is to make sure that the majority of your money goes to the tutors and advertising to expand their opportunities to teach.
#8 How do I get discounts on the courses?
By subscribing to InterSign University HERE, you will get access to all the discounts we offer and any sales happening.
#9 How do I register for a class with a discount code?
After you choose a language course, you will come to this screen.
Select "Have a coupon?" and put in your discount code before completing the purchase.
#10 How do you select your tutors?
Our tutors start by applying here. I review their background and teaching experience to do my best to find qualified teachers, but ultimately it is up to the tutor to determine if they are qualified to teach. Sadly I don't know every sign language in the world...yet...so I trust them. :) Our courses are not perfect, but our tutors are definitely awesome!
#11 Why only English subtitles on the videos?
From the very beginning I wanted to have multiple languages in the subtitles. This takes time and money so it is our goal for the future. The more students register, the more funding we will have to be able to make these courses available to all!
#12 How do I receive CEUs for a course?
We offer several courses that are available for CEUs. To find these courses, first click on "All Courses" in the top right hand corner of your screen and then select "CEU courses" in the menu.
#13 How do I become a Sign Polyglot?
After completing at least three InterSign University courses, you become an ISU Sign Polyglot.
#14 How do I become an InterSign University affiliate?
Contact us at internationalsigntutor@gmail.com to become an affiliate. You will receive a discount code that you can give to your friends, post on your social media platforms, and share with local schools. Whoever signs up using your code gets a discount - and you get a referral bonus for sharing InterSign with them!
#15 Why did you start this online learning platform?
I have always been fascinated by languages. As a teenager, back in the pre-YouTube days (yep, practically the stone age!), I would search for websites where I could learn sign languages from around the world. There were none available then and there are still only a few global dictionaries available now (besides websites dedicated to individual languages).
Over the years, time and again, I would encourage friends in the Deaf community to start a website like InterSign University (as I was busy launching The Deaf Dream at the time). But as time passed, and no one started one, I decided to go ahead and do it myself. :)
From the start, I wanted a platform where tutors from their countries could teach and earn money for their skills - a valid side income. When you pay for courses or tutoring with InterSign University, you are paying Deaf around the world fairly for their skills. Thank you for supporting this project!
