Joseph Pellegrino

Welcome!

I'm a Connecticut native, a 2020 graduate of Harvard College, and a lifelong lover of education. From the time I was a kid, I've had an enduring passion for helping people "get" concepts. For me, there's simply no greater joy than that.

This interest intensified when I got to college. I met hundreds of students who, while all brilliant, started at such different places as a result of having come from different backgrounds and high schools. That bothered me. I've made it a mission ever since to help my clients "fill in the gaps" caused by a one-size-fits-all educational system that, well, doesn't tend to fit us all equally.

I've had the good fortune to help hundreds of students from middle school all the way up to graduate school. Here's a list of the subjects I tend to tutor most, each of which I've offered at least a dozen times:

• High-school math (Algebra I through Multivariate Calculus)
• College math (first-semester Calculus through Differential Equations)
• Standardized test prep (SAT, PSAT, ACT, AP exams)
• Statistics and probability
• Physics
• Latin
• Economics and econometrics
• Spanish
• U.S. and world history

I've provided guidance, instilled confidence, helped turn D's into A's, and advised on the college admissions process, all to prolific results. I make a point to offer exceptional service at prices I feel reflect both my values and those of the clients whom I serve.

For a conversation about anything you see here, I hope you'll feel most welcome to reach out to me personally. You can do exactly that on the Contact Me page. Alternatively, feel free to email me at joe@jmpellegrino.com

Education

• Harvard College (Cambridge, MA: May 2020, GPA: 3.83)

  Bachelor of Arts (Concentration in Economics, Secondary in Mathematical Sciences)

  Graduated with Honors in three years

  John Harvard Scholar

  Detur Book Award

• F. S. Bunnell High School (Stratford, CT: June 2017)

  Valedictorian

  National Merit Scholar

  Chairman of Student Mentoring Program

  Student Liaison to the Board of Education

  SAT: 1590 (of 1600)

  AP Scholar with Distinction (ten 5's, one 4)

Work Experience

Since graduating from college, my career has been in data science and business analytics, helping Fortune 500 companies grow and become more profitable using the insights of rigorous data collection and sophisticated statistical analysis. You can read more about my day job on my LinkedIn page.

Skills

• Spoken/written languages: English (native), Spanish (near-native), Italian, Latin; I'm an Ancient Greek wannabe, but I know enough to get by; working on Russian now!
• Programming languages: Python, R, SQL, Stata, Bash
• Presentation crafting and delivery
• Pedagogy and communication

College Application Advising

I grew up in a working-class town with, by national standards, average public schools. I couldn't possibly compete on paper with kids from Exeter and Andover. But with a lot of support from my family and teachers, hard work, and overwhelming luck, I had the privilege of receiving an Ivy League education.

There is no secret formula, GPA, SAT score, or combination of words arranged into an essay that will guarantee admission to a prestigious institution of learning. Indeed, despite what some may peddle to you in the way of "How I Got Into Harvard"-type self-help books and the like, much remains unknown about how even to increase one's odds of admission to a degree distinguishable from ordinary academic achievement.

Though all of this is true, an advantage that can be acquired is knowledge of the admissions process itself. Throughout the years, I've advised several high-school juniors and seniors on the college admissions process, helping them assemble persuasive resumes, achieve upper-echelon standardized test scores, and craft maximally informative statements of interest.

I believe I've been charged with a mission to help people like me: intelligent, passionate, devoted, and deserving of educational achievement that matches their ability. To discuss how I might best be of service while you or your child navigates the landscape of higher education, please reach out via the Contact Me page.

Contact Me

Please feel welcome to contact me using the form below or by emailing me at joe@jmpellegrino.com. I make a point to respond as quickly as I can!

Links

Here you can find a few links to my other online presences:

• My LinkedIn, where you can find a more complete overview of my education, work experience, and skills.
• A tutoring channel I created in high school to help my classmates. Hopefully this gives some idea of my tutoring style.
• My philosophical YouTube channel I hope someday to develop.
• A video I created in the twelfth grade to help my classmates understand a calculus concept. Of all the subjects I tutor, I estimate I've done calculus the most:
• A more recent, supplemental video I made for a client covering systems of linear equations (Algebra I):

Personal Projects

As a lifelong learner, I'm always trying to master new subject areas. Recently, I've been honing my data science skills, coding lots in Python, R, SQL, and Bash. I've also become something of an IT wannabe in the last few months, undertaking a host of nerdy personal computing projects like setting up home servers, building automated news dashboards for my Mac, and the like.

My biggest hobby is language learning, so getting started with Russian has been taking up most of my after-work hours. I learned Spanish in high school, but didn't get interested seriously in polyglot status until I was already in college. It's never too late to discover new passions and put them to the test!

Feel free to check out my Github, which contains publicly available code for several personal coding projects I've created, including the creation of this website.