Posted on February 8, 2021

By Michelle Nishidera

I had the opportunity to interview one of Iridium Tutoring’s superb tutors, Shayaan. We discussed his variety of extracurriculars, his favorite part about Iridium Tutoring, and the show he’s really loving at the moment. Thanks to Shayaan for agreeing to do this, and keep reading to learn more about him!

Michelle: Hi! Can you introduce yourself?

Shayaan: Hi, my name’s Shayaan Chaudhary. A lot of the times I go by Shay. I’m 16 years old. I’m a junior at Mass Academy of Math and Science in Worcester.

M: So, why did you decide to join Iridium Tutoring?

S: This question is a little interesting because when I came to Mass Academy, I realized there were so many things that I wish I had done when I was in middle school. Or so many concepts and things I just wish… they’re little, little things, but I feel like if I knew them when I was younger, it would’ve made a big difference on the kind of achievements and success that I have now, and going into college. So, I kind of want to help out younger kids by giving them those extra tips and helping them learn those concepts early on. That way when they grow up, they won’t have those kinds of regrets and will be set up for success more.

M: Yeah, that’s a really great reason. What are or were your favorite subjects at school?

S: My favorite was definitely math. Also, my freshman year I really liked bio, but after studying physics this year, I think I kind of like physics better than bio now. So, I’m definitely more of a math and science person.

M: Interesting subjects. What do you like to do outside of school, so any hobbies, interests, extracurriculars, that kind of thing?

S: Before Mass Academy, for freshman and sophomore year I went to St Johns. Over there, I played soccer pretty heavily. I played junior varsity my freshman year and varsity my sophomore year. I wasn’t able to continue this year because of Covid and just not having that much time at Mass Academy. But, soccer is definitely a big part. So, other extracurriculars I did were Model UN, mock trial, and then I also skied and ran track.

M: Wow, that’s a lot of extracurriculars. The next question is: what is your favorite part about Iridium Tutoring, kind of like as an organization?

S: My favorite part about it is I love how motivated all the other tutors are, considering it’s a non-profit organization where we’re tutoring the kids for their benefit. It’s not like we’re getting necessarily paid money or anything out of it. So, I really like the motivation that’s just in the people working behind the scenes with no, like, getting anything in return. Just, for the sake of the kids.

M: Yeah, absolutely. So, what is your dream job now if you have one, if not what kind of field do you want to go into?

S: Well, I haven’t thought much about my dream job, but if it were, I would want to be just like… This kind of depends on the financial situation, but some kind of researcher in physics, or the engineering field, but also maybe teaching some classes on the side. So, kind of like a professor who also researches on his own time.

M: Cool! So that compared to what was your dream job in elementary school?

S: So, in elementary school it was always to be a soccer player. But, then I kind of realized in high school that I wanted to go for something more academic related.

M: If you could meet any person, alive or dead, who would you choose and why?

S: That’s a good question. Honestly, if I could sit down and have a chat with them, it would be Mahatma Gandhi. Just because he’s basically the pinnacle of what every person strives to be. Like, wise, humble. So I kind of just want to see what kind of a man he is to kind of see him as a role model.

M: Interesting choice. So, last but not least, what is your favorite book or TV show or movie or video game or just anything you’re loving right now?

S: I recently started this show called The Queen’s Gambit. It’s a show about chess, and the game I play a lot with my dad. It’s just a really fascinating game and the show that they made about it shows the beauty of the game at high levels. So that’s definitely my favorite show.

M: I’ll add that to my list. So, those are all of the questions that I have.

Thanks again to Shayaan! Be sure to stay tuned for more upcoming meet the tutor blog posts!