Academic coaching and mentoring
Academic coaching and mentoring
Some students don't need another subject tutor. They need someone to fix how they work: focus, structure, motivation, self-belief, and performing when it counts.
I'm Mehdi Naqvi, elite tutor and trained transformation coach, with formal training in performance psychology and NLP. I know what it takes to perform under pressure because I've lived it: I competed as one of the UK's top-ranked junior tennis players, playing at a professional level while balancing my studies, and completed my Mathematics A-Level at fifteen, achieving an A* two years early. I went on to graduate from UCL with First Class Honours in Economics. It's the same skill set whether the arena is Centre Court or an exam hall: preparation, structure, and composure when it counts.
To arrange a session or simply ask a question, contact me on WhatsApp or fill in the form. I reply to every enquiry within 24 hours.
Contact me
Meet your Coach
My Education:
University:
University College London, Economics Bsc, Grade: First Class Honours Degree
A-levels:
Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Economics, Physics Grade (A*,A,A,A)
Teaching Experience
12 + years of teaching and tutoring experience
Established and ran the A-level Economics and Further Mathematics departments at a prestigious private sixth form college in London
Founded one of the UK's leading tuition centres/agencies, working with families and schools (state and private) for exam success
Privately contracted by renowned private colleges in London for intensive crash courses during the exam season
Worked privately one on one with students for 12+ years, students from all backgrounds, learning styles and abilities
Other interests:
Top ranked junior tennis player in the UK and played tennis to a professional level, competing in tournaments across Europe, Asia, and Africa
Fluent in English and Italian
My coaching approach
I'm passionate about my work. Every student is a project in their own right, and in coaching my job is to build the person behind the grades: how they plan, how they work, how they see themselves, and how they perform when it counts. Whether it's a student who has lost motivation, one who is capable of far more than they're producing, or a high performer who wants the mental edge, my approach rests on four pillars:
Diagnosing How They Work
Every engagement begins with a careful diagnosis: how the student currently plans, revises and organises, where the friction lies, and what's really behind the underperformance. It's rarely laziness. It's usually a missing system or a quiet loss of belief.
Systems & Habits
We build revision timetables that actually get followed, effective techniques like retrieval practice and spaced repetition, and organisation that removes daily friction. The goal is a student who runs their own week, not one who needs chasing.
Confidence & Self-Belief
Trained in performance psychology and coaching, I work deliberately on the internal dialogue that caps performance. Interest returns, confidence grows with every success, and students begin raising their own expectations of what's possible.
Performing Under Pressure
Before teaching, I competed as one of the UK's top-ranked junior tennis players. I train exam performance the way athletes train for competition: routines, visualisation, breathing and focus, so the work shows up on the day it matters.
Testimonials
-
Mehdi was fantastic and really helped my son grow in confidence. He worked with him on the topics he found hard, gave him constructive feedback and gave him brilliant exam advice. I can't recommend Mehdi highly enough.
Parent, Eton College (A-level result: Mathematics A*, Economics A*)
-
We're so grateful for Mehdi's help in boosting our son's grades in A-level Mathematics. His tailored approach and consistent support were key to his success.
Parent, Marlborough College, (A-level result: Mathematics A*)
-
My son has been having lessons from Mehdi , and he has drastically improved since taking lessons. My son told me that he has an excellent tutor in his life. We are very thankful.
Parent, Westminster School, (A-level result: Mathematics A*)
-
I'd tried other tutors before but no one compared. Lessons were so condensed, I learnt faster than I ever did at school. Honestly I never thought I'd get an A, but Mehdi slowly built my belief and things just clicked. Got the A and my UCL offer.
Student, Lycée (A -level result: Mathematics A)
Lesson Fees
One to one online coaching: £150 per hour
Sessions are run with complete efficiency: no time is wasted and nothing is stretched out. My aim is simple: real change in how the student works, and results that show in their grades.
Coaching typically runs as a weekly session with accountability in between. It works as a standalone engagement, or combined with subject tuition.
Payment is by bank transfer, at least 48 hours before the session to confirm the booking.
What coaching addresses
Study systems and time management: revision timetables that actually get followed, effective techniques (retrieval practice, spaced repetition), and organisation that removes daily friction
Motivation and discipline: turning "I'll do it later" into consistent, self-driven work; building the identity of a student who succeeds
Confidence and self-belief: rewiring the internal dialogue ("I'm just not a maths person") that quietly caps performance, and raising the ceiling of what a student believes is possible
Rekindling interest: many students lose their love of a subject because of a teacher they never clicked with at school; I restore it, and with it, momentum
Exam performance and stress management: nerves, focus and pressure-management techniques drawn from professional sport: routines, visualisation, breathing, reframing
Transitions: starting sixth form, moving schools, or adjusting to university independence
What a coaching engagement looks like
1. Diagnosis. We start with an honest picture: how the student currently works, where the time and marks are leaking, and what they actually want to achieve.
2. The system. Together we build the student's personal operating system: a revision timetable around their school term, effective study techniques (retrieval practice, spaced repetition, past-paper method), note-taking that suits how they learn, rules for focus, including how to use technology and AI as a study tool rather than a distraction, and the foundations no system works without: sleep, exercise and routine.
3. Weekly sessions and accountability. We meet weekly, review progress against the plan, solve whatever got in the way, and train the performance skills: routines, pressure management, self-talk.
4. Working alongside the school. Coaching runs with the school, not parallel to it. I plan around the school's term and assessments, read reports closely, and where families wish and schools allow, I can even join parents' evenings online, so my advice reflects exactly what teachers are seeing.
5. Independence. The goal is that the system becomes the student's own. Success is a student who no longer needs me.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
No. Coaching is practical and performance-focused: systems, habits, and mental skills. Where a student needs clinical support, I'll say so and recommend the family seek it.
-
Tuition builds subject mastery. Coaching builds the student: how they plan, work, think about themselves, and perform under pressure. Many families combine both.
-
Yes. Coaching is subject-independent: I work on how the student plans, works and performs, which strengthens whatever subject tuition they already have.
-
Closely. I plan around the school's term and assessments, work from school reports, and where families wish and schools allow, I can join parents' evenings online so my advice matches exactly what teachers are seeing.
-
Noticeable change typically shows within 4 to 6 sessions; lasting habits are usually built over a term of weekly sessions.
-
Yes. I have extensive experience supporting students with ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia and other learning differences. Coaching's structure and confidence work often makes the biggest difference for exactly these students.
-
I have worked with high profile families throughout my career, including well known public figures. Privacy and discretion are absolute.
-
All payments are made at least 48 hours before the first session, in order to confirm the lesson slot. Payment is by bank transfer.
-
Lessons cancelled within 24 hours of the session are charged at the full rate, as this doesn't leave enough time to offer the hour to another student.