A piece of advice I was told when entering college was to go to my professors’ office hours. And like the student I am, I took that advice to heart. For better or worse. I’ve had good encounters but I’ve also had some just…lackluster moments too. Despite this, I’m still an advocate for visiting your professors, to talk about an upcoming paper or just to introduce yourself. Here are some of my experiences of what can happen.
They’ll learn your name faster.
This is a level one accomplishment. Really simple. This is good if you take a large lecture hall style class or even a small fifteen or so class. When a professor learns your name, this opens the door for when you have an issue later on. It also helps start a friendly repertoire with you and the professor when in the classroom!
They can get really into what you want to study.
At the start of this term, I went to one of my English professors and she asked me what am I into. I told her how I’m currently studying costume design. She was not only really interested and curious, but ever since she has been sending me emails and bringing me printed articles to class. This class is about Charles Dickens, you guys. Fashion is not the focus. And yet she takes the time to send me stuff about Victorian fashion. So when you tell your professor what your interested in, there’s a chance they’ll get into as much as you do. Which is amazing.
They can give you a pep talk you didn’t know you needed.
I once had this professor who, whenever I went to see him, would always compliment me. Not in an inappropriate way but in an encouraging way about my academics. I’d come to him stressed about a test or an assignment and he would basically compliment me on coming to office hours in the first place. He would also encourage me about learning in general. He was an old school guy (and also quite old himself) and would tell me I should take courses I’m interested in for the sake of learning–not just to get a specific degree or to lead me to a specific career. This sort of advice might not work for everyone but for me it was a big boost since I was taking his class as a elective out of my comfort zone.
They can do nothing.
Good times can come out of office hours. Other times, absolutely nothing can happen and, if you’re like me and need the other person to give you energy to work off of, you’ve managed to make a fool of yourself. I get that teaching can wear a person out. I totally understand that. And because of this, I’ve had encounters with professors where I go to see them and they just seem so…drained. Meetings with this sort of energy usually don’t go well for me. The professor gets my name and major and that’s about it–’cause that’s about all the energy they have to inquire about, I guess. Or the professor might not be tired at all but just as bad as me at interacting and communicating with others in a one-on-one manner. My social anxiety really gets in a twist in those sort of meetings.
So not all office hours turn out well. But that shouldn’t stop you from going and saying hi. You’ll never know what sort of meeting you’ll have until you go. You might get a dud of a meeting or you could end up with a really good relationship (as far as teacher-student relations go) with your professor, which can be handy down the road! I always get a kick out of it when a professor remembers my name and says hi to me outside of the classroom.