Whether it’s crushes, classes or coed bathrooms on your mind, chances are you’ve already started stressing about your freshman year of college. But don’t worry! This collegiette has been there and done that, and she’s passing along her hard-earned wisdom to you lucky pre-collegiettes. Whether you’re daunted by your packing list (you do not need a label maker, promise), college-level classes (Wikipedia is your new best friend), making friends (easier than it sounds) or running into a one-night stand (honestly, just run the other way), Sophie’s likely encountered it all. Just sit back, relax and let her share the best advice she’s picked up along the way.
What would you suggest to make ourselves stand out to professors to get the most out of our classes and make those connections for after graduation? – Sierra
Sierra,
It’s great that you want to make an impression on your college professors. They’re an awesome (and often underutilized) resource for undergraduate internships, thesis advice and, as you mentioned, post-graduation job connections!
Interacting with college professors can be a bit daunting at first, and it’s definitely a different dynamic than you might’ve had with high school teachers. I was used to calling my high school teachers by their first names, babysitting their kids and scrolling through their tweets, so I was definitely a little apprehensive about connecting with college profs. However, it was surprisingly easy!
The most obvious way to stand out in a lecture, whether there are 12 or 200 students, is to participate! Answer questions, ask questions, mention that relevant, awesome National Geographic documentary on fruit bats that you saw with your parents—anything to get yourself noticed.
Obviously, there’s a difference between participating and being annoying, so make sure you’re not overdoing it (you should be able to gauge this by the number of eye rolls you receive from your fellow students). While we’re on the subject of participation in lectures, it should be self-explanatory that in order to participate in class, you must, in fact, attend class. Surprise, surprise—professors don’t look favorably upon students who miss class after class, so to get on your prof’s good side, make sure you’re not skipping (at least not too often… a girl’s gotta sleep in every now and then!).
One major difference in college is that professors are required to have office hours, or specific hours when they’re scheduled to be in their offices for students to ask questions, go over paper topics or talk about recent grades. If you take nothing else from this article, please remember this: do not underestimate the power of office hours. They are a strange and beautiful thing.
You don’t have to go every day or even every week, but occasional one-on-one time with your professor will help him or her realize that you’re serious and passionate about the subject matter and that you’re mature enough to have a conversation outside of the classroom. Most professors are more than willing to help you with paper topics, read first drafts or go over that tricky econ graph with you; all you have to do is ask!
For extra brownie points, do a bit of research on your prof before office hours so you can bring up that science award he won or the amazing book on gender theory she’s working on. No one hates flattery, and doing your homework shows that you take your prof seriously!
Once you’ve developed a better relationship with your prof, it’s important to keep it going. I found a professor in the English department who specializes in the area of literature that I’m most interested in, and I made a point to keep in touch with her. We get coffee in town about once a semester, I try to stop by her office every now and then if I’m in her building and she’s even agreed to be my thesis adviser! Even if you’re no longer taking a class with him or her, it’s important to maintain communication with any professor who could be a potential networking resource – you can’t get a killer reference letter if you fall off the map!
You’re sure to run into all kinds of professors in college, and some will be more helpful than others in landing your dream job. Make a point of connecting with your favorite professors (and maintaining those connections!), and you’ll be surprised at just how helpful they can be. Happy networking!
