Communicating with professors can feel intimidating, but it shouldn’t be and doesn’t have to be.  You have a professional relationship with your professor.  Going to office hours is a great way to connect with your professor, get questions answered, and to let them know you are serious about succeeding in their class.  Your job is to get the most out of the class as you can, and office hours are a great way to do this.  Building a professional relationship could open the door for opportunities to do research or internships.  Learning to talk to your professors is a valuable skill that will serve you well in college, but it will also help you when you go on the job market.

First off, the purpose of office hours is to get clarifying questions answers.

You can really impress your professor if you ask the right questions.  You want to demonstrate that you have done the work.

Building connections during office hours can lead to research opportunities or internships.

If you want to go to office hours, you should:

• Make an appointment and let professor know why.
• Have your questions ready!
  • If you can’t identify what is causing the problem or what you have a question about, then you haven’t done enough work yet.
• Have a list of what you have done/tried.
  • If you don’t have this ready and the professor asks, which they most likely will, you lose your confidence.
  • What resources have you used.
  • What you have done to try to solve this problem.

You want to demonstrate that you have tried to solve the problem.  That’s what problem solvers do and that is one of the main skills you will learn in college.  So, don’t be frustrated.  It is an opportunity!

Office hours are NOT FOR:

Getting information you missed when you were out of class.  If you missed class, you need to get the notes from a classmate.  You need to have gotten the notes, read the chapter and attempted the homework before you go to office hours to ask questions.  The professor will not reteach the information that you missed. 

Professors are not therapists.

You can tell us what is going on in your life but don’t expect them to provide solutions.  Most are not trained to give advice or provide therapy.  Please don’t ask your professor to give you advice outside of the class you are there to discuss.  Also, know that professors are required by law to disclose certain information.  They are not considered a confidential resource in many states.  I once had a student who told me she had been raped by a member of the class she was in.  This was something that I had to report.

Professors are not miracle workers, even though we wish we were!  Please don’t expect us to make exceptions for you without proper documentation.  We are working hard to make the course fair for all parties.  Professors can’t undo the fact that you didn’t adequately prepare, do the required assignment, prepare properly for the exam, etc.

So please don’t ask us to work miracles for you.  Remember, we assign grades based on performance, not perceived effort.  You can do the work.  Demonstrate your knowledge and you’ll do great!

Conclusion

Learning to use office hours is such an effective skill.  Learning to talk to your professors is a valuable skill that will serve you well in college, but it will also help you when you go on the job market.

You need to be prepared before you go to office hours so that you can ask specific questions.  Follow the steps outlined here to maximize your success.  And if it doesn’t go well the first time, don’t sweat it.  You can try again!

Have you ever gone to office hours, and it was a disaster?  It happens.  Keep showing up!