3 Reasons Why Getting to Know Your Professors is a Great Idea

When you arrive at college, you will be dying to socialize with the rest of your peers. You’ll be looking for the best campus clubs to join and you’ll potentially consider linking with a fraternity in order to meet upperclassmen.

One group of individuals you probably didn’t think about mingling with, however, is your professors. Yes, it may actually be a good idea to get to know the person at the front of the room who talks at you about chemistry for 90 minutes three times a week.

Getting to know your professors can be one of the most important things you do during the first few days of a new semester. Here are three reasons why.

1. The Personal Connection Helps You Study More

When class is simply a seat you plop yourself into three times a week it can be very challenging to motivate yourself to study. As soon as you leave the classroom all you are thinking about is the next party or the dinner you’ve planned with your friends later in the evening.

If you don’t feel much of a connection to the material you need to learn, you’ll never take the time necessary to learn it thoroughly outside of class. Going up to your professors after a lecture and getting to know them is a great solution to this problem.

Once you know your professors personally, class becomes more real. Once you feel a connection to your professors you will feel an obligation to study because doing poorly on a test will feel like letting down a friend. This alone can make studying feel like less of a chore and improve your scores on tests.

2. You Are More Likely To Get The Help You Need

If you have never spoken with your professor before then you are not very likely to do it when you need help halfway through the semester. If you feel you need help at this point you will be more reluctant to get the assistance you need. If, on the other hand, you have been speaking with your professor all semester, it will be very easy to approach them and ask for help.

Perhaps even more importantly, if your professor knows you they will be more able to help you if they see you need it. If all you are is a number in the grade book they won’t think to help you, even when they see your grades slipping. If, however, you have a personal connection, it will be very easy for them to pull you aside and see what they can do to improve your situation.

3. Professors Sometimes ‘Boost’ Their Favorite Students

Getting to know your professor can lead to a major change in your final grade.

Professors don’t increase the grades of students they don’t know, but they have been known to increase the grades of students they are friendly with so long as they feel the student has been putting in considerable effort.

Many students who have been close with their professors have seen their grades bumped from B’s to an A’s simply because they asked their professor for help. If you want this opportunity, (it’s very worth it!) make sure you build a relationship with your professor over the course of the semester.