Dr. Kassabian's Advice on Getting Along With Your Professors -- Virtually Advising

Dr. Kassabian's Advice on Getting Along With Your Professors:

When you have a problem of any kind and need to deal with a faculty member or TA, remember that we're like any other employees - as are you. We have too much to do and never enough time to do it in. We have bosses that want us to do things we don't like. We don't make all the rules. So think of ways to approach your faculty with empathy in your heart.

You remember that old advice about imagining people with their pants down when you're nervous? Well, think of us grocery shopping, house cleaning, gardening, doing homework with our kids, arguing with our spouses, worrying about our mothers. If you're intimidated by an instructor, that should help humanize him. If you're angry at a faculty member, perhaps it'll help you see things from her perspective. (But be sure to keep your empathy inside - many faculty prefer to wear the mantle of authority, and don't like being openly treated as equals.)

How you approach someone makes all the difference in the world - you know this from your social relationships. This tip is simply a suggestion that you extend that insight to your dealings with faculty as well. If you come into the conversation with an open attitude, chances are good that you'll find the same sentiment across the desk.

—Anahid Kassabian, Chief Advisor