Professor Career Guide and Counseling

Question: How can I get my professor to understand that I deserve a chance? I asked a professor for a letter of recommendation, but the professor refuses citing the quality of my work as a reason. I understand that my work is mediocre, at best. However, I feel , since I have been a compliant and respectable student ,that I deserve a chance. I do not want to ask for a letter of this kind from someone who does not wish to write it. However, the professors ( due to my major) who are familiar with my work are very few, and I do not know what to do. All the answers have been honest. Thank you all. To clarify a bit ( not that it will change the answers) I never missed class, took work seriously, and got okay grades ( B's mostly ,although I prefer better). The problem is that the professor says that although I do well, I will get in over my head by applying for this university.

Answer: The short answer is that you can't short of changing your ways. You don't specify what this letter of recommendation is for? an employer? graduate school? You have really answered your own question by admitting that your work is mediocre (and you go on to qualify it by saying 'at best'). Professors are a strange bunch (I know - I was a biochemistry professor for 30+ years) and reputation is very important to them. I would never have written a letter of recommendation for anybody unless tI felt they deserved it. In some cases, it puts my reputation on the line (and some people believe that the damaged reputation extends all the way to their department and institution). You mention that because of your major, there are very few professors who are familiar with your work. Since most employers and graduate schools request 3 letters - Are you trying to suggest that there are only 3 professors you can ask? I find that hard to believe. 1. What did the other people you asked say? 2. Is your mediocrity confined to just this professor's class(es)? 3. What does compliant and respectable mean to you? Why should you think that this is enough to give you a chance? One of the problems in your thinking is that you feel you are the decision maker 'I feel, since...., or 'I deserve...." That isn;t the case in reality. My suggestions 1. If the mediocrity is confined to this professor and his classes, do everybody a favour and request a letter from someone else 2. If mediocrity pervades your academic life, pick up the bootstraps and get yourself a few notches above mediocrity, You'll be rewarded in the end. Hey, if you make that change in this professor's class, he may reward the extra effort with a letter. Sorry to be harsh, but I speak from personal experience. I've had to politely decline the requests of many students.

Question: How should I approach the professor if I would like to get into his class and I am on the waitlist? I am a first-year student at a state university, and I have attended two classes from a particular professor who is very difficult to follow (this is a calculus class). I have heard great things about another professor on campus. How should I contact that professor and what should I say if I am currently on the waitlist for his class (the only student) and would like to get in? I know that I am missing assignments, so I just need to know the best way to do this as soon as possible. I plan to go to the lecture tomorrow, as well as his classes. What should I say and should I email him to catch up with the work? Thanks.

Answer: With enthusiasm for his subject, and perhaps an assignment in hand that you have tried to do on your own. ;-) I would be careful about mentioning that the other professor is hard to follow. You may be right, but remember that these people work together. I would focus on the positive things you have heard about his class and if he asks you why you want to drop the other one, keep it upbeat and just reiterate that all your friends say he's the best at explaining calculus and, having been in his classroom for lecture, that you agree with them.

Question: How do I ask a professor for a letter of recommendation? I'm applying for grad school and have a particular professor that knows me fairly well. Several websites suggest not emailing a professor about writing a recommendation, but rather by doing it in person. I am planning on doing distance ed and am not near the professor. Wouldn't emailing them be acceptable? Any other suggestions? Thanks!

Answer: It really depends on the prof's personality. If you think that said person would be ok with it then sure, but the websites you read are correct as a rule of thumb; being personal can make all the difference, that is sometimes.

Question: How should I go about explaining to my professor that I have panic attacks? I don't know how to explain to my professor that I am experiencing severe depression and anxiety attacks, and that this has affected by class attendance. I have scheduled an appointment with him to discuss why I have been absent from class. I am used to explaining physical illments to my professors, but I feel so awkward telling my professor about my mental illness. How should I go about telling my professor about my situation? Would it better to meet him face to face or could I just tell him through e-mail? Will a note from my psychologists help? The course is based on a discussion format. I have done all of the required readings, but everytime I go to this class and several others, I start having horrible panic attacks.

Answer: The only way to do it is straight out. You have NOTHING and I mean Nothing to be embarrassed about. Panic attacks are very common and a manifestation of stress and anxiety. Any professor/tutor worth their salt will not only be understanding and sympathetic but help you out and accomodate you. I started to suffer anxiety and depression with panic during my college days andd I explained to my lecturers,I had to I was missing time. Just do it,tell them. As for panic and anxiety, yoga, meditation,swimming these things help me. Seeing a therapist for cognitive therapy is v good for anxiety, u should see a clinical psycologist.. your doctor will refer u if u ask. EVERYTHING WILL WORK OUT, DONT BE ASHAMED OF SUFFERING ANXIETY ps a note from pyscologist is a good idea

Question: How hard is it to be a professor of computer science? I want to be a professor of computer science. I am in high school, and a top student. I love computer science. Can I be a professor? Is it extreamly difficult? Do many actualy become professors?

Answer: To become a computer science professor at a 2-year college (community, technical, junior colleges), you need at least a masters degree in your field. That's about 6-7 years of college. To teach at a university or 4-year college, you need a PhD - that's 8-12 years of college. Here's a good site that lists current job openings in the field so you can get an idea for who is hiring and what they are looking for. http://www.higheredjobs.com

Question: How many recommendation letters should I ask my professor to write? I am planning on applying to grad school and need letters of recommendations. I don't want to overwhelm my professor with a bunch of letters of recommendation so I wanted to know what is an "average" amount of letters of recommendation for one professor to write. I'm initially thinking around 3-4 letters per professor? I mean: I want to apply to 4 different graduate schools. And each graduate school requires 3 letters of recommendations. So is it ok to ask a professor to write a letter of recommendation for me for all 4 colleges? Or is 4 too many, or does it not matter? Thanks

Answer: Hi, first off, good for you if your marks are such that you are anticipating doing graduate work. Next, don't worry too much about this. We do letters of recommendation for our students all the time and the vast majority of us consider this to be a proper part of our job. Also, once we write a letter for a student, customizing it for multiple destinations doesn't take much more work. But 3 or 4 should be the max to ask someone to write for a quite different reasons. We expect a student to do their homework and decide carefully where they want to do graduate studies. So if you are just sending out applications scatter-gun that actually raises a red flag. The great majority of students for whom I have written letters are applying to ONE program. Two is okay, three acceptable, four is pushing the limit. Good luck.

Question: Can I become a film professor if i earn a masters degree at an exceptional film grad school? Hers my story. I am an aspiring film editor. Film editing has long been my passion. I am planning to attend USC, UCLA, or NYU for grad school to get my masters degree. If I decide to become a professor of film instead of film editing, would a masters degree from one of these schools (three of the top film schools in the world) get me a career as a professor of film at a university?

Answer: Sorry to teach at high school - bachelors community college - masters Universities - a doctrine degree.

Question: How to ask a college professor for a letter of recommendation? Is it also ok to ask a professor you really clicked with but only had for one class? I need 3 for law school, 2 of the professors I've had for a really long time, and have done projects with, one, I had about a year ago for one class.

Answer: You can ask anyone you like to write letters of rec for you. The most important thing to consider though is if the professor has enough of a relationship to speak to your suitablity for law school. Approach the professor and tell him of your plans to apply to law school. Then say, "I was wondering if you would be comfortable writing a recommendation letter for me. I know that I had only one class with you, but I value your input and opinions. How do you feel about writing a letter?" Hopefully, he'll be forthcoming about his feelings about writing the letter and you'll know how to proceed. Good luck to you.

Question: How to persuade the graduate professor to allow me to do a make up paper? I want to know what to do instead of begging. What tools can I use to converse with this professor. The Academic adviser says that it is in the hands of the professor. I was already on reinstatement and another C would dismiss me from the entire school. Please help . Need help.

Answer: The only thing you can do is ask. Apparently you have messed up before and exhausted all of your chances. No easy way out here.

Question: What is the difference between a professor and a regents professor? Just wondering what a "regents professor" solidifies? Is it a rank or an award?

Answer: regents professor (regente) part time professor

Question: What type of professor would be a suitable adviser to both a Paleontologist and an Evolutionary Biologist? I am writing a story and it involves dinosaurs and grad students in Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology. I have a professor character who is an adviser to both and I would like to have some options as to reasonable areas of expertise for this character. Could he be either a Paleontologist or Evolutionary Biologist himself? What about a Geologist? Anything else? The story takes place in the hills/jungles of Peru so I would like to endow the characters with practical traits useful in this environment.

Answer: A geologist wouldn't be appropriate. I would start with the one more appropriate to how your story starts, probably the paleontologist. If you discover they don't have the needed background in evolutionary biology, you and your advisor should get a suitable consultant/collaborator.

Question: Where could a university professor turn in a scholarly research paper relating to the hebrew language? I'm helping a professor out in return for his help with an independent research paper. He's published a number of books and articles but the one on this topic (pertaining to the methods of learning Hebrew in America and in Israel) doesn't seem to fit in in many places. Could anyone advise on a good place for a scholarly research paper such as this to be submitted to?

Answer: I'm not familiar with that specific field, but you might try searching for similar articles on Google Scholar and see where they published.

Question: How do I go about asking my professor for a future recommendation letter? My semester will be ending soon, which means I will no longer be having a class with my professor. I plan on graduating in December 09' which is almost 2 years. I want to ask my professor now if he would be interested in writing me a recommendation letter for graduate school sometime next year. Is it ok to give him a heads-up? How do I go about this?

Answer: Ask now...it's best to get a letter while the professor's memory of you and your performance is fresh, and it's always a good time to give professors as much time as possible to write a letter (they can be infamous about taking ages to write them, despite their best intentions). Make an appointment or attend office hours and just ask. Bring a CV with you, or offer to provide it. If you had to write papers for the class, some professors might want a copy of your paper for reference. Other professors might want a copy of your personal statement (which is a little early for you) or just an informal explanation of your goals in terms of grad school. Just be polite and ask whether your professor would like you to provide any information or materials. It's natural to be nervous, so don't worry. :) I'd also check out your school's system concerning LORs in advance...is there a central filing office that they get sent to, or is your professor going to have to hold on to them, etc. (each school is different...your adviser should be able to help). Also check to see if there's a waiver you need to fill out and provide to the professor (check if your school has a generic one, or check some of the grad school programs you're considering). Many grad schools prefer to receive LORs directly from profs/schools, so it might not be acceptable for you to hold on to the LOR. Good luck!

Question: How do you find professor grading history ? I heard a website displays free professor grades and reviews. Does anyone know the name of that website?

Answer: It is www.studentdude.com It has professor grading histories and professor reviews.

Question: What is the path to becoming a professor? Hi. I am currently applying to Ph.D programs in either Molecular and Cellular Biology or Human Genetics depending on the university. I want to earn a Ph.D so I can become a professor. I feel that I could really enjoy teaching at the college level. However, I really don't know the "track" between Ph.D graduation and being a full professor. What experience is needed? How many years can this take? Any details, stories, or advice would mean a lot. Thanks so much.

Answer: Usually after getting your Ph.D., you either do a post-doc somewhere for a year or if you are lucky, you get a faculty job somewhere as an assistant professor. You then work toward tenure and promotion at that job, which generally takes about 6 or 7 years, after which if you were successful you can become an associate professor. The path from associate to full professor is more variable; some people remain associate professors for the rest of their lives, while other may become full professors as soon as three years after becoming associate professor. It is based more on your publication record than upon time, so if you published very heavily early in your career, it might be a short path, while if you did less research, you may go up for full professor much later, or even never.

Question: How to convince a professor to give you a good mark for your creepy thesis? What are the best ways to polish up your thesis in a way that make them look more professional without having to spend another month on rewriting them? Or what are ways to influence your professor to give you a better mark then you actually deserve? I am male so the short skirt approach is not an option…lol :) Thank you for your help guys. I appreciate it.

Answer: If you think your professor might be gay, try to seduce him and have sex with him. It won't be pretty, but it might get you a good grade.