Get to Know Your Instructors

Interactions with instructors impact your academic achievement! Research shows that college students' formal and informal interactions with instructors inside and outside the classroom have a positive impact on personal growth, academic achievement, and goal completion.

Here are some tips to keep in mind:

• Introduce yourself early in the semester.
• Ask questions.
• Arrive to class early or stay afterward to talk with the instructor, if that is possible.
• Participate in office hours.
• Ask about material that you’re curious about, not only what you’re not sure you understand.
• Ask your instructor about their areas of interest and scholarship.
• Arrange an independent study experience.
• By the middle of the semester, ask yourself: Do all of my instructors know who I am? Do I feel that my instructors care about me as a person? Have I developed a mentor/mentee relationship with one or more of my instructors?

Adapted from Student Guide to Creating a Successful College Experience (Gallup-Purdue Index)