How do you communicate with your professors?

Started by OrangeStorm
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OrangeStorm

Junior Member
15+ Year Member
I am almost done with 2nd year of my college. I hardly find any professors that know me well enough to write me a LOR in the future. First of all, all my science classes are over 150 students. Bascially, there is no interaction between professor and students in the class time. Secondly, I am not very confident to talk to professors. I have to admit it that sometimes I am shy. English is my second language, I am afraid making mistakes in front of professors. And I don't know what I can talk about with them. I got As' in their classes, did pretty well on the exams. Now I am really scared that I will not have strong LORs from professors for applying dental school next year. Can you tell me how you guys get to know the professors and professors get to know you? Thanks in advance.
 
You can try doing research for them, or go to their office hours consistently and do really well in their classes. It'll be hard if you're shy, but you just gotta suck it up and do what you have to. The only thing you have to lose is getting crappy LORs.
 
office hours is a great idea. i took a couple summer courses...smaller and easier so the profs could get to know me.
 
OrangeStorm said:
I am almost done with 2nd year of my college. I hardly find any professors that know me well enough to write me a LOR in the future. First of all, all my science classes are over 150 students. Bascially, there is no interaction between professor and students in the class time. Secondly, I am not very confident to talk to professors. I have to admit it that sometimes I am shy. English is my second language, I am afraid making mistakes in front of professors. And I don't know what I can talk about with them. I got As' in their classes, did pretty well on the exams. Now I am really scared that I will not have strong LORs from professors for applying dental school next year. Can you tell me how you guys get to know the professors and professors get to know you? Thanks in advance.
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Office hours are a great way to get to know your professors. Two of my letter providers won't write letters unless a student attended their office hours.

Also, overcoming shyness, etc. (and language barriers in your case) and making an impression on a professor despite being in a class of 200+ students can be a big part of what LOR are all about. If you are dealing with a perceptive professor he/she will see what you have overcome and hopefully that will impress them that much more. Of course, they are busy people and sometimes you need to bring yourself to their attention.
 
Yellow Snow said:
Office hours are a great way to get to know your professors. Two of my letter providers won't write letters unless a student attended their office hours.

Also, overcoming shyness, etc. (and language barriers in your case) and making an impression on a professor despite being in a class of 200+ students can be a big part of what LOR are all about. If you are dealing with a perceptive professor he/she will see what you have overcome and hopefully that will impress them that much more. Of course, they are busy people and sometimes you need to bring yourself to their attention.
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should i get a letter of recommendation from an english teacher that i know will write a good one for me, or would that be a total waste of time?
 
You could also set up an appointment with them so they can get to know you and write a better letter.
 
English or Speech teachers usually understand ESL students more. They are easier to talk to and would probably write good LOR.
 
professors in large science classes understand all about the letter of recommendation situation. If you do well in their class they will usually write you a good letter whether they know you personally or not. of course letters from professors that can say something about you persoanlly are going to stand out more, but honestly if you have good stats your LOR doesn't have to especially stand out. I too took large science classes of 400+ students and I am much too shy to go talk to profs after class or go to office hours unless i have to. when it came to LOR time i just called them and told them i wanted a lor. they set up an appointment for me to come in and we just chatted, sort of like a mini-interview for them to find out what i was doing, what schools i was interested in, and just get an overall impression of me, and then they wrote a standard lor. there were people before and after me in line to talk to the professor for the same thing. I got into 3 out of 4 schools i applied to (withdrew app from the fourth). Yes, ideally you would have letters from people you knew better, but sometimes at large universities it just can't work out that way for everyone. anyway good luck 🙂
 
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