i need some help with LORs

[sunnex3]

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i'm currently a sophomore at Penn, as as we all know, at large universities like Penn, all your intro science classes pretty much until end of junior year/starting in senior year, classes are 100+ people.

my question is how do i go about knowing professors well enough to ask them for recommendations? it's especially difficult because you have to make yourself stand out among the hundreds of students the professor has.

i'm mainly concerned when getting LORs from a professor who has TAUGHT me.
currently, my boss, who is a VMD and PhD and a tenured professor at the Penn med school, can write me a LOR as a "faculty member" in science, according to Dean Keiter, since he can evauluate me against other students.

i'm also planning on doing an independent study Biology research credit for my major, and that requires an advisor and i'm thinking of asking my molecular bio/genetics professor of one of my classes right now to be my sponsor.

i'm just looking for some good tips on getting to know your professor better when there are many students that they are currently teaching.

 

[DVMorBust]

Sit in front of the class, every time. Make eye contact with the professor, don't just stare at what they're referring to.

The majority of the time, doing this creates a connection - and develops into an exchange before or after class, which progressed to conversations, which can turn into positions in labs and letters of recommendation.

Office hours are also a great way to get to know professors, but I always felt odd about making something up to go ask them.

 

[absvet]

I found the profs of those classes are pretty used to this situation anyway, and willing to help even if they don't know you all that well. I was in the same situation as you, and I just picked a professor who seemed nice and I did really really well in his class. I set up an appointment with him, brought my resume, talked about my goals and he was more than happy to write me a letter. Sure, he wasn't able to say that much about me as a person, but he talked to my lab TA, so between that and my performance in his class he was able to recommend me for my academic skills, and I relied on other letters to get to the other stuff. So, try to get to know them as well as you can, but I'd bet you will find them willing to help anyway, as long as you do extremely well in their class.

 

[DVMorBust]

he was able to recommend me for my academic skills, and I relied on other letters to get to the other stuff.

Very good point. You don't want each letter to say the same stuff about you, and a professor who teaches a class is the best option to speak about your academic proficiency, so they don't need to know you in the same way as someone speaking about mainly other things.

 

[GenghisCohen]

I found that taking small seminar classes was very helpful for developing personal relationships with my professors. That way you're in a setting where they can get to know you, but in an academic context. Since you're expected to discuss the material, they'll know much more about your grasp of it beyond being able to pass the final.

I was also active in several clubs, and when we had events that needed faculty members I would invite the professors I had/ wanted to have relationships with. It's a great way for them to get to know you outside of class, and provides an opportunity for them to see your leadeship skills and evaluate you more as a whole person.

And, if it's something you feel comfortable with, you can always invite your professors to socialize outside of class. I had a few professors who liked to go out for beer and pizza after class, or would show up for free-all you-can-eat taco night at the local bar.