Letters of Rec

[KumquatWrath]

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Hey everyone, I'm new to the forums and had a question on getting letters of recommendation. I'm more of a quiet person, and I don't feel the need to go to professor office hours, which is obviously a problem - but this comes from me not feeling like I have any questions to ask, so I don't know what I should do. Can you guys give me tips on how to build connections with the professors? Thanks!

 

[Hawkteeth]

Hey everyone, I'm new to the forums and had a question on getting letters of recommendation. I'm more of a quiet person, and I don't feel the need to go to professor office hours, which is obviously a problem - but this comes from me not feeling like I have any questions to ask, so I don't know what I should do. Can you guys give me tips on how to build connections with the professors? Thanks!

Just go to office hours. I would go during the first week of class, just to introduce yourself. It may be awkward for you at first but you just have to do it. Then during the semester find some questions to go ask them about. I am the same way, I like to figure things out on my own and never really had a need to go. You will get better letters so definitely do this, consider it like volunteering or some EC that you need to do every other week.

 

[Broncos]

Don't think you "need" to, think you "want" to. Just introduce yourself. Try a couple times and you'll feel more comfortable.

 

[ATG20]

My advice would be to only go to office hours of courses you have a genuine interest in. I went to undergrad with someone who would go to office hours for EVERY professor and TA he had for the sake of getting facetime. Needless to say, the prof's office hour time was usually consumed by this student asking silly questions. It definitely annoys your peers and, I imagine past a certain point, the faculty. Faculty usually don't mind helping students when they demonstrate a sincere interest in the subject matter. Following this method helped me find two easy sources for LORs: 1 professor took me on for research, so he had loads to say. The other became a faculty mentor for a student organization I founded. His philanthropic work coincided with mine, and we've been working together since. It's very easy for him to write a LOR for me now.

A lot of students settle for these mediocre letters where the prof just says 'John Doe was in my class. He got an A. Good chum.' It's beyond easy to establish rapport with a professor. Read up on their research and ask them a few questions. Ask them for advice about grad school. Ask what they think about a current topic related to their field.

I myself was a bit quiet and didn't think office hours were useful to me, but I put the work in to build relationships. A large part of dentistry is relationship building: get used to it now and come out of your shell.

 

[paymaant]

I also dont go to office hours frequently. I get to know a professor by participating in lecture and asking questions before/after class. This way, he will remember your face and write about your enthusiasm in the class. It also doesn't hurt to sit near the front of the lecture hall...Good luck!

 

[laundry]

Start the semester by introducing yourself to the profs, attend office hours, do well on exams...you can't be quite all semester long and then decide to ask someone to tell the world how great you are.