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Tufts Admissions Team

The Office (Hours)

Mar 02
Jumbo Talk

Alright, it’s time to talk about something super important in college: OFFICE HOURS.  

But never fear!  This phrase need not terrify you any longer!  If you’re like me, the phrase "office hours" incites a lot of anxiety and a bit of curiosity.  Before coming to college, I thought office hours were this daunting task that was necessary whenever you were struggling in a class and felt like this:

Turns out, office hours are not daunting in the slightest, and they serve many purposes besides the one I just mentioned.  AAAAAANNNNDDDDDD….here are all those purposes in a nice, neat list!

Reasons To Go To Office Hours (in no particular order):

  1. You’re struggling in a class 
  2. You want to review the results of an exam or paper
  3. You're having trouble brainstorming paper topics
  4. You want to talk to your professor about majors
  5. You just want to say hello

During my time at Tufts I’ve gone to office hours for all of the things I just listed.  Last semester, all of my professors made office hours mandatory for the first couple weeks of classes, which I loved.  I got to meet my professors in a more casual setting and address any concerns or worries I had about the course.  There’s a slight stigma around office hours; some students (myself included) think that you’re only supposed to go when you’re in danger of failing the course.  But office hours are a relatively easy way for you and your professor to get to know each other, which is great for a comfortable atmosphere in the class.  I actually think it might be better to first visit office hours when you’re doing well in class, because that way your professor sees that you’re eager to learn and want to get the most out of the curriculum.  Making time to visit office hours is also a prime way for your professor to get to know you, which will definitely come in handy when the time comes for you to ask for letters of recommendation.  And when internship applications roll around, you don’t want your professor to say this:

You want them to say this (in more words, of course)!!

So go to office hours!  Discuss your class, the meaning of life, or even the sociological structure of an ancient city with your professor. I guarantee they will love talking to you and having the chance to get to know you.