You will have many different instructors during your undergraduate education at Ohio State. Before starting your studies, it will be helpful to have some understanding of the university structure and the role that these faculty members will play in your educational journey.
Your major at Ohio State belongs to a particular “college” (such as Fisher College of Business, College of Engineering, College of Arts and Sciences…). Within each college, the faculty member at the head of the college is called the “dean.” Each academic department within your assigned college also has a department “chair” – someone who is in charge of the instructors in that department.
Your Instructors
Your instructors at Ohio State could be:
- Tenured or tenure-track professor
- Clinical professor
- Visiting professor
- Senior lecturer
- TA (Teaching Assistant)
A tenured or tenure-track professor is heavily involved in research, may or may not teach all year and has a “terminal” degree (PhD, JD, etc.). A clinical professor teaches most or all of the year, is not typically involved in research, and has a terminal degree. A visiting professor has a tenure-track position at another institution but is temporarily teaching at Ohio State for one term or more. A visiting professor is typically involved in some kind of research at Ohio State and also has a terminal degree. Senior lecturers have an all-teaching focus (no research assignments); they usually have industry experience and many have terminal degrees. Lecturers also have an all-teaching focus and typically have another job in addition to teaching at Ohio State; they often teach just one course for one term and may or may not have terminal degrees. Teaching Assistants (TAs) often teach courses that are coordinated by full professors. They are studying to receive a graduate degree in that field (often a terminal degree) and are often doing cutting-edge research in their field of study.
All of your instructors at Ohio State will play an important role in your undergraduate education regardless of their official designation. While each individual instructor will have his/her own teaching style, in general you might find that instructors take a less formal approach in the classroom than teachers and professors do in your native country. Less formal does not mean less important or less rigorous, instead it means that your instructors are likely to ask you for your opinion in class and expect you to contribute to a class discussion about the subject matter.
Building Relationships
Building a healthy relationship with your instructors can help you have a successful transition to Ohio State and set you on the path to academic success. Here are some tips for establishing a good academic relationship with your faculty and teaching assistants:
- Check your course syllabus for your instructor’s office hours and visit them at least once during the term.
- Have a plan for what you want to accomplish during the office visit and bring a list of questions.
- Meet with your instructor before a big assignment or test is due.
- Be polite!
- Take some time to learn about what led them to teach at Ohio State.
- Be realistic and honest when asking for help and guidance.
Instructors are not official advisors but they can advise you on certain situations that may arise in their class. For example, speak with your instructor (before or instead of an academic advisor) if:
- You are not doing as well as you would like in the class and are thinking about dropping the class.
- You are doing okay in the course but would like to improve your study skills and in turn improve your grades in the class.
- You are having problems with another student in the class.
- You have questions about the course material.
Communicating with Instructors
It is important that you communicate in an open and professional manner with your instructors. This applies to both inside the classroom interactions as well as outside of the classroom correspondence. It is good practice to greet your instructors with “Hello” when arriving to class. Show your instructors respect both by listening attentively during the lecture and actively participating in any classroom discussions. Outside of the classroom, email is the most critical channel of communication at Ohio State. It is the university’s primary way of communicating academic, co-curricular, and other essential information to you. It is your responsibility as a student to set up your Ohio State email account (buckeyemail) properly and to check your Ohio State email frequently (on a daily basis). You should only use your Ohio State email account when emailing your instructors and you should be professional and polite in this communication. Here are some tips for following proper email etiquette:
- Include a greeting (“Dear Instructor,” “Hello Ms. Palmer,” “Greetings Dr. McDonald”) and a closing (“Thank You,” “Regards,” “Respectfully”)
- Include your first and last name in the email.
- Identify what specific class you are emailing about (for example, BUS ADM 1100 that meets on Monday at 8:00).
- Have an appropriate subject line (using the class identifying information as shown in #2 is suggested for the subject line…do not use “Urgent” or “HELP” or “Emergency” as the subject).
- Be concise. If you need to type more than a paragraph (several sentences), the topic deserves an in person conversation, not an email.
- Do not request “reply as soon as you can.”
- Allow your instructor at least 48 business hours to respond to the email. Do not send the same email multiple times in the same day. Remember that instructors (and advisors) are not expected to check and respond to emails outside of work hours.
Photo credit: The U.S. National Archives