Dear Lisa

*Dear Lisa,* *I've been rejected by the school I wanted to attend. My backup school, Small Local College, has accepted me, and my parents insist that I start school this fall. I don't want to be so close to home, and they don't have the program I want to study. Can I leave next semester?* *Noht Hapi* Dear Noht, Yes, you can leave next semester, but look carefully at the picture you might present to your schools of choice only one semester completed, no willingness to work through adversity, and you'll be missing out on the majority of the "new student" activities that take place before the fall semester. You'd be better off completing the academic year, getting fantastic grades in your General Education coursework, and applying EARLY as a sophomore transfer. This way, you enter at a time when you get a full introduction to your new school and the way it works, and you show them that you aren't going to jump ship as soon as you encounter an experience that you don't like. *Dear Lisa,* *The semester just started, and I think I am going to have a problem with one of my professors. On the first day of class, I was late because I could not find the room, and he glared at me through the whole session. I tried to apologize after class, and he just brushed me off. Now he won't call on me in class and ignores my questions. I'm angry and frustrated and worried that he will give me low grades because he doesn't like me. I want to write a letter to the President about his attitude. Should I?* *Ann Grier* Dear Ann, You have every right to be angry, but there is a process here that you are overlooking. The first step in dealing with a disagreement with a Professor or Instructor is to speak to them first. If your Professor was rushing to another class, then after class may not have been a good time. Check your syllabus for the Professor's contact information, and set up an appointment to see him in his office. Make sure you show up, and make sure you're ON TIME. If lateness is a pet peeve of his and it is for many people show him that it is not a regular occurrence for you. Show up to the next few sessions a little early, if possible. If after your appointment you still are not happy or have not come up with a resolution, the next person on the ladder is the Department Chair. It is easy to locate this person. Look up the department in the college bulletin, and the first faculty member listed is usually the Chairperson. Make an appointment to see the Chair, and again, don't be late. Explain your situation, and ask for advice. Usually, this will take care of the problem. If it doesn't, or if the Chairperson is also your Professor (whom you have already met with), the next step up the ladder is the Dean of the Division or School. For example, if the Department is English, then the Division or School might be Arts and Sciences or Arts and Humanities. It will depend on how your institution is set up. The Dean will most likely take care of the situation for you, because happy students make the Division look good. In the rare instance that the Professor, Chair, and Dean are all in cahoots, your next step is to see the Provost. The Provost is (usually) the Vice-President of Academic Affairs. This person oversees all the Academic Deans and everyone under them. If a student has a legitimate complaint about a Department or someone in it, that has not been resolved at any of the steps before, then he or she definitely wants to know about it. Getting an appointment with the Provost can be difficult, as they spend quite a bit of time in meetings. However, (at most institutions) they will make time to see you. If there is an Associate Provost, then you should see them. If the Provost/Associate Provost and the others are all best friends (this is NEVER the case), THEN you can write your letter to the President. Make sure you document all meetings with the other faculty members and administrators, and be clear in explaining your situation. If the President does not listen to you transfer. delicious | digg | technorati
Email this page