Go to the Office Hours!!

Most pre-med students coast through high school. Maybe that’s what makes us think we’re “smart enough” to be physicians? Not having to stay up late studying, not needing to ask questions in class, not needing a tutor, etc. But for some pre-med students, college is a bit more of a struggle. On top of figuring out life and having more responsibility, if you’re pre-med, you’re also super focused on maintaining a strong GPA. And, usually, the coursework is harder than what you experienced in high school. If that’s the case for you, then GONE are the days of not studying and not asking questions…welcome to reality. And let reality find you either with a tutor or in your professors’ office during their posted office hours…or both!

A few weeks into my Freshman year at Duke, I took my first calculus exam. When I tell you I failed that exam, I failed the BOTTOM out of it. I’m a whole doctor now, so I’ll tell you—I made a 32. It was awful. I’d never made an F on anything. Or a D. Or even a C that I can remember now. I cried and cried when I got my grade and had all but decided I needed to pack up and go home. But somewhere between the tears and loading up my car, I realized/remembered that professors have office hours. And more importantly, I realized that that’s where my behind needed to be. So I pulled myself together, swallowed my pride, and made a point that every time that calculus professor was in her office and I wasn’t in another class—I was going to be in her office. And that I did. Most days I got there before she did and would be looking at her like, You’re late Margaret, let’s go! And from the first day I went to her office, my fate (and my grade) in that class changed. 

For many reasons, including those below, I think it’s very important that you show your face in office hours, especially for your BCPM classes.

Get that individual attention!

I was usually the only one in the office with my calculus professor. And while at the beginning that made me feel bad as if the other students didn’t need help but I did, within a few weeks it was just fine with me! I would actually get upset if other people did show up! That was my time! The individual setting gave me the opportunity to ask questions that I may have been embarrassed to ask in front of other students and when it was just the two of us, she was able to go over things several times if I needed it. It was almost like having a personal tutor, except she actually knew what was going to be on the quizzes and tests! Even if you’re not the only one going to the office hours, I still encourage you to go. In my opinion, there’s something about being in that smaller setting that seems to make learning tough subjects even easier. 

Show you care about your grade!

Unless you’re at a super small college in a super small class, your face is likely just one in a sea of other students. If you sit on the front row or if you make a point to ask questions, then maybe the professor knows you by name and maybe they realize that you really care about the class and your grade. But I think you taking the time to show up at their office when you could be kickin it on the quad or sleeping shows that you really care about your studies and want to make a good grade in their class. You don’t have to brown-nose or anything, just show up and act like you want to be there.

Get a leg up on a letter of recommendation!

Organic chemistry proved to me again how important going to office hours can be. I got to know this professor really well because often I was the only one there. We’d share recipes for chocolate chip cookies, talk about our families (mostly her kids), and talk about my desire to be a physician. By the end of that class we were almost friends! Not only did I make an A in the class, but I had an interviewer tell me that they’d never seen a stronger letter of recommendation. We’d developed that strong of a relationship just by me taking the initiative to go to her office hours that when I asked her to write the letter, I already knew it was going to be bomb. I’m sure that I would have never gotten such a strong letter if she didn’t feel personally invested in me because of the time we spent reviewing in her office.

Go even if you know the material!

You don’t have to only go to office hours if you need help. Now you don’t necessarily have to go every day if you understand the material, but you should show your face a few times throughout the semester…to show you care about your grade and to try to develop a relationship with the professor, especially if it’s a BCPM class and you need a letter of recommendation. And maybe you’ll learn something while you’re there and get an even better grade. As are the goal, right?

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Do you have a good excuse for not being in your BCPM professors’ office hours? I’ll answer that for you—NO, no you don’t. Do me a favor and work on incorporating that into your weekly schedule for the rest of the semester. I promise you it will make a difference.