Chapter
Some people, such as instructors, may fill multiple roles at different times in your college career. For example, an instructor of your first-year seminar may be seen as an authority figure who dictates the learning objectives, creates assignments, and evaluates you. That same instructor may become a mentor when you take them again your junior year as you are working on your major or participating in undergraduate research with them. Finally, your instructor can become a friend after you graduate, especially if you have developed a bond with them that transcends the work you did together.
Questions to Consider
- What role will faculty play in my college experience?
- What other kinds of relationships do I need to develop?
Figure 5.4 provides an overview of the types of relationships you will develop in college. If you are aged 18- or 19-years old (often referred to as traditional college student age), you may look forward to expanding your relationship types beyond family and friends and authority figures to classmates (those who are in your classes), peers (those who are in college or near your age and have similar goals and activities), mentors (those who can help you develop skills or goals), and authority figures (those who direct and evaluate your work). If you are older than the traditional college student, you may also find that your circle of friends and colleagues will expand in some areas–and may even contract in others, at least while you are earning a degree.
Because instructors are an important part of the college experience, we will talk first about them and how to develop good relationships with them.
What Instructors Do
Instructors are more than just teachers. This may be a surprise if you think about your experiences with high school teachers where they have their own classroom and a set of responsibilities including leading their classes that they must do between set hours each day of the week. College instructors, by contrast, have much more flexibility and autonomy in their schedules, their workload, and their responsibilities outside of class. Because of these differences, you will want to view them in light of their additional roles and activities. See the table for a breakdown of common responsibilities instructors have.
| Role or Responsibility | Why It Is Helpful for You to Know |
|---|---|
| Teaching | This is an obvious role, but it may be helpful to know that instructors may be more focused on providing you with the latest knowledge in their field rather than the most innovative learning activity. You will be responsible for learning the material. |
| Researching | Many instructors conduct original research as part of their job responsibilities. In some cases, they may focus most of their time on research. This may be helpful to know because you may want to consider participating in research with a instructor as part of your college experience. |
| Writing and Presenting | When instructors do research, they oft