r/AskProfessors

I'm a CS student, and one thing I've been struggling with is how you're actually supposed to develop depth of understanding in university.

In high school (up to Grade 12), we had an entire year to learn a subject. You had time to attend classes, let concepts sink in, revisit them multiple times, and solve enough problems to build intuition.

At university, though, a course lasts around 15 weeks (~ 3 months of teaching and 3 weeks of reading and exams) . By the time you've attended lectures, done the readings, and understood the basic concepts, the next topic is already being taught. I personally found myself struggling to understand the concepts. After understanding a concept, I could not spend too much time practicing, or I would end up sacrificing another subject!

The thing that confuses me is that exam papers often expect a very deep understanding. They don't just test whether you know the material:they expect you to apply concepts in completely new ways, almost as if you've spent hours thinking about the underlying ideas and practicing every possible variation.

I understand that solving lots of problems is part of the answer, but when you're taking 4–5 other equally demanding courses, that seems almost impossible. In my experience, just doing the problem sets and tutorials does not seem enough to build exam technique and necessary intuition .

So my question is: How do professors expect students to develop that level of depth within such a short timeframe? Is there a particular study approach that helps build deep intuition efficiently, or is it simply expected that not everyone will reach that level in every course?

Does anyone know how Starfish notes/flags work in college or professional programs?

I’m a student with strong grades, mostly A’s and B’s, and I put a lot of effort into my coursework. Recently, I became concerned that some faculty may be documenting negative comments about me in Starfish that do not seem reflected in my academic performance or the work I’ve submitted.

I’m trying to understand who can see these notes. Are they only visible to advisors/student support staff, or can multiple professors and program faculty see them too? Could these notes affect things like recommendations, progression in the program, clinical/experiential placements, or applications to another program within the same school?

I’m also wondering what options students have if they believe something written in Starfish is inaccurate or unfair. Is there usually a way to request clarification, respond to the note, or have the record reviewed?

I’m not trying to escalate unnecessarily, but I am concerned about how this could affect me long-term, especially if the comments are subjective and not backed up by grades or formal disciplinary findings.

A professor, I had really motivated me to apply myself. He was very encouraging and very friendly. He has a very convincing nice act that makes him stand out from other professors, but I recently just found out that he has allegations of SA. I stayed with him for a lot of extra time outside of class during the school year and now I’m really freaked out. And I know I’m going to run into him when I go back to college next year so I’m not really sure how to navigate seeing him again because he loves to engage people in conversation.

And I also don’t know if this other person I’m friends with that was in the same class as aware of the allegations because they are old and I don’t know if I should go around telling people? I don’t really know what to do. I’ve never had this happen. And if you’re wondering how I know, I looked him up to get to his rating so that I could write him one and then a few scrolls down was a case where he was accused of SA. Curiosity did get the better of me. I’m also not saying that every accused man is a guilty man, but it is always better to be safe than sorry so I will try my best to not run into him.

Edit: thanks for the comments everyone. I’ll talk to the disability office, but I think the only accommodation I’ll request is being able to reschedule my exam if I am sick on that week. This is something most of my professors agree to with a doctors note, but I would like to just have it agreed to officially I guess.

TLDR I got diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus almost one year ago. I took a year-long leave of absence, and I can’t stomach the idea of taking more time off. I plan to return to university in the fall. I’m a senior and only have to take 2 classes in the fall. Also, I plan to submit my PhD applications in December 2026… then again, I planed to apply in December 2025, but that didn’t happen (a little busy dying).

The meds take months to fully work. I’ve had 9 infusions so far, and I am doing much better. But still not in remission. I’m nervous because i don’t know how much better I will be come September.

Some friends suggested I can request accommodations, but I don’t even know what type of accommodation could help me. Does anyone have some input or suggestions? Much appreciated!

I have a 69.73 in medical terminology that’s my grade after completing the final and a quiz that we had to take on the same day. It was really stressful. I had good grades on all of my assignments and class discussions. My class attendance was 100%. It was literally just tests and quizzes that I struggled with. Are professors allowed to round the grade up to a 70? I was hoping to retake the quiz at least or get an assignment for extra credit. It just feels like I was so close to passing and I don’t want to retake the class.

Dear esteemed professors,

I am an international student. I am completing my masters by summer 2027.

My research interest lies in the area of semiconductor electronics/optoelectronics materials.

I want to do a PhD from abroad, preferrably US, but want to gain significant research experience before applying by doing projects, assist, learn, cotribute and publish under a researcher/professor.

Do Japanese/Taiwanese or European profs allow passed-out students to work under him/her as Research Assistant for long-term projects for a year or so?

If anybody has any knowledge or experience of something like this, please share here. It would mean a lot to me.

I'm an incoming junior and my mom is having me begin to look at colleges online and kinda feel them out. I have asked alumni from different colleges, as well as current students but I haven't asked any professors on their opinions.

Could be multitude of reasons like campus culture, student body, location, funding, resources, rigor, etc. and doesn't have to all come down to prestige; however, if you care mainly about prestige that is fine and please still let me know your thoughts! I'd love to hear from some professors :)

BTW I'm probably going to apply in-state which for me would be Southern California but all over CA works too so any insight on California colleges would be great

my teacher called me at their office because i think that she suspected me of cheating. Im scared that if she would let me answer the exam again or explain it i couldn't answer it fully what should i do

im sorry guys i actually cheated because the exam is very hard the topic is integral calculus and i couldn't memorize the formulas, i only learned the lesson like 40% i could explain a little bit but not fully. Thats why im scared that she will let me answer it again and I will perform bad what should i do.

Hello, I am a final year undergrad student and an independent researcher who is interested in pursuing a masters degree in film and media studies. I mainly write about film, memory and archive. I am struggling to find any research or writing positions that involve film and visual research. If anyone here is working on cool film and media papers and is looking for a research assitant please let me know

She's a keeper of small things and she likes butterflies. Is it weird or cute in your opinion?

Would it creep you out or is it endearing?

This is inspired by a recent post asking about the writing/literacy crisis in colleges. I'm a science major, and one way or another I've ended up reading a significant amount of work written by my peers. The quality of writing by some of them is extremely poor. I hope it is not controversial to say the poorest English writing I have read has come from students who are non-native speakers. What do professors do when they have to grade work by students who try their best, but unfortunately do not have a proper grasp of English? Even science majors have to take at least one non-science writing course by the end of their first year where I go to school. Are grammar and syntax overlooked in certain cases, or do many students struggle and fail in these first-year courses?

So, I've been teaching a summer class since early June due to another instructor having to step away from the class. What's concerning is that was several weeks ago and I haven't gotten my contract yet. In fact, a pay day has passed and because that was the case, I haven't been paid. I have reached out to HR, my chair, and the few names I've been given that might help and they assure me I will get my contract, but given that they seem to have one person who processes contracts and she just got back from vacation yesterday, I am concerned. Doubly so because the school is, of course, not open tomorrow.

I feel like there should be some urgency with this because I brought this issue up last week, when she was on vacation and told to wait until she gets back. I realize it's been a whole two days, but shouldn't contracts for professors actively teaching a class be a priority so that they can get paid? I feel like I'm the only one acting with urgency here or acting like this is the real world where people have bills to pay! Honestly, this makes me want to quit altogether because what other industry will dilly-dally with getting you paid for three god damn weeks?

can a student appeal an already good, but unfair, grade for a group work grade without pissing you guys off?

Grounds for appeal would be solid, not just “I think I should’ve received a better grade”

I am a student and the prof is also my thesis advisor…

Hi Dr. [Last Name],

I hope you had a relaxing vacation! My name is [Name], and I'm an upcoming sophomore at [University] majoring in Medical Anthropology and Exercise and Sport Science.

I came across your lab on the [University] School of Pharmacy website and saw that you were accepting undergraduate interns.

I was particularly drawn to your work on telehealth equity and shared decision-making in cancer care and would love the opportunity to learn more about your research. Although I do not have formal research experience, I believe my background in Medical Anthropology has given me a strong foundation in understanding healthcare experiences from a patient-centered perspective. I would be excited to bring that perspective to your lab while learning from your team and contributing wherever I can.

I would love to be considered for an undergraduate research position in your lab. If there are any openings, I would greatly appreciate the chance to speak with you. I have attached my resume for your reference, and I would be happy to meet at a time that is convenient for you, either in person or virtually.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.

Best,

[Name]

I'm a second-year PhD student in STEM at an R1. My advisor is generally a very kind person, but she does not give compliments (really ever). She can be a little micromanage-y and keeps things from me for long periods of time* We also probably have a cultural/language barrier between us, so I may be misinterpreting her.

She's complimented me twice, once about a presentation unrelated to my research, once about my teaching (despite the fact that she only cares about research). She does not value teaching skills and only values presentation skills as a means to an end.

I've been getting more and more depressed for a lot of reasons (financial, move, research trouble, etc.) but getting only negative feedback constant meetings with her (sometimes multiple times a week) where all she does is tear apart my work) makes it significantly worse. It's gotten to the point where I can't sleep and get physically sick from anxiety. It's impacting my work, and now I can't meet the deadlines she gives me every week, which then makes her micromanage me more and add pressure. I communicated that the frequent meetings were not helpful, but she just said that they were vital because we had an upcoming deadline. Even worse, she's started adding dates when things were "due" to her emails, as if she's started recordkeeping to kick me out. It becomes a positive feedback loop where the anxiety and depression is getting so intense. Whenever she's gone, or we don't have to meet, I'm able to work better.

I communicated that I was depressed to her, and told her the steps I'm taking to fix it, and that I feel like I'm incompetent and incapable of completing the PhD. She said "why do you think you can't do it when you did x work" when "x work" was literally torn to shreds by her. I think maybe that was her way of consoling me.

She also thought it would make me feel better when I submitted something horrible to show me some bad work my labmate (who I am not friends with) did. That just made me feel like she's showing my labmates my horrible work and made submitting to her worse.

She's asking for me to design weekly deliverables on my Gantt chart (which is of course for the whole degree and also daily for the summer). Which is just more work to stress me out and cause progress delays.

I know things are hard for her with cuts to federal funding and she has a young child, but it just makes it harder for me to do work when she puts more pressure on me, especially when she's an already busy person.

I try to distract myself when the anxiety prevents me from working on my current project by applying for funding for other projects, reading papers, side projects, and other productive things, and I think I can do those with high quality. It's just this current project. I think it's because I don't ever receive positive feedback when we meet. My work has been decreasing in quality, so there may just be nothing positive to say.

Since I can't get her to stop micromanaging, is it okay to ask her to compliment my work once in awhile, just so I can build a little bit of confidence back? If so, is there a way to do that? How do I communicate that?

*Taking a job at another university, for example. I actually found out through the grapevine before she could tell me, which left me with a bunch of anxiety about my future. My whole committee knew before me, so I had this really humiliating committee meeting where there was this giant elephant in the room I didn't even know about. She gave me the option to stay or go with her, I went, which I understand is a privilege and I am grateful she did that for me.

I work in structural engineering. I am taking graduate courses, which, so far, all have had exams with essentially unlimited time (with due dates). I’m looking at taking a course or two at another institution as they interest me and are not offered at my current institution. But, the exams are all at set times like your traditional undergraduate exams... I may still audit the courses. But, what‘s the point of timed exams continuing at the graduate level especially for engineering courses? There are already professional licensing exams like the FE, PE and SE and isn’t there also a comprehensive equivalent exam for PhD candidates on the academic side?

Right, hear me out. I’ve got a workplace bully who loves to lord various letters and titles over everyone, and I’ve decided the pettiest possible revenge is to out-title him.

So I’m after ideas. What are the weird and wonderful, semi-legitimate (or gloriously illegitimate) ways a normal person can end up being called “Professor”?

I know about the honorary and visiting stuff at universities, but I’m open to anything. Ordained-minister-style online routes, obscure institutions, foreign academies, buying a square foot of Scottish land and declaring myself Professor of it, whatever you’ve got.

Bonus points for anything that comes with an actual certificate I can frame and hang directly in his eyeline.

Over to you.

I'm planning on enrolling in university courses next year, and I was if there were any way of relearning how to write essays?? I haven't written one since high school which was almost 7 years ago now and I'm self aware enough to realise I wasn't great at writing them back then either lol.

So I guess I'm asking two things.

1. A guide to idiots on how to write an essay.

2. If there's a way for me to be given essay topics and have it graded like an actual paper, just so I can practice and improve before starting uni next year

Any help would be appreciated!!

Hi all! First time poster here. I am interviewing for a community college position in the humanities field next week and am working on a 5-minute teaching demo which will be part of the process. Yes, 5 minutes. Very short, I know. I'm more than prepared for it, but I was wondering what some of y'all who have done this before would suggest as far as advice goes. I'm not going to ask for specific directions of course, just advice. Take care!

I'm interested in becoming an adjunct professor in supply chain management and would love to hear from others who have taken a similar path.

A little about me: I currently work full-time in supply chain management and have about six years of experience in supply chain and leadership roles. I hold a B.S. in Communications, an M.A.A. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology, and I'm currently finishing my MBA while preparing to start a DBA.

Teaching has always been something I've wanted to do. I really enjoy mentoring and sharing knowledge, and adjunct teaching seems like a great way to give back to the profession while staying active in industry.

For those of you who are adjuncts (especially in business or supply chain), I'd love to hear about your experience.

• How did you get your first adjunct position?
• What qualifications or experience helped you the most?
• What do you wish you had known before you started teaching?
• Is there anything you'd recommend I do now to make myself a stronger candidate?

I'd really appreciate any advice, success stories, or even cautionary tales. Thanks in advance!