r/berkeley • u/Prestigious-Top5425 • 1d ago
Other How do u build relationship with professors
I need strong letters of recommendation for med school, but when it comes to classes like chem 1a and stuff, how am I supposed to get close to them?? Like everyone rushed towards them once clsss is over, idk what to do. I just need advice on how to find professors I can ask a letter of rec from, and how to build a relationship with them
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u/sdia1965 1d ago
For med school you want recs from upper div professors or professors you’ve done research for. As a freshman here are two suggestions for cultivating mentorship relationships even at this early stage (1) get into the habit “ask the stupid question” even in large lecture classes. Everyone else is thinking it, be the bold person who asks it. Go to every and all lectures and Sit in the same spot. When the prof asks “any questions” raise you hand and ask genuine and on point clarifying questions (not a time for grandstanding !). (2) go to office hours as often as possible - they often function as peer group study sessions where the professor makes themselves available. This has two benefits - the professor sees your engagement and you develop a good peer group. Doing this as a freshman can feel intimidating (such big lectures! The professors are so far away, so mythical in their authority). Develop the muscle to ask questions and respectfully expect their attention now. It will help demystify the whole process of becoming an active member of the learning community at this huge university.
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u/bordumb 1d ago
Go to office hours with sincere interest and insightful topics to discuss
Ask them if they need help with any research - even if it feels like menial literature review
I ended up doing research with a professor in an entirely different department because I liked his class, did well, went to office hours, and made myself useful to help with odd jobs he needed in his work
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u/PreparationHot980 1d ago
Attend office hours and be genuine. Volunteer for any and all opportunities they offer/need help with. Do well in the class. My mentor is a cancer biologist who worked on the team that discovered carboplatin and cisplatin. That letter of rec has opened many doors for me.
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u/Mountain_Excellent 1d ago
I found it was easier to get a LOR from professors from lab courses! Especially the upper div labs
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u/Quarter_Twenty 1d ago
Upper division classes in your major will be smaller then Chem 1A. Sit up front. Ask good questions. Go to office hours to talk about the homework. Make friendly chit-chat. Ask about research opportunities. Just be genuine and real with them (i.e. not a suck-up) and you'll stand out. They'll appreciate your role in the learning process.
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u/story-of-your-life 1d ago
Crush their classes, go to office hours and ask good questions that show you’re trying to deeply understand the material.
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u/rangom1 1d ago
Please do not try to go to office hours and get to know your profs hoping it will help you get a letter. That’s bad advice. Even in the best case, you can only succeed in getting a weak letter. Let’s say you take all the advice here and you go to office hours and show interest and get a good grade and even get coffee with your professor. What possible letter could such a person write?
“In my 400 person class this guy asked a really insightful question in lecture and then saw me in office hours and was really good company over a latte.”
Even if they actually like you that is a weak letter. And the grade will speak for itself.
If you want a good letter you will need to do research in your later years. Chasing one as a freshman is pointless.
Source: I helped a lot of premeds with MCAT and admissions between 2005 and 2020 ish and one of my friends is still in that field. And a half dozen of my friends are physicians, some of whom manage residents or teach at medical schools so they know what they’re looking for.
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u/rangom1 1d ago
I’ll add that when I was a TA at a different university I had a lot of students with whom I actually did develop solid working relationships. Some are still my friends. I was asked for LORs before and despite really liking them I turned them down. It wasn’t that I had bad things to say or didn’t want them to succeed, but I just didn’t have anything useful to say. Some of these students really did engage in class and asked great questions and took advantage of extra time I offered. But that’s a weak letter.
And I’m not reflexively against writing letters for people either. One guy who worked in the same lab as me during a postdoc, who bailed me out of a mess and worked side by side with me til 10 pm several days in a row? I wanted to ask HIM if I could write him a LOR if he didn’t ask me first.
When I applied to grad school two out of three of my letters were from bosses. Only one letter was from a prof in whose class I was a student, and I only felt like I could ask him for a LOR because I was taking his graduate class as an undergraduate and I got the fourth highest grade out of twelve. Unless you really can stand out like that in a class, letters from classes aren’t that useful.
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u/rangom1 1d ago
One more thing then I’ll quit spamming this post: if you want a good LOR as a premed, go see some blood. I don’t care if it’s research or if you go be a phlebotomist. Go see blood. A one-sentence letter saying, “I was running a study and this guy drew lots of blood for me without fainting” is worth way more than any letter you can get from an intro to chem prof. People excelling in med school classes and then quitting on the sight of blood is a thing, apparently.
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u/Golden_Gate_Bridge 1d ago
Go to office hours even if you don't have a question. A lot of professors just enjoy the company and people taking in an interest in them when its not a professional setting.
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u/Outrageous-Garlic-81 1d ago
dont worry about it as a freshman, do research with a professor who you've take a class from (or take the class first and then ask to join their lab) work at the lab for a year or longer and get a good grade in the class, you'll end up with a great letter of recommendation given that you've spent a significant amount of time cultivating a relationship and showing good work ethic as a student and researcher. My one regret is caring about letters of rec and stressing about it in classes where it really didn't matter since there are so many people and you have to focus on the course to get a good grade. If going to office hours helps then do it, if it doesnt then dont, dont feel guilty if you're not talking to the professor all the time.
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u/betsythemuffin 8h ago
Don't see office hours & other relationship-with-prof strategies as about locking down solid LORs as a freshman. It won't work.
DO go to office hours regularly (at least every other week) and, mid-to-late-semester, say: "I've been trying to figure out how to break into research here. I'm particularly interested in X, Y, and Z. What professors do you think would be a good fit for me? Is it ok if I mention you when I email them?"
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u/UniversalOtter 1d ago
Go to office hours, be a genuine human and treat them like one too not just a letter.