I am finally finished with my senior year of classes, except Hebrew. (Again, that is a story for another day). Anyway, graduation is on the horizon as most of you may know. This has gotten me thinking of all of the Professors at the school who have helped me along the way and some of those who haven’t.

First, I would like to talk about my degree. I am lucky to be a part of an amazing Hospitality program here at C of C. I decided on my major during my Freshman year and I never looked back. My sister, on the other hand, is a biology major. I wouldn’t say she regrets choosing her major, but she regrets where she did it. Watching the way I have been taught compared to the way her classes are formatted honestly blows my mind.

It got me to question why some professors act the way they do. I guess this is sort of similar to an article I wrote a year ago, but I still have some things to say about it. I can name over five professors from the business school who have impacted my life. Not only have they influenced the way I look at things, but they have helped me strive for greatness day after day.

If I’m struggling with a course, most of my professors have been helpful. They want me to succeed and they do everything they can to help me reach my goals.

A lot of them have encouraged me more than I could have ever imagined, giving me a sense of confidence I didn't have before. They have helped make me feel capable of doing and being more.

I mean, I am not surprised, it is an insanely successful hospitality program after all. In contrast, Drew can name at least five professors who have put her through absolute hell. For me, that has only been Hebrew (Cue an incredibly disgusted eye roll at the fact that we are required to take four semesters of a language at C of C.)

I know how great and influential professors can be. So, when I have professors or hear stories about them where they do not go out of their way to help students or intentionally make the class incredibly difficult to pass, I get angry. Yes, make us learn and challenge us.

But, don’t make us fail or fear we won’t pass while we continue to go above and beyond. I know some students don’t try. However, for those of us that do, don’t discourage us. Don't count us out because of the people who aren't taking the course seriously. It creates more harm than good.

Also, understand that some students aren't great test takers.

I have struggled for years with test anxiety and I know that I'm not the only one. This should be taken more seriously and exams really shouldn't be the primary form of "testing". For some people, this isn't the best way to test their abilities. Everyone is different and no one learns the same.

Furthermore, Professors can make it hard to grasp a concept and prevent people from truly learning as well as wanting to learn. When students want to know more and are properly engaged, they absorb more.

Finance is one of the hardest classes in the business school. A lot of people fail and have to retake it, but I was lucky enough to get a professor that was excited to see us every morning. He was there whenever we needed help. He ALWAYS had a smile on his face. He taught us what we needed to know and prepared us for what was going to be on our exams. He ensured us not to worry about our grades because his primary focus was all of us learning and carrying that knowledge with us. He knew what he was teaching was difficult and always checked with us during class to ensure we were all on the same page.

I love Charleston, but for the city, my friends and the Beatty School of Business.

If I were a biology major, I would have probably transferred by now. I have to give my sister props for accomplishing what she has. She has been pushed down and felt defeated more times than I can count. On the bright side, she has come out on top, just like we all knew she would (with little to no help from the science department).

Here are a few notes before I end this rant of mine:

As teachers, you are here to teach us, inspire us, influence us and help shape who we will become. Please don’t make it miserable for us to learn about something that is already a difficult subject. Make us want to come to class and learn what we don’t know.

We chose our majors for a reason and I know that every class isn’t interesting, but great professors can still find a way to make it exciting. The best feeling is coming out of a class you thought you’d hate but you end up loving. For me, that was Business Law because I had an unbelievable professor.

All I am trying to say is, build us up, don’t break us down.