Let's admit it, passion for a subject only goes so far at eight in the morning. I have fallen asleep in classes that are key to my major because of a combination of a sinfully long line at Starbucks and a lecture of a professor who had an opposite teaching style from my learning style.
But there are also the professors who remind you of why you love your major. These are the professors who postpone tests in order to give everyone their best fighting chance. These are the professors who sneak carbs and coffee into their lectures to boost morale.
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As college students, we love our professors—not just for their fight but for their individuality—and as a freshman, I quickly learned that there were ten types of college professors. I would learn to love all of them.
1. Chill Professor
Chill Professors are the calm in the storm. These are the professors who deal with life's everyday struggles like a champ. Come clicker dying mid-lecture or students missing assignments due to family emergencies, these professors understand that bad days and bad months happen. These are the professors who worked 11 years for a doctorate degree, but tell you to call them by their first name. Chill Professors are synonymous with Friday's and being able to sleep in on your day off.
2. Friend Professor
Friend Professors are basically your temporary, highly educated, new best friend for the semester. These are the professors whose emails also contain a few sentences of pep talk, as in, "You can do this!" or "I believe in you!" These professors take questions mid-sentence and never lose their cool over going the extra few miles or power point slides to make sure that everyone passes the next test. Friend professors are the professors who are comfortable in and out of class, making office hours seem like a casual chat rather than an intimidating process.
3. Goals Professor
If there was a contest for highest achieving professor, this professor would have a home made of gold trophies. The verdict still isn't out on whether or not this type of professor sleeps between their research, teaching lectures, completing their doctorate degree, sponsoring clubs and working on personal hobbies in their spare time. If school wasn't so expensive and the day had more than 24 hours in it, you would want to be this professor, too.
4. Best Professor
These professor's are synonymous with Goals Professors, or are like the children of Chill Professors and Friend Professors. If you find yourself saying, "You're the best, Professor!" you might have a Best Professor in your lecture. This professor counts clicker questions for participation points, takes attendance at the end of class for all those 30-minute late walk-ins and has a healthy belief in curving tests and staying after class to attend to a line of confused students. There's a solidarity in a professor who wants you to succeed.
5. Sibling Professor
This professor reminds you of an older brother or sister. Even though they refer to their undergraduate days as "way back when," they are barely six years older than you. This professor emails you back five minutes later when you emailed them at 3:30 in the morning, can often be found in the same Starbuck's line in the morning as half of the class and makes casual references to their Twitter and Snapchat. Sibling Professors are comfortable to be around, mainly because they could be your long lost brother or sister just from their age and social media preferences.
6. Change-the-World Professor
This professor has the theology, "If the cup's half full, buy some water to fill it all the way." This professor has every degree possible in their field, uses spring break and Christmas break as opportunities for volunteer work and believes in you. If your professor pauses mid-lecture to begin an inspiring speech about how you are the next generation to change this world, your professor is a card-carrying member of the Change-the-World Professor club.
7. Wise Professor
This professor's lectures leave you wanting more. Wise professors have this way of lecturing not only on material, but on life. These professors have either settled into a comfortable life of teaching after a good few decades of adventure in their field, or are still going on adventures and teaching as a side-passion. Either way, wise professors seem to know every nook and cranny of your major and everybody who's an anybody in the major. If you have this professor, they will leave you with a taste of the brilliant documentary that is sure to be made about them one day.
8. Unappreciated Professor
This one's a sad one, but everyone has one professor that doesn't quite get all the credit they deserve. This professor is excited when someone asks a question because they crave the in-class participation that is non-existent in morning classes, classes just after lunch or classes lacking in the "I will surely use this one day" department (cough, any math class for us literary majors, cough). Unappreciated Professor has a stockpile of study guides, articles and pep talks on their university website, and makes references to these resources in class several times over the semester. Unappreciated Professor is a shining example of making lemonade from lemons in life, even if the lemonade is being made at eight in the morning.
9. Online Professor
Online Professors can be mysterious. Although there isn't always a voice or personality to place to this professor, you know that they are there for you if you do not understand the coursework. Online Professors are to the point, but can be both supportive and helpful to try to help you pass the class, despite the many assignments that suffer from procrastination and the fact that online classes can be harder to work on when they're available 24/7.
10. Balanced Professor
This professor most likely has an "Undergraduates are friends, not food!" bumper sticker on their car in a very Nemo-esque style. This professor somehow finds a balance between detailed lecture slides, translating difficult material to the class, occasionally dropping a pun or joke when appropriate and enforcing the syllabus despite the pain of procrastination on coursework. This professor is both a material-wielding, harsh grader, but is also understanding of circumstances and misunderstood concepts. These professors can be strict but kind at the same time, making them a happy medium and allowing you to still maintain your GPA, please and thank you. These professors are the preferred professor because they let you learn and let you live, allowing you to both learn and experience life as every college student should.
