E. Talk with Your Professors

One of the advantages of being at a small school like Northwestern is that the professors are more accessible to students. Professors here expect students to ask questions in class or immediately following the class. They expect students to contact or meet with them if the student is having problems in the class. All professors have office hours scheduled for the purpose of meeting with students. If you are not doing well in a class and you do not see the professor to discuss the situation, the professor is likely to assume that you are not really interested in the class. In other words, most professors may have a negative, or at best, an indifferent evaluation of a student who never raises a question or challenges in the class, or who does not visit the professor outside of the class to discuss academic difficulties he or she is experiencing. If you are having difficulties, do not wait until late in the semester to talk to the professor.