You first heard it from your orientation leader: Get to know your professors. One reason is that you can later ask them for letters of recommendation. But aside from providing steppingstones for graduate school and job applications, getting to know your professors is one of the most important ways to take advantage of Brandeis.

One thing that I have come to love about professors at Brandeis is that they are extremely knowledgeable and also, they are generally highly respectful of student ideas. Not only this, but when I meet with professors, they almost always engage me in further analysis.

There are many ways to meet with professors outside of the classroom. I have taken private violin lessons with Prof. Judith Eissenberg (MUS) since my first semester at Brandeis. Because she has taught me for so long, our relationship has become one that reaches far outside the confines of music. Taking lessons is essentially like doing an independent study, which I am doing now with Prof. Lucia Reyes de Deu (COML), who has been extremely encouraging in helping me to write a memoir.

Extra help is another reason to meet with professors outside of class. Even though TAs usually grade papers, speaking directly with the professor can be just as helpful, if not more so.

When I was a first-year, I took a behavioral neuroscience class with Prof. Don Katz (PSYC). As it was a bit overwhelming for me, I would go to his office before exams to discuss the material. His explanations were not only clear and directed towards me personally, but when I had further inquiries about the material he was more than happy to go explain concepts to me beyond the scope of the exam. We would spend almost two hours together, and I found out some other fascinating things about him, including that he is a saxophone player. Learning with Katz not only made me confident about the material, but also happy to have had a conversation with someone who not only loves his work, but loves teaching it. Three years later, when I encounter him on campus, we exchange a quick update on each other's lives, rather than just a fleeting "hello."

But can student-professor relationships get too informal? A New York Times article published on Feb. 21 addresses the issue of e-mail relationships between professors and students. Through e-mail, The Times exposed, students relay quite informal information. For example, one student e-mailed her professor claiming that she "was late for a Monday class because she was recovering from drinking too much at a wild weekend party," and another student even came out of the closet to his professor.

But this informality is not the result of e-mail alone. Often at Brandeis, professors do not mind being called by their first names (my personal guideline is how they sign their e-mails is how I address them). Professors who are concerned about students thinking we are too much their equals should insist that they be called "Professor."

Still, there are plenty of professors who are willing-and even want-to establish close relationships with their students. Some do so by offering advice in topics outside their area of study. This past fall, I was itching to speak Spanish since I had just returned from Argentina, and I was considering going to Mexico after graduation. My fantastic anthropology professor, Javier Urcid (ANTH), is from Mexico, and we met to discuss my future plans. I was excited to speak Spanish with him, and he gave me expert advice in the most personable manner.

There are also some professors that go out of their way to be social with students. Prof. John Plotz (ENG) invites his class to go apple picking, and recently Prof. Aurora Sherman (PSYC) suggested that her social relations class have a makeup session in her house, over dinner.

But, according to The Times, some professors are upset that they are always "on call" via e-mail and that students expect them to answer their inquiries immediately. Yet the article misses an important side of the debate: E-mail is a blessing, not a curse. Students sometimes have pressing questions about assignments, and getting a quick answer from a professor can save a lot of stress, and can ultimately lead to a better grade. As for that student who came out to his professor, if he felt comfortable revealing that information, it only means that the two must have established trust.

People are always more likely to say things in an e-mail that they would not say in person. So for this reason, students should carefully assess all e-mails before they send them, whether to a professor or to anyone else.

If a professor seems open to having a relationship that goes beyond the classroom, you should take advantage of it by visiting them during office hours and stopping to chat when you see them outside of class. If a professor you respect does not seem open to being "friends," you can still do an independent study with him. Professors at Brandeis are virtually always willing to meet with students, and you never know how your conversations with them can influence your opinions, your dreams and your future.