Hello,
I met with my undergraduate adviser in the department of my major a couple of times,the few times we encountered each other it always seemed to end up awkward. Do you have any advice on how to help lessen or perhaps even eliminate this awkwardness or at least try to work towards a better and more positive student-adviser relationship. Or is the awkwardness maybe a normal phase like breaking into new shoes? Thank you for your time.
And by the way,have your Spring Vacation went/is going/or will go wonderful and well.
Get to know them better. Stop being strangers and atleast be acquaintances. Maybe go out for lunch on day.
Eh, I mean, it doesn’t really matter if it’s awkward so long as you find your encounters to be productive and helpful. If you get your questions answered then who cares if there’s a couple of momentary silences and nervous laughter.
I guess I’m looking it at the long term,for instance it’d be really convenient if I got into the Master Program where I did my undergraduate. And I would like to have him as a reference and perhaps even a friend.
Also, saying “hi” once and awhile could do wonders.
They are just there to make sure you are still alive. If you have problems you should talk to your professors. And I mean as soon as you have problems. If you need something else see the counseling center.
I’m confused; why wouldn’t you use professors as references? In my experience, (or at least, at my school) people meet with their advisors just once or twice a semester. In fact, at my University’s honors college, our advisors are changed every semester. I have a new advisor now than I did last fall. You see your professor far more frequently, they know you a lot better, you can speak to them at office hours, etc - plus you can take more than one class with them which extends your relationship even further.
Agree that it may be more meaningful to have your professors as references (or supervisors you’ve worked with outside of class), rather than your advisor as a reference. It’s always nice to have a good relationship with your advisor, but it’s not quite like high school where your guidance counselor has to submit a school letter.
How does it end up awkward? Is it just that you both don’t know how to end the meeting? Or is it something else? Things are only awkward if you let them be awkward. Act like everything’s normal and it will be. It could be that your advisor is just a generally awkward person. Do you know other students who have met with them?