<p>If you have a professor who really helped you figure out your future is it okay to send them an email telling them that your really appreciated them taking the time to talk to you and give you advice? If I was a teacher I think it would be nice to know that I had helped someone figure things out? If I was a professor I think it would be nice to know that not only did my students learn something but I also said something that really helped them. Or is that just me?</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I have a teacher like that, he also wrote me the letter of rec to Rice U. and I got in, so I wrote him a letter expressing my thanks for the letter and for his wisdom/advice, sealed it, and handed it to him. Can't hurt to say thanks, right?</p>
<p>Yeah, I see nothing wrong with it.</p>
<p>I had a professor who really helped me out with my future this past semester. I was also in his office talking to him a lot, whether it was about school or not, so I was able to tell him in person how much I appreciated everything. He'll also be writing me recommendations for summer internships next year.
Write the professor an email, unless you can thank him/her in person. It's always good to keep in contact with a professor- most of them are really cool people to talk to.</p>
<p>They always appreciate those e-mails. You have no idea how many negative/neutral e-mails they get from whiny and disappointed students so anything like this is a special treat for them :)</p>
<p>Of course it's okay!</p>
<p>Sending faculty and staff notes of encouragement and thanks (and I don't mean brown-nosing -- there's a difference) is always a positive thing to do.
They get all kinds of complaints from whiny students, so the occasional "hey, what you told me today was really helpful" or "hey, I wanted you to know that I really appreciate all the time you've spent advising me and how patient you've been with me" can be a great encouragement to them!</p>
<p>the thing about doing this is that the professor might suspect you of being a brown noser just to get a rec letter</p>
<p>I think that really depends on your level of sincerity.</p>
<p>There are subtle, nonverbal cues that give away your true intentions. A professor who is socially in-tune will notice those, but if you are sincere about it and not "trying too hard," I really don't think you have anything to worry about! I personally have that kind of relationship with probably 7 or 8 professors in my major departments but I did not effortfully build those relationships. It's more just been a desire to get to learn from them.
You have to make an effort to learn from your professors and let them grown closer to you, which they will do as they see you as a student eager to learn. If all you do is compliment them, then yes, that's going to seem fishy!</p>
<p>It's certainly OK and a mature thing to do. In regards to being a 'brown noser' I don't think there's any danger of that so long as it's just a simple few sentence thank-you e-mail.</p>
<p>what is it with people in america thinking nice gestures can be percieved as awkward.....<em>sigh</em> where is our society headed</p>
<p>Please go ahead and thank your professor! I know several faculty members who save the notes and submit them when they are being reviewed - for a promotion or tenure, for example. As long as you don't send a gushing thank you and then show up the next week with a request for a reference letter, it will be seen as sincere, and will be much appreciated.</p>