Do You Have The Time? How Deal With Professors Who Don’t Dismiss Class

We've all had to sit through a class or two that goes on longer than the official time block scheduled in the student catalogue. There are always a few students who didn't follow along exactly and need to ask questions that unnecessarily waste everyone's time. There is always that one professor who doesn't have a watch and tends to ramble on. There's always that one classroom with a broken clock telling the wrong time on the back wall. So what about those of you who haven't had this happen yet? How will you deal with it?

Take our advice. We've dealt successfully with these situations before, so don't fret too much. You have plenty of options. Depending on the atmosphere of the classroom, on whether or not it's an easy-going class, you could simply raise your hand as suggest that the class dismiss, letting the students who needed to stay have one on one time with the professor. Or, if that would cause discomfort, you could always sit through it and talk to the professor afterward and let him know that you need to get to a class right after his. This is a great strategy because it avoids confrontation and shows the professor that you still care about his class, but have other responsibilities. He or she will appreciate the honesty, most likely.

If the problem persists, you could try to place yourself near to an exit door so that you can make your escape should the need arise. You might consider letting your professor know that you just absolutely cannot stay longer than necessary, but again, get a feel for your professor's mood before bringing that up. Ideally, you can get out of the classroom without causing too much of a distraction.

At the worst, you might have to drop the class, though it should rarely come to this. If professors continually hold classes over, you can also consider talking to someone in the department that oversees their courses, and the department can speak with them. However, as with all your interactions with professors, be as respectful as you can.