Have your profs been talking incessantly about a wine and cheese, or other type of event lately that you can attend? Did this make you excited? Or were you a bit more sleepy at the mention, just sitting in a chair and waiting for class to be over?

I’ll be honest: at first, I was neither excited nor disinterested in faculty events such as these. I was intimidated. Looking back now I can’t even remember why I was intimidated, I just know that I was. But don’t do what I did and wait until your fourth year to brave your fear or battle your disinterest, go this year if you can, or make every effort to go next year if your faculty’s event has already passed.

These events are great times to get to know your professors and fellow classmates on a more personal level, rather than the sometimes stiff, formal way you know your profs. It opens you up, and in general gives your profs a better look at who you are as a person, not just as a student. This can be especially helpful if you want to ask your profs for a reference in the future for a job or grad school, or it can just make them easier to talk to if you’re having trouble or want clarification on something that was talked about in class.

You can also get to know other students in your faculty at this time. You may end up having more in common with them than you think, or you can recommend your favourite courses to students who aren’t as far through their degree as you are, or you can gain some wisdom from more experienced students rather than having to learn a hard lesson or find a shortcut or helpful tip yourself.

The bottom line is that it’s only a two hour event, you don’t have to go for the whole two hours if you don’t want to, and it only happens once a year. You should take advantage of it. If for no other reason, than because there’s free alcohol and snacks there.

Republished from The Quill print edition, Volume 107, Issue 26, March 21, 2017.