If you can’t determine their relationship status from afar, be bold. After class, walk up to your professor and say something like, “Hi, Professor! I think I saw you and your [girlfriend or boyfriend] at a restaurant last weekend. Was that you?” Hopefully, bluffing will get you some information. If you’re lucky, they’ll give away some valuable clues in their answer. Don’t make assumptions about their sexual orientation. If you’ve determined they are single, try to ask around to make sure they’re even interested in your gender! However, even if your teacher is believed to be straight, remember they can also be bisexual, or their sexual orientation may not be known on campus.
If the professor rejects you, will you be OK? If you know you have to take three more courses with them to get your major, tread carefully. Classes can be even more difficult if you have a strained relationship with your professor. If you successfully seduce them, could a relationship negatively affect your academic future?
Even if you are unable to seduce them, at least you may get an A by paying attention and working hard.
Putting a little extra effort into your appearance can also raise your confidence. If you look poised and self-assured, you’ll look more like an equal.
Don’t stare while making eye contact. If they catch you looking, simply hold their gaze for a little longer than it’s socially comfortable, and smile. If they smile back at you, it’s a good sign!
Don’t come to their office hours every week if you don’t have anything to discuss. However, once you have developed the habit of seeing your professor during their office hours, you may come and just talk for a while about any other topic, not related with school. By this time, they will probably realize you are interested in them. Familiarity can lead to fondness. Simply getting in face time with your professor can lead to them developing feelings.
In your e-mails, stay professional, but a little bit playful. If you’re sending an e-mail at night or during a day off, think of a witty way to justify this. If your professor uses smileys, include a winky face too. Every professor’s boundaries in correspondence are different, and you have to figure out the best way of writing to your teacher. You don’t want to be just another student who sends them boring e-mails every other day. Even if you want to talk to them every day, limit your correspondence unless it’s absolutely clear that your professor wants to speak that much as well. If you overdo it, you will be a nuisance.
By talking about subjects other than class, you can show them that you’re more than simply their student. You’re a three-dimensional person, just like them, and you can start to form a relationship like friends– and hopefully more! Although you can try this technique before or after class, usually professors don’t have much time to hang around and chat. Office hours also provide the luxury of privacy.
Try to think of something small that your professor really needs. Do they constantly borrow pens from students? Get them one. Are they usually tired in class? Offer them a coffee. Do they complain about not having enough time to eat? Bring them a home-made muffin. This way, you can keep the note playful and light. If they ask you about the gift, or even try to give it back to you, don’t shy away. Tell them that you really like them, and you want them to have it.
Not only will this give you more time with them and another opportunity to prove you’re more than just a student, it will also show them that you have similar interests and hobbies. Don’t be a stalker! If you ‘accidentally’ bump into your professor at a concert, you can ask them if they are going to the next one/another concert of a similar band. If they eat lunch at the same place every day, ask them if you can sit with them.
Don’t make a move before the semester has ended. Most professors will not date you before the course has ended because of ethical and professional conflict.
