Dr. Neil Hair

Week 10, you blink and the quarter is over. Maybe it's the early darkness thats got me all reflective, maybe it's worried students that the end is near and projects are due for clients but it's around week 10 that I always start to think about the quarter system and how quickly things are over. I'm blessed this Fall with two cracking classes that seem energized and are performing well. Just when you're getting to know them and seeing things develop – it's all over. Let me share a perspective on the quarter system with you from the other side… please feel free to contribute.

The pros of this system are evident from an instructors perspective; its fast moving, you dont get bored because you dont have time to get bored. It's extremely intensive which always makes for interesting teaching. Fresh set of faces and minds every 12/13 weeks (or, perhaps more minds to torment), and fresh sets of clients to work with. The winter months of Rochester life go VERY quickly when youre teaching two classes.

The cons though are also there from a personal perspective. Fall is a wonderful time to be in Rochester, you blink, and the trees are bare, you pass crying brass monkeys, and 5pm seems just too early for it to be dark – Ive missed Fall this year and I did last year too. In the classroom its no different, just as you're getting to really know students, and they each other, it's all over and you and they have to move on. I'm lucky in that about 20% of my students tend to go on and sit a further class with me – it used to be better and I make no apology for asking students to sit further classes with me. Back in 1999 I taught 5 different classes, Buyer Behavior, International Marketing, Internet Marketing (UG), Principles of Marketing, and Internet Marketing grad. I was fortunate to have many of my marketing students go on and take further classes, about 50% of each class was a returning student and one or two of them (Irene, Mark) went on and sat all 4 or 5. You really got to know students, see them develop their skills and form strong professional relationships with them.

Of course 5 courses and 5 different preps will ruin a research oriented academic's career so a balance is required and I'm not complaining with fewer preps. Thankfully I think the fewer classes I teach the more I can manage this balance of teaching and research although it's no cake walk. From a research stand point it's difficult to focus in on writing papers and conducting new studies when you've sets of papers to mark in week 4,5,7,8 and then again in week 11. Managing the demands of what your heart tells you (teach well) and your head tells you (research well) isnt easy.

I'll miss my cheery Internet Marketing and Marketing Concepts crew. Crew… how MTV. Enough of all this introspection, off back to my Crib in my pimped up ride. Good luck with the final client projects next week guys. You'll be missed. A little.