Dr. Edse

Did you ever have to deal with the Gestapo?

Show me your papers!

Office Hours

“Come in,” he commanded in a heavy German accent, “Have a seat.” I entered and sat down in the chair in front of his sprawling desk. I tried to act casual but inside I felt a sense of awe thinking, ‘This is the first time I’ve ever had a one on one conversation with him.’

Somehow I got up the nerve to see him during his ‘office hours,’ time set aside for students to get extra help. I must have been desperate because, when you need ‘office hours’ help, you’re in deep academic trouble. Generally, my experience with ‘office hours’ at Ohio State goes something like this, “Maybe you need to drop out of engineering and take an easier major.” I remember a girl in my engineering dynamics class. She transferred from Cornell University and complained, “Ohio State is much more difficult. Could see my professors at Cornell any time, but not here, got to go during office hours, and there’s a huge line. And, when I do see the professor, instead of helping me, he says, ‘Have you thought about changing your major, engineering may be too difficult.’ The school of engineering is so crowded they don’t care if you drop out. Wasn’t like that at Cornell, much more personal and caring and nowhere near as crowded.”