University is a place where students learn many things. And one thing you’ll learn is that lecturers are ordinary humans just like everybody else. They might seem like pillars of wisdom with their chic blazers, polished shoes and fancy PowerPoint presentations, but deep down they are just as stressed and tired as the students they teach.

You will come across many different kinds of lecturers at your time at University, some you will like, some not so much. Here at seven types of University lecturer that you might recognise.

1. The Technophobes

These lecturers are perhaps one of the most frustrating. How can someone with a PhD have no idea how to get a video to play with the volume on? Why do they not know how to connect to the Wi-Fi at the place they’ve been working at for ten years? And why, oh why, do they still search for Google in the Google Chrome search bar?

Most baffling of all, not all of this type of lecturer will be of a certain age; even youth is not a barrier to becoming a computer-illiterate professor. It’ll frustrate you, but you’ll most likely feel too awkward to volunteer to go up and fix their incredibly simple tech problem, so you’ll just have to grin and bear it.

2. The Read-From-the-PowerPoint

PowerPoints are a great tool in the lecturer’s toolbelt. They structure the lecture, provide visual aids and allow students who aren’t paying attention to follow what’s going on. However, you will undoubtedly come across lecturers who love regurgitating the text on the PowerPoint for an hour, never straying from the script or trying to elaborate on any points.

In lectures like these, you’ll wonder why you didn’t just stay in bed and read through the PowerPoint yourself in your spare time.

3. The Outrageous One

Every so often, you will come across a lecturer that makes you think: “Can they say that?” every time you go to one of their lectures. Whether they can or cannot, they’re going to do it, because they’re the outrageous lecturer and they play by their own rules.

Whether it’s cancelling lectures at the last minute, turning up to their class in pyjamas because they didn’t want to get dressed or just sending out incredibly brash emails calling out University rules and regulations they disagree with; these lecturers don’t seem to care!

Chances are, they’ve worked at their University for decades and will never be fired no matter what, so they don’t fear repercussions.

4. The Comedian

Sometimes you might wonder if your lecturer had big dreams of Live at the Apollo back in the day, they’re always cracking jokes, pulling out puns and maybe even dropping a few impressions to try and make their students laugh. They’ll try to incorporate funny images and videos into their PowerPoints, sometimes even if it isn’t relevant to what you’re learning about.

These lecturers will always try to use humour to help teach, and sometimes these techniques are the most effective at helping you learn.

5. The Tangent

These lecturers love their subject; there’s no doubt about that. But sometimes they just love it so much that they may keep talking, even if what they’re saying isn’t relevant to what you’re supposed to be learning about in that lecture. Or they may even just talk about what’s going on in their lives, regardless of whether it’s related to your subject or not.

You may end up having to do extra reading to make sure you’re absorbing all the material that you’re missing out on when their tangents run down the class time. But regardless, their tangents are likely to be quite interesting.

6. The Harsh Marker

You’ll soon learn who the harsh marker is in your department, and you’ll pray every single time you hand in an essay that it’s not them who gets their hands on it. These lecturers are ruthless, they want perfection from their students and won’t accept anything less. They won’t accept excuses or be willing to hand out extensions at the drop of a hat, so make sure you turn up to their lectures and pay attention to their marking guidelines.

You’ll know which lecturer is a harsh marker as they’re likely to pick on the students in their lectures who don’t look like they’re paying attention.

7. The Favourite

There always seems to be one lecturer in each department who is beloved by the students; the one everyone hopes to be taught by each year and feels crushed if they discover they haven’t made it into their class.

This lecturer is often passionate about their subject, but not in a way that is alienating; they’re super laid back, not minding how good your attendance is, and perhaps most importantly of all, they’re just cool. This lecturer is the one you could see yourself having a pint with, the one you can go to for a chat with about your essay concerns and you’ll leave that meeting feeling completely at ease and reassured. These lecturers are rare so if you find one, make sure you make the most of their help.

There we have it, seven stereotypical lecturers you’ll meet at University. Did these ring true for any of your lecturers? We hope you’re settling well into University life, and if you’re thinking about your accommodation for next year, check out our extensive range of student accommodation in Lancaster.