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Demystifying Office Hours

Originally published September 18, 2026

Communicating Office Hours with Students

As the academic year begins, this is a great time to evaluate how you present the purpose of office hours to your students. There may be a presumption that our students understand the purpose of office hours; however, students are often unsure of how best to engage with an instructor’s scheduled office hours effectively let alone aware of why they might attend (Supiano 2023; Franz & Vicker 2026).

As we move through the term, consider reflecting on the purpose of your office hours and how to convey value to your students. Whether students are looking for career or academic mentoring, clarifications and questions about course material, deeper feedback on assignments, continuing discussions from class, or seeking supports for personal issues that may require exceptions to course policies or further university supports, intentional discussions about office hours helps provide clarity and transparency for your students.

Increasing Access

  • Consider what mode of office hours makes sense for each of your classes. How could you evaluate opportunities for flexibility (i.e. recognizing the challenges of coming to in-person office hours) alongside the desire to create space for connection (i.e. offering in-person opportunities for virtual classes)?

  • How will you connect with students who aren’t available during your office hours? Defining opportunities to connect by email along with related response policies (e.g. within 48hrs M-F or email checks at 4pm each weekday) can help shape student expectations and support by setting sustainable boundaries. You may want to invite students to office hours where longer email exchanges could benefit from synchronous engagement. 

Integrating into Course Design

  • Let students know that they can make most effective use of office hours for academic success by practicing activities or skills needed for assessments or reviewing materials for an exam in advance. This allows you to best validate their progress and focus on guidance where it is most needed. 

  • Have you made attending your office hours a requirement for any activities, or assessments such as scaffolded assessment? Scheduling required office hours can be tricky depending on the size of your class and the length of time each student will attend but can support student learning and help you track students progress throughout the term. This can also support students creating connection with instructors.

  • Office hours can be used to create check-ins with group work. This could be to monitor students’ work to ensure they’re on the right track, give the group a chance to discuss any challenges they are having and for the instructor to evaluate group dynamics.

Encouraging Community

  • Explaining to your students what office hours are for can incentivize new or nervous students to connect with you for supports. 

  • Invite students to come in pairs or groups with their prepared questions and ideas. This can lessen feelings of intimidation and welcome students to learn by listening from others in the more informal discussions about course-related topics and materials. 

  • Ensure you are reminding your students of your office hours and how they can use them effectively. Remember, transparency is important and helps to foster community.

However you choose to use your office hours, early and often messaging to your students will alleviate confusion, promote the supports you can provide to students during office hours, normalize students using them and creating comfort with attending. Consult your Collective Agreement about any changes to holding office hours and as always, please reach out to Teaching Excellence and Innovation for any teaching and learning supports you might need.

 

 

 

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