Dating advice from your favorite Wake Forest professors

‘As best as one can, don’t be a dick’

Our professors are used to answering tough questions every day, but this time, they got a curve ball.

I set out to ask some of Wake Forest’s most beloved professors, “What kind of dating advice do you have?”

We all know our professors are pearls of wisdom in the classroom, but how smart are they really when it comes to the world of dating?

It turns out, professors have a wealth of knowledge in this area. It’s sometimes hard to believe, but they indeed have a life outside of the classroom. I spoke to professors who have been married for years, professors married to each other, and yes, even some single professors.

Mary Dalton

 Professor of Communication, Film Studies, and Women’s and Gender Studies

(Professor Dalton (’83), in her freshman dorm room in Basement B Johnson when she was a student at Wake Forest

“Dating advice? For Wake Forest students? Nobody dates at Wake Forest! So, I suppose my advice would be to start dating, and to enjoy the process. When I was a freshman at Wake Forest, I  learned quickly that Demon Deacons didn’t date — even back then.”

Dan Cohen

Professor of Practice in Entrepreneurship & Business

“Be yourself–you want someone to like you EXACTLY how you are and not some inauthentic representation of yourself.  If they don’t like you as is, you just saved yourself time and misspent effort. Also, don’t be afraid of asking someone out even if you perceive them to be out of your league. They may think the same of you! If you ask them out and they say no, you have lost nothing. If you ask respectfully and politely and they are not interested,  a rejection will typically be given in a similar fashion.  The message here: don’t be afraid of rejection–ask that person out without fear of failure!”

Nate French

Director of Magnolia Scholars and part-time assistant Professor of Communication

“The first rule is, don’t kiss and tell! Keep your business to yourself. The whole fraternity or sorority doesn’t need to know everything that happened. Also, and this is old man advice, don’t get an apartment together. Everyone is shagging up in the dorms, I’m not talking about that, but don’t permanently move in together. Although this goes without saying, it’s not cool to go to the Pit on a date. As a Wake Forest Alum, I know you just can’t do that!”

William (Billy) Hamilton

Professor in the Department of German and Russian

“It’s been 46 years since I dated… let me try to remember.  In the case of Mrs. Hamilton, all it took was, ‘Would you carry my banjo for me?’  Another good one was,’My roommate is having his girlfriend over tonight and they need to be alone, so could I possibly sleep on your floor?’The concept of dating is nice, but what we’re really talking, though, is how to find the right person for the rest of your life, and, so, in my case with Mrs. Hamilton, ‘Will you carry my banjo?’ was all it took.”

Steven Gunkel

Professor of Sociology

WFU Professors Gunkel and Wahl celebrating their 25th Anniversary by returning to the church they were married in

“Gee, my wife and I met in graduate school. Ana and I still try to have dates even when we’re really busy and have lots of campus commitments.  Sometimes you will see us sharing a moment on the patio area behind ZSR – it might only be for a quick bite or coffee but this gives us a chance to catch-up and share a laugh or two. Find things that you love doing and do them together – Ana and I love to watch college hoops and this always makes for a fun date night. Make time to make your date feel special.  I can remember when Ana and I first started dating that she really appreciated the little things: homemade greeting cards (hey, grad students aren’t exactly rolling in the money!) or dropping by your date’s house with sweet treats and ice cream.”

Adam Dovico

Visiting Clinical Professor of Education

“I don’t know if I have much great dating advice since I’ve been married for a while now, but I guess I would say being honest and yourself is always important.”

Omaar Hena

Professor of English

“As an undergrad at Wake, my sense was that people just didn’t date. I think part of that came from, in terms of heterosexual relationships, different kinds of expectations between men and women in what they are looking for. And I feel divided because on the one hand I want to say don’t even bother dating in undergrad, but I also don’t want to be fatalistic.  I think it’s important to figure out what you’re looking for both for yourself and in a partner, what you like and what you don’t like, what you bring to a relationship and what others bring; it’s important to have those experiences.

“Two pieces of advice: As best as one can,  don’t be a dick. And by that I mean don’t do things that are self-serving and done without the awareness of the consequences of others. Do things that validate others emotional needs. The other piece of advice is to leave people no worse than when you found them if at all possible.”

More
Wake Forest