How can I deal with a professor who refuses to communicate? Required information: Germany, maths, and undergraduate
Situation: In order to finish my undergraduate degree, I have to do one final oral exam with two professors (A &amp; B). However, A and B refuse to communicate directly with each other and use me to communicate. The first exam was &quot;postponed&quot; indefinitely due to pandemic and now I have to organize a new one.
Problem: Professor A is very odd. He does not use email. He does not answer his phone (I was told to call him by the exam office and professor B) and now with only online learning, I had to communicate with A using text messages.
I asked him for available exam dates and he replied with a &quot;yes&quot; and nothing else. He then ignored my other messages. The examination office said if both A and B agree, I can do each part separately. Of course the B replied immediately with a yes. A did not reply at all.
Should I try to reach out to other professors or the dean? I have to do this exam to graduate so I can start my graduate studies, but I do not want escalate the situation.
Given the reluctance of anyone else to communicate with Prof A, it seems less a case of you not knowing the secret handshake to get in touch with him, but more a case of Prof A simply not communicating. It is unlikely that anyone (including the dean) can make him communicate in a reasonable way.
What you need to do is to make sure that the path-of-least-resistance for your department is something that ends with you graduating very soon. My guess is that the best bet for that would be to get someone else to examine you. The &quot;Vorsitzende(r) des Pruefungsausschuss&quot; should be able to authorize such a thing. Phrase it as &quot;Prof A is unavailable for examinations&quot;, not as &quot;I failed to get in touch with him&quot;. If they claim that Prof A is available, ask them to demonstrate by telling you the date for the exam. Be polite but persistent.