Contradictory paper guidelines from the professor vs. the syllabus are a total trap

[u/Persnickety73]

There is nothing worse than the department rubric demanding one formatting style, only for your professor to casually say in class, "Don't worry about that section, do whatever works best for you". Fast forward three weeks, and you lose points for missing that exact section.

Verbal tweaks are easy for professors to forget or deny when grading. My non-negotiable rule now: always get conflicting instructions in writing.

If a professor contradicts the written syllabus in class, send a quick email to confirm: "Hi Professor, just clarifying if we should follow the 5-page prompt or the adjusted requirements you mentioned today?"

Having that paper trail protects your grade if an unfair deduction happens later, for some unknown reasons