We love him on E!’s The Soup and now Joel McHale continues to tickle our funny bone as charming but undeniably lazy community college student Jeff Winger on NBC’s Community (Thursdays, 8 p.m.). McHale took a moment between takes to share how we too can get ahead by doing as little work as possible.

SNMag: Your character Jeff is a bit of a slacker but he often manages to get by on his charm. What’s a good way to make a lasting impression on a professor?
Joel McHale: Buy them a laptop.

SNMag: What about charming the sexy co-ed in class – what’s a good opening line?
JM: Are you matriculating right now?


SNMag: For our readers who are not too fond of going to class, got any ideas on how to get others to take notes for you...maybe even “help” you on assignments?
JM: Say that you’ve contracted a very rare, tropical hand disease. And if they ask why you can’t hold a pen but can still hold an Xbox controller, say it’s therapy.

SNMag: Are study groups really just a sneaky way to get others to do the work for you?
JM: If you’re smart, then yes. But if you’re not smart, then the smart people will probably be doing the work for you.

SNMag: What’s a good way to break into a study group? Would you recommend bribes?
JM: Yes – grease them with a twenty.

SNMag: What’s a good tip when it comes to pulling an all-nighter?
JM: Make sure your partner is attractive…and have a bottle of wine handy.


SNMag: If it’s the night before a final and you haven’t studied at all and barely attended lecture, are you basically screwed?
JM: Depends on if your classmates bought your tropical hand disease thing, and if you’ve bought your professor a laptop.

SNMag: Community college can sometimes get a bad wrap. What would you say are the pros of community college over a four-year school?
JM: You’re already accepted!

SNMag: When it comes to getting ahead in college, is it better to be book smart or street smart?
JM: Listen to a book about being street smart.


SNMag: What’s a good college party theme?
JM: An NBC’s Community party theme. Have people dress up as the characters – and make sure you have a 90-year-old present to be Pierce (Chevy Chase).

SNMag: Got a good hangover cure?
JM: Watch the scene in The Hangover when Ken Jeong jumps out of the trunk of the car, naked. That will wake anyone up.

SNMag: What were you like as a college student?
JM: I was a very similar to Jeff – I wasn’t really into college. I tried to get by on doing as little work as possible – I chose a major with the least amount of credits, which was history. Luckily, I liked history, so I was able to actually pay attention in my classes.


SNMag: What was your craziest college experience?
JM: My friends and I set up a bike jump on a huge fountain in our school. We didn’t really realize that the fountain would be more than a pool of water and that inside there were metal sticks and things that could probably kill us.

SNMag: Did you have any professors like Señor Chang?
JM: No, because if any professor tried to pull 1/100th of what Señor Chang does, they’d be arrested.

SNMag: If you could redo your college experience, is there anything you would do differently?
JM: I probably wouldn’t have gone.

SNMag: Got any final go-to tips for our readers when it comes to winning friends and influencing people in the college scene?
JM: Shower, wear a shirt and shoes when appropriate so you’ll be served. Make sure your teeth look okay. Practice good hygiene.

By Tanya Ghahremani