How early to contact potential advisors?

[SocHope]

This is mainly a question for those who don't have an established relationship with the professors they are interested in working with.

I was planning to start contacting professors July or so (my rationale being I didn't want to email them too early while they were busy with the current crop of admits). Anyone have different opinions?

Related, how much do you tell about yourself in the introductory email? I was going to keep it to one paragraph, explaining my academic background, relevant work experience, and research interests (and how it relates to their work). I wasn't planning on going into details about my GPA, GRE scores, or coursework. I figure if they're interested enough, they'll ask. And I suppose the very first email is to suss out whether or not they're even taking on students (I dread the one-line reply "I am not currently taking on new advisees").

Also, etiquette on contacting multiple professors within the same program? A few of the schools I'm looking at have multiple professors who do work I'm interested in. Is it generally ok to contact all of them and see who is/isn't taking on new students?

Any other advice on contacting potential advisors is welcome. Also, any horror stories to share?

[neuropsych76]

This is mainly a question for those who don't have an established relationship with the professors they are interested in working with.

I was planning to start contacting professors July or so (my rationale being I didn't want to email them too early while they were busy with the current crop of admits). Anyone have different opinions?

Related, how much do you tell about yourself in the introductory email? I was going to keep it to one paragraph, explaining my academic background, relevant work experience, and research interests (and how it relates to their work). I wasn't planning on going into details about my GPA, GRE scores, or coursework. I figure if they're interested enough, they'll ask. And I suppose the very first email is to suss out whether or not they're even taking on students (I dread the one-line reply "I am not currently taking on new advisees").

Also, etiquette on contacting multiple professors within the same program? A few of the schools I'm looking at have multiple professors who do work I'm interested in. Is it generally ok to contact all of them and see who is/isn't taking on new students?

Any other advice on contacting potential advisors is welcome. Also, any horror stories to share?

Emailing professors is pretty hit or miss. Some never email back, some give you a prompt yes/no i'm taking students, some actually want to talk on the phone. Your introductory email seems fine though.

July is way too early to start emailing POI's. Some professors won't even know if they are taking a student until this fall. I know it sucks to wait but August or even September are better times to email them.

[GardeningGrad]

I agree with NeuroPsych... June is too early for a 2012 applicant to contact professors. I visited my top school in August 2010 - and that was far too early for professors to even think about 2011 applicants. When I communicated in May - before the end of the school year/summer, but with the application deadline in focus - I got better responses.

I'd suggest searching on the forums for other conversations happening about how to communicate with professors.

[SocHope]

I agree with NeuroPsych... June is too early for a 2012 applicant to contact professors. I visited my top school in August 2010 - and that was far too early for professors to even think about 2011 applicants. When I communicated in May - before the end of the school year/summer, but with the application deadline in focus - I got better responses.

I'd suggest searching on the forums for other conversations happening about how to communicate with professors.

Hm, I guess I'm a little confused by your timeline. Why would June be too early but May be ok? Or are you saying contact people May of the year I would be entering? For example, if I apply fall 2011 for admission in fall 2012, I would start contacting people in May 2012? Most of the application deadlines for the schools I am planning to apply for are in December, and I always thought it was good practice to speak to potential advisors before applying, or at least during the application cycle, rather than after.

Thanks for the replies!

[GardeningGrad]

Hm, I guess I'm a little confused by your timeline. Why would June be too early but May be ok? Or are you saying contact people May of the year I would be entering? For example, if I apply fall 2011 for admission in fall 2012, I would start contacting people in May 2012? Most of the application deadlines for the schools I am planning to apply for are in December, and I always thought it was good practice to speak to potential advisors before applying, or at least during the application cycle, rather than after.

Thanks for the replies!

ah, sorry - I may've misunderstood your timeline. You're right - since you're applying in December 2011 for entry in August 2012, you can - and definintely should - go ahead and contact profs. I found it tricky to pin down profs over the summer. Like Neuropsych said, maybe wait until the newest cohort starts school in August 2011 to contact potential professors? Good luck with the application process!

[socspice]

I think it'd be best to wait until you've been accepted by a program to start contacting people. Then you have something to actually talk about, and it can help inform your decision (plus, the prof has a reason to talk to you at that point, rather than just ignore or be rude to you, which is really common before you've even applied).

[GardeningGrad]

I think it'd be best to wait until you've been accepted by a program to start contacting people. Then you have something to actually talk about, and it can help inform your decision (plus, the prof has a reason to talk to you at that point, rather than just ignore or be rude to you, which is really common before you've even applied).

Hmm... I see your point, but I disagree. Contacting interesting professors in my potential department may have given me advocates in the admissions process. A few profs were excited about my research interests, so they vouched for me to people who Make the Decision.

[SocHope]

Contacting interesting professors in my potential department may have given me advocates in the admissions process. A few profs were excited about my research interests, so they vouched for me to people who Make the Decision.

That's generally what I've heard/read too. Example, from the UNC website (http://sociology.unc.edu/programs/prospect_grad/faq), emphasis added by me:

"Should I contact individual faculty members with whom I might be interested in working? Will this help my chances of admission?

A good mentoring relationship is one of the keys to success in graduate school. However, it may be hard to tell which faculty member will make the difference in your graduate career. We do recommend that you apply to schools that have multiple faculty members with whom you might work, and several areas of interest to you. We do not recommend making decisions based on program ranking alone. You are welcome to contact faculty members directly, from their contact information in the listing on the departmental web site (http://sociology.unc.edu/directory/faculty). Gauging their interest in your areas of interest may be useful as you make your own decisions. Although individual faculty members do not pick their own students, our admissions committee does consult with individual faculty as we make our decisions, and the feedback from them is one of the factors we consider."

I realize that's not exactly saying one must contact faculty, but I don't think it particularly hurts, unless for some reason the faculty you contact take an immediate dislike to you based on your initial email (I'm sure it's happened before). My own personal suspicion is that with budget cuts and increasing despair over the tight academic market, many of the professors I am interested in working with, and which the graduate committee might identify assign as my advisor anyway, might not be taking students. It's better to figure that out from the get-go, I think, rather than spend the money applying to that program. I guess there is the off-chance that I might still be admitted and assigned to another professor whom I didn't identify as being a good match. But I think even initial contact with faculty that might be good fits could yield that kind of information - like someone saying "I'm not taking new students but so-and-so is and they do similar research" or something.

I hope more people will describe their experiences and/or rationale for what they did/plan to do!

[socspice]

The problem is that many professors get many, many emails from prospective students, not to mention accepted students, current students, undergraduates enrolled in their courses, etc. It just seems pointless to me to be bothering faculty this early on. I find it hard to believe that they'll become an advocate for you in the admissions process -- there's just too much other stuff going on, and most of the faculty that aren't on the graduate admissions committee don't even see the applications. They're much more likely to invest in admitted students who haven't yet decided where to go, or their current students.

And really, you should be applying to a department based on the entire program, not just 1-2 professors. You've got to go into thinking that the one person you really want to work with is going to leave. Will you still like the department after that? Plus, you may discover new interests while in grad school, or you may discover that the person you thought you wanted to work with is really a jerk, or that you really jive with someone else.

YMMV, of course. And I'm sure it feels important to try to do everything you can to get into the schools you want to go to, so no amount of advice to the contrary will probably persuade you from doing what you want to do anyway. But contacting faculty isn't going to make up for a weak or lackluster application. So email if you want to, but don't be disappointed if you get no response, or something short and curt. My $.02.

[GardeningGrad]

Socspice has a valid argument and I certainly know of people who've gotten into programs with minimal interaction with professors at the start. Yes - being in touch with potential mentors is not going to make a bad applicant shine. However, it will make you more significant in the pool of Equally Amazing Applicants. Chatting with professors - even ones that you don't have much in common with - is a good opportunity to ask questions about the program and get an 'insider's take' on who you should talk with more. Most professors won't respond significantly to your inquiries, but taking several months to contact profs made a huge difference in my application experience. I'd suggest searching the forum for recent discussions about what you should include in your e-mails to professors/potential advisors/mentors.

My experience - I applied to several interdisciplinary natural/social science programs. Some of those programs *required* that you've established connection with a professor before applying. Others strongly recommended it, explaining that the admissions committee may look more favorably on someone who's teaming up with a professor who, in turn, may fund that student. All my applications provided space to write down what professors you'd been in touch with in their program.

good luck!

[GardeningGrad]

Quick edit: The here for sociology applicants includes great thoughts about contacting professors and current students before applying.

[barilicious]

Quick edit: The here for sociology applicants includes great thoughts about contacting professors and current students before applying.

You can see what I wrote at the link above about my opinion on contacting professors. Personally, I highly recommend it. Also fwiw, I contacted professors and graduate students all in September, so I could finalize my list of where to apply by early October.