How does one go about corresponding with a professor?

[Guest Gnome Chomsky]

I really want to go to my first choice and I have very little interest going anywhere else. Anyway, so I've heard that people start a correspondence with a professor so that they can write in their statement of purpose that they'd like to work with that particular professor. Well, how exactly would one go about that? I looked at the list of professors at my school of choice and there are like 30 of them. I know they can't all be full time professors. Do I need to "attach" myself to one of them, or could I just write a general statement of purpose saying I'm interested in various things the program and professors are doing? I don't want to put all my eggs into one professor's basket. I'm interested in going to the school itself, not necessarily working with one particular professor.

Edited October 8, 2012 by JoeyBoy718

[Eigen]

Are you applying for a PhD?

If so, usually, you don't apply to a school because you "like the school", so much as because there are a few professors there who's work you really like and would be interested in working with.

Then you correspond with those faculty talking about their research, whether or not they're taking students, etc. And then you focus on 2-4 of them in your statement of purpose.

Researching the faculty at the schools is a huge part of applying to programs, and one of the most important parts.

30 faculty really isn't that many- some of the schools I applied to had 70+.

[Guest Gnome Chomsky]

Are you applying for a PhD?

If so, usually, you don't apply to a school because you "like the school", so much as because there are a few professors there who's work you really like and would be interested in working with.

Then you correspond with those faculty talking about their research, whether or not they're taking students, etc. And then you focus on 2-4 of them in your statement of purpose.

Researching the faculty at the schools is a huge part of applying to programs, and one of the most important parts.

30 faculty really isn't that many- some of the schools I applied to had 70+.

Thanks for your quick response. You ask if I'm applying to a PhD. Uhh... It's a little complicated but I'll try to explain it rather briefly. I'm in Linguistics. I want to apply for a general linguistics program. I've been planning to apply to a master's program because I have excellent grades but no research experience. I figured a master's wouldn't be as strict when it comes to that. After months of research, I really zoned in on one school. Anyway, I found out from someone who applied there that they're transitioning into something new. They accept master's and PhD applicants but they accept everyone with the understanding that they will stay for the 5 year program to receive their PhD. So, to be honest, I don't really know what I'd be considered as--master's or PhD applicant.

[TeaGirl]

Usually, you should write a well thought out introductory polite email. Start it by mentioning what your goal is (masters, phd, etc.), what you want study and focus on in your field, and why this particular professor interested you. Ask if s/he is accepting grad students. Then, briefly mention your academic background, relevant experience, and any impressive highlights.

Btw, adcoms have different admission criteria for someone who has a Bachelors and someone who has a Master's. They usually focus on grades and other achievements for undergrads because they know they haven't had a chance to do much research. They can be a little tougher on applicants with a Master's degree because they expect them to have already completed some research. I think what you are talking about seems like a Direct PhD program where you are accepted for a PhD program but get a Master's degree along the way.

Edited October 15, 2012 by TeaGirl

[Guest Gnome Chomsky]

Usually, you should write a well thought out introductory polite email. Start it by mentioning what your goal is (masters, phd, etc.), what you want study and focus on in your field, and why this particular professor interested you. Ask if s/he is accepting grad students. Then, briefly mention your academic background, relevant experience, and any impressive highlights.

Btw, adcoms have different admission criteria for someone who has a Bachelors and someone who has a Master's. They usually focus on grades and other achievements for undergrads because they know they haven't had a chance to do much research. They can be a little tougher on applicants with a Master's degree because they expect them to have already completed some research. I think what you are talking about seems like a Direct PhD program where you are accepted for a PhD program but get a Master's degree along the way.

Yeah, you're right about it being a direct PhD program. They used to have separate master's and PhD programs, but they've transitioned to a direct PhD program. I just wasn't sure if it being a direct PhD program would make the requirements for admissions more difficult. Since I am an undergrad (like you said) I haven't had much of an opportunity to gain research experience. I hope I wouldn't be evaluated on the same basis as an applicant who already has a master's degree. I'm guessing I wouldn't.

Anyway, back to the original topic-corresponding with a professor. I've talked to people who have mentioned specific professors they want to work with in their statement of purpose but hadn't actually talked to/emailed that professor prior to that. I wasn't sure if it was necessarily and if it would help me getting admitted. The thing is, if my school of interest has 40 professors listed on their website, I can't possibly know which of them have any weight in the admissions department. I'm not sure if it would "be a waste of time" spending a month corresponding with a professor who doesn't partake in accepting applicants. At this moment I'm more interested in just getting into the school and figuring out my career objectives and professors of interest when I get there.

[mandarin.orange]

Check out the sociology board - there's a thorough discussion of this question there, and I posted some links and resources on emailing profs. Search function could reveal good responses, too - I know I've seen other, concurrent threads on the topic of emailing profs in the past couple weeks.

At this moment I'm more interested in just getting into the school and figuring out my career objectives and professors of interest when I get there.

I'll point out that a well-focused SOP could give you an edge in the applicant pool.

Edited October 16, 2012 by mandarin.orange

[moody]

If you want to correspond with one (or more) of the professors, you should choose them carefully to be people who you might be interested in eventually working with. For example, if you are interested in phonology, you should read the profiles of the professors on their websites, figure out who works in this area, and then contact just those people. You are right in thinking that randomly contacting people is a bad idea – it makes you look unfocused.

Honestly, though, in your case (given that you've stated that you don't have much research background), I'd think hard about whether contacting anyone is necessarily a good idea. If you correspond with a professor, they will want to know about your work and your research interests... Contacting POI is not standard practice in linguistics, and so if you do contact people you need to be sure that you will leave a positive impression (wrt your research interests and abilities). People are admitted all the time (in linguistics) without contacting POI. You don't have to have talked with someone in order to mention them in your SOP, but you do need to have done enough research on the department to make sure that you really are mentioning the people whose research is most relevant to your area(s) of interest.

[kaputzing]

Be careful about correspondence. I think I actually offended one of my POIs in my tiny, tiny field.

(This is what happens when you try to politely inquire if they are retiring due to the numerous rumors floating around, and they not only don't answer your unspoken question but also take it the wrong way.)

[budgiepie]

On a somewhat related note: At my undergrad school I always had to email professors twice to get a response for a first contact. Then one of the professors said it was some unspoken rule they observed to make sure the concern was 'serious'. Do other schools do this? Has anyone heard of this?

[Eigen]

Depends on the type of request.

I know there's a large issue (I think it's been discussed here before) with international students mass-mailing hundreds of PIs the same generic letter. It's made a lot of PIs leery about e-mails that sound too form-like, and some may have just started waiting for a second e-mail to see if the person is serious.

[Kahokkuri]

This has been my biggest struggle in the whole application process. I previously worked in undergraduate Admissions, and in some ways I think this gives me the tiniest bit of insight into the minds of a committee who will be reading and discussing applications. Conversely, it's made me incredibly nervous about making a bad impression on POI.

The faculty I've contacted have ranged from "helpful and nice" to "very curt" to "completely unresponsive." It's nerve-wracking, to say the least. Fortunately, I don't think there's a hard and fast rule. Sure, having a great rapport with a POI in advance of application reading is an excellent asset to your application; on the other hand, contacting someone who makes a snap judgement that they're not interested in you may defeat the purpose.

I think it's worth it to try to get in touch with POI, but I wouldn't force it. If you come off as awkward and unsure then you'll probably be perceived that way.