Just Jeff Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 and ask them about the department? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzylogician Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Yes, as long as the questions you want to ask have not already been answered on the department website or elsewhere accessible. In that case you'll just make a bad impression and waste the professor's time. Also, some general questions are probably better addressed to the department secretary or to the director of graduate studies, so it really depends on the questions you have - you may be referred to these sources if your questions are ones the professor can't really answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Jeff Posted October 28, 2013 Author Share Posted October 28, 2013 Yes, as long as the questions you want to ask have not already been answered on the department website or elsewhere accessible. In that case you'll just make a bad impression and waste the professor's time. Also, some general questions are probably better addressed to the department secretary or to the director of graduate studies, so it really depends on the questions you have - you may be referred to these sources if your questions are ones the professor can't really answer. I just worried because on the application, it asks me if I spoke to someone in the department. I didn't know if that was crucial or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzylogician Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 That depends on the field (and I don't know which field you are in). In some fields, acceptance is contingent upon there being a professor who is willing to fund you - normally in lab-based sciences. This professor will be your main advisor, will fund you, and to a large extent determine the kinds of research you can do (often you'll be working on a project that they received some funding for). In other fields, you get accepted to the department as a whole and can later decide who you want to work with. Here too, it helps to have people who you've talked to because you do need to have an advisor at the end of the day and it's a good way to demonstrate fit, but it's less crucial. Many humanities and some social sciences are like this. FWIW, I never contacted any professor prior to applying, and I think my colleagues didn't either, and we obviously all did just fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Jeff Posted October 30, 2013 Author Share Posted October 30, 2013 Aww, thank you so much! I'm in English btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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