How to get a professor to reply about a visit to their lab?

[Lyapunov]

Hi Everyone,

I've been trying to find other threads that try to answer similar questions, but I haven't found anything yet, so I decided to create a new thread. Please feel free to redirect me to an existing thread if this question is too repetitive.

I will be applying to some PhD programs in the United States for the Fall 2014 semester. I've been trying to schedule appointments with professors for visits to their labs. Usually, I also contact the lab staff or the professor's assistants about my visit.

However, some programs merely ask me to contact the professors themselves about scheduling visits. I'm usually very particular about my emails to professors, and try to keep my requests brief. I also don't elaborate my current research too much, and I don't include my resume in the email. But I have had almost no success in getting replies from professors. I've talked to people in similar situations and they seem to have more success than I do. Therefore, there probably is something missing in my emails.

Could someone give me tips about what I should include in my emails so that I maximize the probability of getting a reply?

[Loric]

Most people treat email like it's something they can reply to, if they feel so behooved.. 

 

Entire inboxes are full of never-read email. No matter how important. Don't take it personally. You're going to have to make a phone call and be persistent. 

[123hardasABC]

I emailed other people in the lab: mangers, post-docs, even the undergraduate help...anyone who has direct contact with the professor.

[Lisa44201]

Are the people who have had success in the same field? It's almost unheard of in my field to visit a lab during the application cycle outside of an invitation to interview.

[Lyapunov]

Lisa44201: The people who have managed to visit labs, were in the same field of engineering, though not the same major, and not the same lab either. However, the way they told me that they did it, was simply by mailing a professor.

123hardasABC and Loric: I'm afraid that if I persist OR email too many people, that might irritate them into not considering me.

[Loric]

Lisa44201: The people who have managed to visit labs, were in the same field of engineering, though not the same major, and not the same lab either. However, the way they told me that they did it, was simply by mailing a professor.

123hardasABC and Loric: I'm afraid that if I persist OR email too many people, that might irritate them into not considering me.

 

That's where a phone call comes in. Like i said, people can endlessly ignore emails or put them off. It's a cultural thing.. people do it even with important stuff. You call the office and ask who you'd talk to, talk to that person, and have an answer. 

[Lyapunov]

Although I do agree with your idea of emailing more people around the professor. I might try that. Although, again, how formal should my email be? Should I include a resume, or any elaborate details about my research? Or should the email be partly informal and to the point?

[Lyapunov]

Loric: Wouldn't a phone call be like invading their personal space? (I'm not sure how acceptable such a phone call would be in the university culture.)

[123hardasABC]

I've called professors before. It's not "invading" anything. Just be brief and courteous. "My name is _____. I'm interested in _______ and would like to tour your lab." Calling professors shouldn't be a big deal. They're just professors, not kings of the world.

[Loric]

Loric: Wouldn't a phone call be like invading their personal space? (I'm not sure how acceptable such a phone call would be in the university culture.)

 

If you're to last a week, you need to see these people as people, not gods. 

[Lyapunov]

Loric and 123hardasABC: No, I completely agree with your solution and I think I will call the professors. Thanks a lot guys!

[St Andrews Lynx]

You can also try emailing the Dept's graduate program co-ordinator. Say that you're interested in applying to their Department and would like to visit on X date, then tell them your research area of interest and the PIs you are interested in meeting. The co-ordinator will then schedule a day/half-day visit on your behalf which will probably include a lab tour, meeting with current students and talking to several PIs. They'll probably buy you lunch too! 

 

I found that I had a lot more success arranging appointments via the course admin than through the professors themselves. 

[TakeruK]

Yes, I second St Andrews Lynx's suggestion, especially if you want to visit more than one prof's lab (usually this is true). It would be a nightmare to contact all the profs you're interested at once, ask them for time, and schedule things. Profs might not reply quickly and you might schedule something that becomes a conflict later -- e.g. Prof A replies first and say "I'm free from 10 to 2pm" and you schedule a meeting for 11am. Then Prof B may reply late and say I'm only free from 11 to noon!" !! Now you have to go back to reschedule Prof A's meeting etc. etc. And you're also an outsider, they might not prioritize your email, and you definitely can't be demanding (e.g. ask the profs to tell them every single free time slot and then make your own schedule and force the profs to comply!)

 

Best to leave it to the professionals! The admin staff know how to best organize this, and they might even have the profs' schedules for things like faculty meetings, classes etc. The admin staff knows the profs well and they know how to get answers from them. They can also find student volunteers to show you around, take you to lunch, or just have a chat with etc.