What do you say when you reach out to a Professor?

[Yanaka]

I don't know if it's more appropriate to ask questions, or if it's not their job to answer; if I should ask if they feel my interests could turn into a collaboration; etc.?

Personally, it's for the M.A. level. But feel free to speak to both degrees' do's and don'ts! 

[slightlymoreanonymous]

Yanaka, I think it depends on who you're speaking to and what you're asking. I've found that most profs respond well to short, specific questions about their research. For example, I might write to a professor whose work I'm using in my own research with a very specific question that (and this is key) wasn't addressed elsewhere in the text or their other research. So you might introduce yourself, give a sentence as to what you're reading of theirs and why, and then ask your question. End with a polite thank you and keep it short! A few sentences max. 

This may be different for your discipline and type of question, but it was advice given to me by one of my mentors in rhet/comp:)  

[loganondorf]

In my experience, emailing professors is a good idea, whether you're applying for the M.A. or Ph.D. Establishing early contact can lead to some great connections (I had professors from various schools ask to schedule phone conversations with me after I emailed them, and this helped immensely in developing my application and gave me faculty contacts at the schools) and can help you tailor your personal statements to your chosen programs.

When I email, I try to do two things (in addition to introducing myself): demonstrate an understanding of their work and ask them if they are accepting new graduate students I like to pick one of my favorite pieces of their writing and tell them what I enjoyed most about it, which both gives the professor something to respond to and proves that I have indeed read the work (which is important, because I always want to demonstrate that I'm reaching out specifically to them, rather than to any and all professors who might respond).

I then follow up by explaining my reason for reaching out, which is almost always to enquire as to whether or not they're personally accepting new Ph.D. students. This is really important, because I've gotten the full gamut of responses: most professors will indicate that they're accepting, but some will tell you that they are already advising too many, and some will even tell you about upcoming retirements. Any and all of this info is good, because you can then choose to abandon that application or use the information to strengthen your statements (admissions committees will be aware of impending retirements, and if you sketch out POIs who aren't likely to be at the school for much longer, it doesn't bode well for your application).

Whatever the case, when you email, just make sure you're asking questions that only they can answer -- otherwise they'll just (rightly) direct you to email the DGS (which still isn't a bad idea). And remember that not everyone will respond; professors are really busy, and sometimes you just won't ever hear back. Still, I always got really great results from emailing, and if you come across as confident, warm, and interested in their work, you shouldn't worry too much.

[Yanaka]

"Un-liked" a post so I could use a vote for yours! Thanks @loganondorf. I've reached out to professors before but for some reason (I think I'm just tired), I have a blockage with the emails I''m trying to send out today. I don't know what to ask to an M.A. faculty: do I ask if they're accepting students, too?

[loganondorf]

1 minute ago, Yanaka said:

"Un-liked" a post so I could use a vote for yours! Thanks @loganondorf. I've reached out to professors before but for some reason (I think I'm just tired), I have a blockage with the emails I''m trying to send out today. I don't know what to ask to an M.A. faculty: do I ask if they're accepting students, too?

Ha, I'm flattered! With an M.A. program it's less important that you land the perfect advisor, but it's still not a bad idea to ask if they're open to working closely with you on your research. They should understand the nuance -- even though you're applying for the M.A., you'll be looking to continue on to a Ph.D. (perhaps at their school or somewhere else), and you could benefit from having a strong advisor. 

My formula (as much as these things can be reduced to one) is to introduce myself and my research briefly, explain what I've read of theirs and why I'm reaching out to them in particular, and then to ask if they'll be accepting/advising new graduate students in the upcoming year. It's important to be as concise as possible, because they have a lot to do, but this way I can hit on all the main points. 

[Yanaka]

Just now, loganondorf said:

Ha, I'm flattered! With an M.A. program it's less important that you land the perfect advisor, but it's still not a bad idea to ask if they're open to working closely with you on your research. They should understand the nuance -- even though you're applying for the M.A., you'll be looking to continue on to a Ph.D. (perhaps at their school or somewhere else), and you could benefit from having a strong advisor. 

My formula (as much as these things can be reduced to one) is to introduce myself and my research briefly, explain what I've read of theirs and why I'm reaching out to them in particular, and then to ask if they'll be accepting/advising new graduate students in the upcoming year. It's important to be as concise as possible, because they have a lot to do, but this way I can hit on all the main points. 

Ha! Thanks immensely, for the nuance and for everything else. Concision, my biggest problem as well. I'll keep you posted  

[chellyfish_]

I have to chime in about this and second everything @loganondorf just said! I recently (randomly) had dinner with a UPenn professor who sits admissions, and she highly advocated for reaching out by email.  This was specifically for Ph.D. students, as they most often go in to work with specific faculty members already, but I doubt it would hurt M.A. applicants.  In addition to everything said above, it's a personal thing that makes them familiar with your name when it comes time to do admissions.  I can imagine a situation where a professor might not get back to you, but if your email is polite/concise/professional/interested, I don't see any way that it could hurt your application.  So -- advice confirmed by UPenn faculty hahaha

Edited February 20, 2017 by eliza_winter

[rimeroyal]

What @loganondorf wrote is right on the money. I can vouch for that mostly being a good strategy for schools over here in the EU too. Only things I would add are to make sure you ask if they're accepting grad students in your field specifically (won't go into detail, but that's burned me before). Other than that, my usual format was "Hi I'm rimeroyal, was wondering if you're accepting new students, I've worked on X and I'm interested in continuing with Y and Z, and since you're a specialist in Y I was wondering if you wanna some magic." I usually include a disclaimer like "If not, do you know anyone else in the department who might jive with me?" kinda thing. I've gotten answers ranging from really enthusiastic replies to handoffs to other faculty to one or two who admitted the whole uni wouldn't be the best place for that, but even they gave me a short list of different places to try.

As far as tone, I've learned since coming to a UK grad school that my email tone is apparently really informal, in that I say stuff like "Good morning!" or "Hope the semester's going well," etc. Personally I can't stand stiff emails, and my impulse is to try to be friendly and open with your potential advisors rather than risking coming off like a really formal stick in the mud, but I've had other grad students in my cohort say I should be a little more formal. I should mention that it didn't seem to have a bad impact on what replies I got (opposite, in fact), but make of it what you will.

Edited February 21, 2017 by rimeroyal