Cold emails are sent to the concerned party when there has not been any previous contact with them. Sending a cold email has multiple purposes, it is greatly used in marketing. They are different from spam emails because cold emails are more personal. Let us know about ‘Cold Email to Professor’.
Cold Email to Professor:
Sending a cold email to a professor can be for a dozen purposes. It could be regarding an issue you are facing in your educational institute, or a project you want to take up. It is also possible that a particular professor has a network you want to indulge with through him/her. Thus, a cold email is an effective strategy to introduce yourself to the professor beforehand. There are several tips and tricks to help you construct the perfect cold email about any subject you wish to indulge your professor in; the most effective one is to make the email as personalized as possible.
Cold emails to professors are sent for the following reasons (but not limited):
- Advisor for a thesis
- Joining a research study group
- Recommendation letters
- To become one of the professor’s assistants
- Complaints
Tips to construct a cold email:
Sending cold emails to a professor you have not indulged with in person can be a bit tricky. However, there are several tips to help with that.
Gather information about the professor:
It is important to know certain facts about the professor you want to reach out to. Visit his social media accounts like LinkedIn, and get to know what he/she is currently working on, what past research projects they have done, etc.
The subject line in the email:
Keep the subject line of the email to the point, and cover it up within 3-5 words at most. It is also a good idea to make it catchy yet formal.
Email body
Whatever your concern is, the right email body should be constructed to grab the professor’s attention, because they get numerous emails in one day.
The following are a few tips about the email body:
- The most imperative tip is to keep the entire email short, not more than 300-400 characters in short paragraphs
- Address the professor by their last name, and avoid using “Hello”
- Use “Dr.” if it is attached to their official name
- Give a brief introduction about yourself, qualifications, instate/department, etc.
- Customize and personalize the paragraphs by referring to the professor’s past work or any research that relates to your research
- Make it distinct why your purpose would be of interest to the professor. For example, if you want to join his research group, showcase your past accolades in research.
- The overall tone of the email must be formal and polite
- Use a proper font that is readable to the receiver
- The font size should be readable
Ending the email:
Briefly mention that you are looking forward to their response and how it will be a great learning experience for you to indulge with the professor for whatever request you have put forth.
- Use “sincerely, thank you”
- Put your signature
- Mention that you understand their busy schedule
Mention other students:
It can come in handy to mention any other student you know who the professor may also know or has been included in his research group or been a student.
Timing the email:
Send the email in the morning hours, as it would increase the probability of the professor opening it as soon as they get to the office. Avoid sending it in the noon.
Multiple professors:
It is a good idea to send cold emails to more than one professor as it increases the chances of you getting what you want, if not from one, then from the other professor.
Note the following:
- Avoid sending the email if the two professors are in the same department
- Do not send a copy-pasted format
- Personalize the email according to their academic background
Revision:
Before hitting the send button, look at the email again and again and read it out. You may find errors you want to be fixed that you did not see before.
- Correct all grammatical mistakes
- Revise the tone again
- Use the correct spacing which makes the email easy to skim
Follow up:
If you have not received a response in over a month, send a follow-up email that should not be more than 200 characters, and refer to your previous email.
Conclusion:
Cold emailing a professor is an effective manner to secure a position as an assistant, research group inclusion, or any other subject matter. Many students avoid it by anticipation of no response. However, cold emails exude confidence and build rapport. The key is to personalize it according to the professor, as studies show personalized emails have a 50% more chance of being opened.
FAQs
- What is the difference between cold emails and spam?
Cold emails are personalized according to the receiver, spam is copy-pasted content sent to numerous people.
- Why are cold emails used in marketing?
To secure more customers.
