By Siena Vitucci<\/p>\n
I like to think my writing skills are pretty solid. I can finish an essay in a few hours without using AI, and I can write a research paper and manually cite every source if I need to. In fact, send just about any style of writing my way: academic paper, poetry, press release, and I\u2019ll have it done in proper formatting and tone without a problem. However, my proudest skill set as a writer is my ability to write an email.<\/span><\/p>\n It sounds so silly\u2013 typing a few sentences in the form of a glorified text message should be simple, yet I\u2019ve watched my friends procrastinate, fear, and dread even <\/span>opening<\/span><\/i> their inbox for fear of having to respond to an email. To be honest, I really can’t blame them. The underlying expectation to sound polite and professional while also conveying your urgent, exhausted need for an extension on a paper is daunting.<\/span><\/p>\n I thought I would make a list of some tips on how to make emailing a professor as painless as possible:<\/span><\/p>\n 1. Know who to email<\/span><\/p>\n Before you email a professor, make sure there is not a TA you can reach out to first. Sometimes in larger lectures TA\u2019s are more likely to respond to emails about assignment conflicts. Most syllabi will explain who to email for specific circumstances.<\/span><\/p>\n 2. Be sure to research their title<\/span><\/p>\n When addressing an email to a professor, always be overly cautious\u2013nothing feels worse than realizing your professor is a \u201cDr.\u201d after you addressed them as \u201cMs.\/Mr.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n 3. Start off with a welcoming sentence<\/span><\/p>\n It can be as simple as \u201cI hope you have been doing well this semester!\u201d \u2013 It’s a good way to get the ball rolling, so your email doesn\u2019t come off as too blunt.<\/span><\/p>\n 4. You may need to introduce yourself<\/span><\/p>\n When contacting a professor you have not talked to in person, it is a good practice to mention your name and the class you are enrolled in, so they know what assignment you are referring to.<\/span><\/p>\n 5. Keep your request\/question to 1-2 sentences<\/span><\/p>\n Sometimes, when it’s late at night and a deadline is fast approaching, it\u2019s tempting to word dump your dire situation, hoping that your professor might take pity on you. However, it’s best to keep the details to a minimum. Professors understand that you are a student and that things happen, and they are usually happy to accommodate your requests if they are timely and reasonable. You can always explain your situation in more detail if they ask.<\/span><\/p>\n 6. End the email on a positive note<\/span><\/p>\n Try something like \u201cI look forward to hearing from you\u201d or \u201cThank you for considering\u201d. It makes the email feel more complete and shows that you respect the professor\u2019s time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n 7. Sign with your full name<\/span><\/p>\n This may seem obvious, but be sure to sign with your first and last name to remain professional!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Example:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Dear Dr. Smith<\/span><\/p>\n I hope you are doing well! My name is Siena Vitucci, and I\u2019m in your WR120 class on Tuesdays at 11:00. Would it be possible to get a three-day extension on my midterm paper? I have several tests this week, and I want to make sure I can turn in my best work. Thank you so much for considering!<\/span><\/p>\n Best,<\/span><\/p>\n Siena Vitucci<\/span><\/p>\n Best of luck this semester, and happy email writing!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Siena Vitucci I like to think my writing skills are pretty solid. I can finish an essay in a few hours without using AI, and I can write a research paper and manually cite every source if I need to. In fact, send just about any style of writing my way: academic paper, poetry, … Continue reading Siena: How to Email a Professor in a Crunch<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9594,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[44661],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5847"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9594"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5847"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5847\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5849,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5847\/revisions\/5849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/comblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}