Some F1 students find it difficult to connect with that person and sometimes it is partly because they do not attend to some basic aspects that guide good communication. Here are some tips for contacting your professor via email. Following these will help reduce communication errors.
Fill in the subject header
Be sure to fill in the subject header of the email. You are doing this for various reasons. First, an email without a subject header can go to the teacher’s spam folder. Also, an email without a subject header seems unimportant and sometimes suspicious. Without a header, that email can be skipped over, unread, and thrown in the trash.
If you are applying for a scholarship or other type of aid, that is the topic. If you’re going to be the professor’s teaching assistant, then that’s the thing. If you’re going to be your research assistant, then that’s the thing. Keep the subject line of the email short, clear and identifiable.
Use clear language and good grammar
Some students have started texting teachers the same way they would text someone on their phone. Do not do this. Use an appropriate greeting such as “Dear Professor Smith.” Once you get to the main body of the email, be sure to use paragraphs and within those paragraphs sentences and whole words.
If your English isn’t very good, get help writing the letter and have someone proofread it before you send it. By the way, don’t believe the letter in the email. First use a writing program, read it and check the spelling, and then insert it into the email. You can also attach it to the email, but be sure to also include the text of your letter in the body of the email. The attachment may not open or may be lost entirely.
explain who you are
Most teachers receive a lot of communications from a lot of students. To avoid confusion, you should explain who you are and your connection to the person you are writing to. Don’t go on forever. Say enough so that the person reading it understands your connection to them.
Ask questions clearly and succinctly
If you have questions, cut to the chase and ask them. It is a good idea to use bullet points to differentiate each question. This makes your questions easier to read and will grab the reader’s attention.
Provide them with contact information
Provide the teacher with your contact information. If you use an instant messenger or something like SKYPE, be sure to include your name or address online. Of course, they will have your email address, but giving them a few options if they need to contact you can be helpful and save time. In addition, you tell them that you want to communicate with them. That is generally taken as a good sign by a teacher.
Finally, if after two weeks the teacher doesn’t respond, you may want to write a polite email asking if they received your first email. Sometimes emails get misplaced, trashed, or simply forgotten.
When applying for an F1 visa, you need to make sure that you follow all the steps correctly.