Making contact with a prospective supervisor is one of the essential parts of your PhD application process. Now, more than ever, it is vital to clarify expectations and processes for PhD work in light of disruptions caused by the Coronavirus.
But, it is important to do your research first before writing to a potential supervisor.
So how do you actually reach out to a supervisor? Should you provide as much information as possible about yourself? Do you attach a research proposal? Are supervisors even interested in hearing from you?
In addition to covering the general process for writing an email to a prospective PhD supervisor elsewhere, I thought it would be helpful to summarize some of the ‘golden rules’ you should know before writing to a potential supervisor.
Check how (and if) they want to be contacted.
Do supervisors really want prospective students to email them?
The answer is often “yes”, and some universities and education systems actually encourage students to speak with a supervisor before applying for a PhD. It can also be the other way around, especially if the university prefers to handle all the formalities of PhD admissions and then match students with supervisors.
Nevertheless, you can check it easily before writing to a potential supervisor.
You can discuss your own PhD idea with an academic on the university’s website (Google “their name” + “university name”). Generally, it will specify whether prospective students are welcome to contact them.
We offer email enquiry options here – so feel free to use them if you’re interested in writing to a potential supervisor.
What program do you want to take?
There is no standard for the kind of research that a department in a given university conducts. It is at least 50% likely that you will find similar research conducted by the mechanical engineering department in one university and the materials science department in another university, for instance.
A good rule of thumb for a students is to check at least three departments within a university to find a research area that interests you before writing to a potential supervisor.
You will benefit in many ways by finding research areas, although it may initially seem daunting.
You would be able to find the right match for your supervisor and the type of research you are looking for. Furthermore, this will help you narrow down your research interests. By examining different research areas in different universities, you will be able to keep up with the latest advancements in your field; therefore, you will be better equipped to determine which area is most suitable for you.
Unlike a bachelor’s degree, a master’s or PhD is a “custom-designed” degree. Students who come straight from bachelor’s degrees have difficulty understanding this at first. What you will do in your graduate degree will be primarily determined by what your supervisor is interested in. It is therefore extremely important to choose the right supervisor when it comes to graduate studies.
Suppose you are interested in a specific topic. In that case, you might want to check with several departments at a university to find out what they do and if there is any overlap between those interests and your own.
What are the admission requirements for your chosen program?
Depending on the university and the department, graduate program requirements may vary.
Visit the department’s website to find out the minimum requirements for a graduate program. There is a tab for “Prospective students” and/or “Graduate admissions” on most of these web pages.
Additionally, different universities require different types of test scores. Most universities in the United States require TOEFL as the English proficiency test with a specific passing score, while most other countries require IELTS (there are other options as well).
GRE scores may be required for some programs.
Even if a professor accepts your application, you might not be admitted to a program if you can’t provide your GRE results in time.
Therefore, before writing to a potential supervisor, it is always recommended to check these requirements first.
What area of research do you want to pursue?
Can you find professors who work in the area that interests you?
It is not advisable to write to every professor you find on a department’s website in the hope that someone will be interested in your application.
Taking this approach has several drawbacks.
To begin with, this is not the first time a professor has received an email from a student. Using a generic email that you can pass on to any professor won’t even get you a reply. Therefore, it is a waste of both your time and theirs.
Secondly, if you haven’t already determined what research you’re interested in, a supervisor probably won’t be interested in working with you. They are always on the lookout for people who are familiar with the research areas they are interested in. This awareness will be reflected in your email. In each and every email, you may need to include subjective information (to the supervisor).
You may write fewer emails when you specialise, but the ratio of sent emails to received replies will exponentially increase.
Make sure you do your research first before writing to a potential supervisor.
Identify one or two professors whose research is closely related to what you are interested in.
It wouldn’t be the best idea to contact the professors in that department even if you are interested in a certain topic in general but not something you want to work on for the foreseeable future.
For students who have studied physical science, this is more relevant.
As a prospective graduate student, this is also extremely difficult to comprehend. Because there are still many things, you don’t know at this point. In graduate programs, research topics are extremely narrowly focused. You may see a professor mention a certain research area as an interest. Still, if you haven’t seen any recent publications leading up to that topic, chances are they won’t be starting a project on that topic anytime soon.
There is, however, a way to work around this problem. Try to find at least two prospective supervisors in the field of research that interests you.
Contact the professor whose research interests are most similar to yours. Inquire specifically about the kind of research that they would like to conduct in the future. End the email by asking for suggestions for contacting other professors doing similar research.
By doing this, you are getting recommendations from an expert in the field of research that interests you. Regardless of whether you think the professor you contacted is the best fit for you, it may not be, and this is an opportunity for you to find out if there is anyone else in the same department who is better suited for you.
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