[套磁] 一个教授主页上说【套磁信】的注意事项
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Points to keep in mind before sending an e-mail
I get a LOT of e-mail from prospective graduate students. It is nice that so man
y people are interested in studying here. What follows is a list of things to co
nsider BEFORE sending an e-mail to me (or anyone else, for that matter).
Keep in mind the following points:
The person you are e-mailing is probably very busy. Even if I spend an hour a da
y, every day, reading/answering e-mail, there still is not enough time to write
a thoughtful response to each one. If you keep your e-mail short and to the poin
t, you are more likely you receive a response.
Why are you writing? What do you hope to get in a reply? The recipient should no
t have to guess.
Do not use slang and abbreviations. "How r u?" may be appropriate for chat-rooms
, but not if you want to be taken seriously.
Please use the Web to answer your questions, if possible.
Get the recipient's name right! I've had all kinds of variations on my name used
by people who I don't know. People have mis-spelled my name, or confused my fir
st and last names.
If you really want me to answer your question, address the e-mail to me. If I se
e that your e-mail is addressed to "Dear professor," it sounds to me like you've
e-mailed everyone in my department. Why should I have to answer an e-mail that
you've probably received a response to already?
Yes, I consider it rude when I receive e-mail that was sent to everyone in the d
epartment. We do talk to other faculty members! One of the first times I got an
e-mail, I discussed it with another faculty member, only to find out that he rec
eived the same e-mail. The e-mail sender said to both of us, "I am interested sp
ecifically in your research". That cannot possibly be true, since we had complet
ely different research areas.
Do not include your resume as a .doc attachment. If you send me an attachment, I
have to go through extra steps to read it. It also tells me that you assume tha
t I'm on a PC with Microsoft Windows, as if this is the only type of OS. I run L
inux on my PC. It is much easier just to delete the e-mail.
Do not say you are interested in my research, then go on to say that you want to
work on my operating systems (or algorithms, or databases) project. My research
is in computer architecture, VLSI, and DSP. This tells me that you either do no
t know what I do, or do not understand it.
Get the person's title correct. Some teachers at a university go by "Professor",
some by "Dr.", and some by "Mr.", "Mrs." or "Ms." If you get it wrong, the pers
on will assume that you don't know the difference between the titles, or that yo
u don't care. He or she may even be offended. By the way, "doctor" is the Latin
word for "teacher". It is a term of respect given to people who have completed a
doctorate degree, and one of the few perks of spending 8+ years in college!
Do not assume that I have funding to hire a graduate assistant. Sometimes I do,
sometimes I don't.
Some people try to make a good impression by touting their skills in webpage des
ign, using word-processing software, or programming. I assume that everyone appl
ying for a CS graduate program is already proficient in these things. Actually,
I assume that any second-year undergraduate student is proficient with these thi
ngs. If you are bragging about these skills, it gives me the impression that you
don't know what research is all about.
Above all, if you are sending an e-mail to faculty member you don't know, be sur
e it is professional, short, and specific (and that it is really necessary). I t
hink all faculty members are nice people who want to be helpful, but who are als
o very pressed for time.
Ultimately, acceptance into graduate school is done by people examining your fil
e. I have NEVER heard of someone being accepted into a program because of an e-m
ail that he/she sent. Computer Science departments like mine are blessed with ma
ny, many, good applicants every semester. We can only handle so many students at
a time. If you apply, but do not get in, remember that not every deserving stud
ent is accepted. Keep a positive attitude.
I get a LOT of e-mail from prospective graduate students. It is nice that so man
y people are interested in studying here. What follows is a list of things to co
nsider BEFORE sending an e-mail to me (or anyone else, for that matter).
Keep in mind the following points:
The person you are e-mailing is probably very busy. Even if I spend an hour a da
y, every day, reading/answering e-mail, there still is not enough time to write
a thoughtful response to each one. If you keep your e-mail short and to the poin
t, you are more likely you receive a response.
Why are you writing? What do you hope to get in a reply? The recipient should no
t have to guess.
Do not use slang and abbreviations. "How r u?" may be appropriate for chat-rooms
, but not if you want to be taken seriously.
Please use the Web to answer your questions, if possible.
Get the recipient's name right! I've had all kinds of variations on my name used
by people who I don't know. People have mis-spelled my name, or confused my fir
st and last names.
If you really want me to answer your question, address the e-mail to me. If I se
e that your e-mail is addressed to "Dear professor," it sounds to me like you've
e-mailed everyone in my department. Why should I have to answer an e-mail that
you've probably received a response to already?
Yes, I consider it rude when I receive e-mail that was sent to everyone in the d
epartment. We do talk to other faculty members! One of the first times I got an
e-mail, I discussed it with another faculty member, only to find out that he rec
eived the same e-mail. The e-mail sender said to both of us, "I am interested sp
ecifically in your research". That cannot possibly be true, since we had complet
ely different research areas.
Do not include your resume as a .doc attachment. If you send me an attachment, I
have to go through extra steps to read it. It also tells me that you assume tha
t I'm on a PC with Microsoft Windows, as if this is the only type of OS. I run L
inux on my PC. It is much easier just to delete the e-mail.
Do not say you are interested in my research, then go on to say that you want to
work on my operating systems (or algorithms, or databases) project. My research
is in computer architecture, VLSI, and DSP. This tells me that you either do no
t know what I do, or do not understand it.
Get the person's title correct. Some teachers at a university go by "Professor",
some by "Dr.", and some by "Mr.", "Mrs." or "Ms." If you get it wrong, the pers
on will assume that you don't know the difference between the titles, or that yo
u don't care. He or she may even be offended. By the way, "doctor" is the Latin
word for "teacher". It is a term of respect given to people who have completed a
doctorate degree, and one of the few perks of spending 8+ years in college!
Do not assume that I have funding to hire a graduate assistant. Sometimes I do,
sometimes I don't.
Some people try to make a good impression by touting their skills in webpage des
ign, using word-processing software, or programming. I assume that everyone appl
ying for a CS graduate program is already proficient in these things. Actually,
I assume that any second-year undergraduate student is proficient with these thi
ngs. If you are bragging about these skills, it gives me the impression that you
don't know what research is all about.
Above all, if you are sending an e-mail to faculty member you don't know, be sur
e it is professional, short, and specific (and that it is really necessary). I t
hink all faculty members are nice people who want to be helpful, but who are als
o very pressed for time.
Ultimately, acceptance into graduate school is done by people examining your fil
e. I have NEVER heard of someone being accepted into a program because of an e-m
ail that he/she sent. Computer Science departments like mine are blessed with ma
ny, many, good applicants every semester. We can only handle so many students at
a time. If you apply, but do not get in, remember that not every deserving stud
ent is accepted. Keep a positive attitude.
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