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If you're anything like me, the thought of reaching out to potential master’s supervisors fills you with dread. I wrote and rewrote my emails almost a dozen times, distracted by the idea that my entire academic future rested on the approval of complete strangers. I wasn’t sure what I should say or what should be included, and I spent weeks in a constant state of anxiety. After finally sending out my carefully crafted emails, I received responses from every professor I contacted. To make it easier for other students considering graduate studies, I thought I would share some tips that worked for me. While each program might have different requirements – I was applying to archaeology/anthropology programs – these general rules will hopefully help make the experience a little less stressful for everyone involved.
Find appropriate faculty
I knew I wanted to go to grad school after my undergrad, so over the summer heading into my last year I started looking at faculty at various universities. Most universities will list departmental faculty with a short bio, research interests and contact info. My goal, of course, was to find people with research interests similar to my own. By the time I was starting classes in the fall I had a pretty good idea of who I wanted to work with, but I also took the time to ask a couple professors I was on good terms with for recommendations. Don't be scared to do this! Your professors know you and know your field. They may be able to suggest some people you hadn’t considered. If you do reach out to a potential supervisor on the recommendation of a professor, it never hurts to mention said professor in your email either.
Send emails early
I know this one seems like a no-brainer, but it might be the most important. The later in the semester the busier you AND your prospective supervisor will be. You're more likely to get a timely response if you send out your email before everything gets crazy. My goal was to have all emails sent out before midterms and I received most of the responses within a week and had a few Zoom meetings scheduled shortly after. All in all, I had spoken to everyone by the first week of November after sending my emails out mid-October. Getting an early response also means you can start your application early, which takes some of the stress away later in the term.
Reference a potential supervisor’s published work
While checking out faculty at different universities be sure to go over their published works and read a few articles that catch your eye. In my experience, some people even had a webpage discussing their upcoming or ongoing projects. When you’re writing your email you want to relate your interests or research experience to their work. How do they compliment each other? Where does your experience fit with their research? This is a great way of showing why you want THEM in particular to be your supervisor and how you might be a suitable addition to their ongoing research projects.
Accompanying documents
Attach your academic CV and unofficial transcripts to the email. This helps any potential supervisor understand your experience and interests. If you need help crafting a CV, reach out to the U of A Career Centre for advice! I did and my resulting CV looked far more impressive than it did when working off a template.
General Structure
While you do need to communicate a lot of information, you don’t want your email to be overly long. All of my emails sat around the 200-word mark. Be concise! Introduce yourself and state the specifics of what you’re asking (e.g.: will you be taking on new graduate students for X term), then explain why you are asking them by relating your interests to their research. If necessary, ask if they can provide any additional information on the program or funding opportunities for new graduate students. Be polite and professional and thank them for their time. If the person responds, even if it’s a negative response, thank them for considering you. You will be working in their field in the future and there’s no point in burning bridges. Hopefully an email to a prospective supervisor results in an online meeting or a back and forth of emails resulting in an invitation to apply for their institution.
We can all agree it’s stressful to email a faculty member you don’t know and ask for them to agree to work with you. But emailing potential supervisors is an important step in applying for grad school. Not only do many programs require you to identify a supervisor during the application process, but having a member of the faculty vouch for you during the application review will only strengthen your chance of getting in. So don’t skip this step! Hopefully, these tips provide a useful guide and make it easier for you when it comes time to contact your dream supervisor.
About Meg
Meg Langlois (she/her) is a soon-to-be graduate of the Honors Anthropology program in the Department of Anthropology in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Alberta. With a focus in bioarchaeology her research examines suitable methodologies for examining impairment and disability in the past and quality of life for individuals who experienced pathological conditions. Meg is starting a graduate program in September 2022 and looking forward to a new chapter in life.