Hi everyone,
I was just wondering if there were any advantages to emailing a research professor at universities I’m applying to. I’m planning to apply Stanford REA, with intended major being Materials Science, in large part because this past summer I spent nearly two months conducting research in that field, from which I produced a research paper. Is it advantageous to email a PhD at Stanford (or any other university, for that matter) and introduce himself, my research, see if he’s/she’s interested in taking me on, or something like that? I’m just not sure how much it would help with my actual admission to the university or if it’s even worth it.
Thanks!
No, it won’t be of any help at this point. Unnecessary distraction for you and them.
I agree. I’d put the info in your application. And you can even say you are interested in their work if there are questions in the app about why Stanford. But they aren’t going to help your admissions. Incoming frosh are lowest ranked in terms of profs being interest in having them in the lab. They don’t have much helpful coursework yet, the prof knows nothing about your personality, and there are grad students and older undergrads jockeying for position in their labs. If you get in, try to get great grades your first semester. Then start looking for lab opportunities.
You can’t apply for a spot on a research team until you’ve been accepted, but it is OK to email and ask about how the department’s classes and research opportunities work if there is something you have a question about.
^I disagree. I was a grad student (PhD) and if my advisor had been sent an email (if email had existed at the time-- ha ha) from a prospective student about “classes and research opportunities” it would have gone into the trash folder. Classes? check the online course catalog and degree requirements. Research? Let me know when and if you get here, AND if I even have any interest in undergrads, as I’ve got plenty of PhD students do do work.
It is the admissions office’s job to answer (reasonable - not answerable by 10 seconds, or 5 minutes, of online search) questions. NOT busy professors.