<p>My son, a rising sophomore, did the e-mail version of banging on prof's doors. But he spent a lot of time on each e-mail, first becoming very familiar with the person's work, and then writing very specifically and quite extensively about what it was about their work that especially interested him, and also detailing his previous lab experience. While in some cases he got no response at all, he did ultimately get into a top lab at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, which hasn't taken an undergrad in over ten years. And he is absolutely loving his experience there.</p>