tl;dr: If someone doesn’t answer your email, change media.
One thing that frustrates students and potential students is when professors don’t answer emails. Attribution theory predicts that you would think we’re blowing you off, or lazy, but the fact is, professors just get a lot of email, and this makes it hard to answer it all the way we want to because it has a cost.
Three stories.
I start with three stories, not so much to try to excuse email non-answering, but to give you a feel for the professor experience of navigating an email overload universe.
Story 1: Famous Professor X–who is super-helpful and cool whenever X has time–has told me that there’s a mailbox full of things that X wants to get to, thinks it would be valuable to answer for both X and the sender… and doesn’t, because there are so many other things that need doing. None of the options are good: write back two months later? Write back and say this is cool but you’re too busy to answer (which risks making you sound a little pretentious)? And so the default is to let them pile up, then quietly delete them. X’s estimate in 2010 was about 2-3 of these per week, and I bet there are more now.
Story 2: As a grad student, I sent an email to Famous Professor Y (name withheld to protect the guilty) who I actually worked with sometimes, with a specific question about a project. No reply. A couple of years later, F.P.Y. told me that because of high workloads and email volumes, Y’s general strategy was to wait until someone mailed twice, because that meant they were serious. At the time I was appalled; now as a professor I understand.
However, it’s not a strategy I’m willing to adopt, and my own story as a Not Famous Professor is that I get maybe 60-150 mails a day. I don’t know if this is a lot or a little compared to other folks, and I’m sure it’s less than X and Y get. But it feels like a lot, and it’s easy to spend an hour or so just on emails, not counting the to-dos that get generated by them. I do still try to reply to everything, but as my attention gets distributed the replies start getting shorter and less useful. They also get less personal and social, which I see as a bad thing. Finally, I (and many other people who are also attention-thin) also have a nasty tendency to only answer the first main question in an email.
Strategy: don’t email.
Still, knowing the landscape doesn’t help you, person-who-wants-a-reply. There are strategies for increasing your odds if you have to email, and I’ll talk about that sometime down the road as part of a discussion of getting profs interested in working with you. The tl;dr for that post will be something like “make it clear why it’s in their interest to answer your email“.
For now, I’ll just observe that we’re so used to email as a work communication tool that it’s easy to forget that you have other options and other media.
Version 1: In-person. For co-present people, find out when the profs you want to talk to are having office hours or teaching classes or lab meetings, and go there in person. It’s much harder to ignore someone who’s standing in front of you, and though sometimes you’ll fail because your target will have to run off to something else, it will often lead to at least some attention right then and there, and/or getting an appointment to talk later or a promise to answer an email. This feels risky, but despite being busy, most professors, most of the time, like talking to students. I think.
Version 2: Phone call. If you can’t be co-present, pick up the phone. Calls are not as good as in-person, but they’re more visible than an email. Call the professor’s phone, and if that doesn’t work, call their department (which can also get you information on office hours and other times they are often around). Think twice before leaving voicemails: some people, like me, almost never think to check voicemail because calls are so rare. But that’s another reason to call–it’s underutilized.
And, a bonus strategy: Don’t email the prof. Depending on your goals, you might email a TA (for classes), their administrative assistant or the department (for advising/administrative/admissions needs), or a student they work with (for research-related inquiries). These folks may be more appropriate to contact anyways, will often know things the professor doesn’t, have more time to invest in answering email than the average professor, all of which work in your favor.
These strategies all have some cost to you, and that’s a good thing. Email spam is popular because the costs to senders and receivers are so asymmetrical, and although your email probably isn’t spam, it’s going to impose a cost. Make sure it’s worth it, ideally, for both of you.
I’d love to hear other stories and other strategies that people have on both sides of the equation. At this tender, early stage, knowing that people are paying attention and getting value out of this is a Good Thing.
Just another perspective on this, as another not-famous professor:
(1) Contrary to Dan’s advice, please don’t call me unless it’s been specifically invited or there’s an emergency. I’m not quite sure how to use the phone in my office (outgoing calls? voicemail?), and I’m not that interested in learning.
(2) Even more important than making it clear why it’s good to me to reply, make sure that I can figure out what you want. If you don’t ask a question — or for me to do anything — in your email, I’m not really looking for something to do. If it’s informational, that’s cool, I’ll read it and archive. If it’s some passive aggressive request, I’ll read it, wonder what exactly you want, get annoyed, and then archive it.
(3) Be patient. I don’t mind the email twice thing, but I do mind two emails in two days for something that *can* wait a few days; that will just make me fire off a quick “no.”
corollary to 2 & 3: if there is a deadline or time crunch, please tell us up front. I cannot tell you how many times I have to ask “by when would you need this?”
(4) If in person, please be prepared to take “can we schedule an appointment?” for an answer.
Welcome to the blogosphere!
I suspect the context of your question is more focused on research than teaching. Since returning to academia 2 years ago, I’ve had to devote so much time to relearning – and practicing – the craft of teaching that I have no time for research. However, in case my practices in responding to students in the context of teaching are relevant, I’ll share a few.
I like to use the analogy of ACKs, dropped packets and best effort service in computer networking, and tell my students that my intention is to provide best effort service, but if they don’t receive an ACK from me within 24 hours, their email was probably dropped (below my attention horizon), and they should resend.
For questions regarding material in classes, I also encourage students to use discussion boards to post questions rather than email, as this allows other students – who sometimes have better answers than I could provide – to respond, and reduces the number of redundant emails I get about things that may not have been presented as clearly as I intended.
Your proposed strategies remind me of danah boyd’s insightful commentary several years ago about valuing inefficiency and unreliability: communicating in a channel that involves some friction or effort is a signal of the level of importance placed on the communication by the sender.
Finally, for those professors who do allow unanswered email messages to accumulate, there may be some solace and even justification found in John Perry’s articulation of the art of structured procrastination.
Probably doesn’t offer much solace for students, though.
Thanks for the welcome, the thoughts, and the pointers to other resources — I’m a fan…
Yeah, good point on making clear what the request is, and when it’s needed. A post on making effective requests would be pretty useful.
As for calls: I also don’t like them so much, but if folks aren’t local and they really want to try to get some attention and mail’s not doing it, I really can’t begrudge them.
We all have this one story about how we tried to contact an instructor, but never got a response. Must you check this https://plumberswestauckland.co.nz/ and get more new skills for latest plumbers services. We decided to have a look at the replies to previously submitted questionnaires from professors. As an undergrad, I used to email my professors quite often asking for help on homework or classes to attend. After a while, I came to notice that some of these professors didn’t respond back at all let alone respond with a solution.
I want to note that this is not the biggest problem of students. I was always upset by the huge workload, there was literally no time for anything. Fortunately, now students are much easier to learn, because they can always find help here https://collegepaper.net/college-papers-for-sale/
Students often wonder why professors don’t respond to their emails promptly. Several factors could contribute to this. Professors are often inundated with emails, ranging from student queries to administrative matters. Additionally, they may have busy schedules with teaching, research, and other commitments. Sometimes emails can get lost in the shuffle. However, persistence and politeness can often yield results. Remember, professors are human too, with their own obligations and interests perhaps some are even engrossed in contemplating the intricacies of their patek philippe timepieces.
Chevron wood flooring, characterized by its distinctive V-shaped pattern, adds elegance and sophistication to any space. This classic flooring option boasts timeless appeal, combining both aesthetics and functionality. The chevron pattern creates a sense of movement and depth, enhancing the visual interest of a room. Its geometric design offers versatility, complementing various interior styles from traditional to modern. Chevron Wood Flooring exudes warmth and charm, bringing natural beauty indoors. Whether installed in residential or commercial settings, Chevron Wood Flooring elevates the ambiance, making a lasting impression with its exquisite craftsmanship and enduring quality.
It’s frustrating when professors don’t respond to emails, leaving students feeling neglected and disconnected. There could be various reasons behind this silence. Perhaps they’re inundated with a barrage of emails daily, causing yours to get lost in the shuffle. It’s also plausible that they’re facing personal or professional challenges that hinder their ability to reply promptly. Additionally, factors like technical glitches or overwhelming workloads might contribute. Nevertheless, persistently reaching out and respectfully following up may eventually yield a response. Just as seeking assistance for health concerns like ozempic canada requires persistence, communication with professors demands patience and perseverance.
It is sometimes related to time and content. According to my experience, replying to email can take some time. Like I am working on my site small business, I have to answer lots of email per day. So you should look at your timetable for best practice.
A post like yours is insightful and thought-provoking truly exceptional. and we offer the best Paper Glass in India. They are ideal for cafes, events, and everyday use. Our paper glasses are eco-friendly and biodegradable. These paper glasses are a great alternative to plastic and ensure convenience as well as environmental responsibility. Creating a cleaner, greener world begins with our paper glasses.
Answering email can take lots of time. This can be the same when I am doing for my 스포츠중계사이트. Any better software can handle, will be the best choice for business.
That’s such a great article. Please see my business 무료 스포츠중계사이트 here as well.
To get the right solutions, sometimes we can review the content of email. I also apply for my business with the email template and it works well at https://www.adutoys.com/.