School is on break but you urgently need to reach out to your professor. Maybe something came up and you need to alert them or you simply want to wish them a happy holiday.
The best way is through email, but you may be worried about disturbing them since they may be taking a break from school work.
How do you go about the email? Fortunately, we’ve got you covered as this article will provide some tips to get you started while also including templates that you can easily modify and forward to the professor.
Tips For Emailing Professors
Let’s look at a few things to keep in mind whenever you’re writing an email to your professor.
You’re Not Guaranteed A Response
The professor may also be enjoying a short vacation and may not check their school emails often. So, keep in mind that you’re not guaranteed a positive response or one at all.
That said, most professors still check their emails even during the holidays. So long as your request isn’t too demanding and you’re observing the necessary etiquette, they would most likely respond positively.
Use Proper Title
Always remember to use your professor’s official title in your communication. Identify what their official titles are, before you contact them.
If they’ve officially earned the title “professor”, you should try and use the appropriate title to address them. On the other, you should use “Dr” if they haven’t yet received the “professor” title.
If you aren’t sure what their official titles may be, you can check the course syllabus or the faculty pages of the school website.
Examples:
Dear Professor {{Last name}}
Dear Dr. {{Last name}}
Use School Email
Every tertiary institution provides its faculty and students with official email addresses. If you don’t know the professor’s email address, we’ll show you how to find it later.
Keep in mind that your professor may not respond if you send them an email using your personal email or if you simply send it to their personal emails.
Using your school email also ensures that the professor will get the mail as your personal email may end up blocked by spam filters.
Some professors also try to ensure there’s a balance between their personal lives and work. Any work-related emails, especially from students, to their personal emails would simply be ignored.
So, if you want them to receive and read your email, you should make sure that you use your school email.
Formal Tone
When emailing your professor, it’s important to keep it professional. No matter how close you are to them, you should avoid using any kind of informal language.
Emojis and other slang that you typically use with friends should be avoided. The professor would merely become irritated.
They might simply interpret it as a sign of disrespect so you should refrain from any form of informal tone or language.
So, unless the professor specifically instructs you to use informal language, always use formal language in any official email discussion between yourself and the professor.
Additionally, any signs of overfriendliness between faculty and students could raise red flags as the school has access to moderate these emails.
Correct Grammar
No one enjoys reading horrible grammar. Professors expect students at the tertiary level of education to have good writing skills.
This is especially true when it comes to writing short messages like emails. That said, everyone makes writing mistakes especially when the information is lengthy.
But you can reduce these mistakes by using tools Grammarly which can help identify errors in your writing.
Keep in mind that these tools aren’t perfect, so it’s advisable to read through them yourself or ask a third party to read through them before you click “send”.
Be Polite
Professors are people like us all and have been in your shoes at some point in their academic journey. Additionally, they’ve also had to interact with students with all sorts of concerns and issues.
So, they’re empathetic to your situation so long as you speak to them politely. On the other hand, they would simply ignore any student acting entitled.
Identify Yourself
Whether you’re a new or returning student, you should identify yourself. Professors teach multiple classes and may not be able to remember every one of their students.
You don’t want to give them additional work to do by not identifying yourself. No professor wants to spend the next 30 minutes looking through their student list to identify who you may be.
Either identify yourself in the introduction of the email or include it in the email signature. You can also do both to make things easier.
Clear And Brief
This isn’t the time to show them how verbose you may be. You may have the time to do that but that doesn’t mean they have the time to read through it all. Avoid writing long emails if you want them to read through it all.
Professors receive multiple emails from students, other staff members, publications, and more. Don’t make things difficult for them by writing lengthy emails. Shorten the email as much as possible while also maintaining a polite tone.
Explain Your Situation
Get to the point. Let them know why you’re interrupting their holiday. Don’t write an entire essay for them to read. They may simply skip the email for later. Unfortunately, they would most likely forget about it, as they may be focused on much more urgent emails.
Wait Patiently
While the majority of professors would respond to emails evening during the holidays, you shouldn’t worry if your professor doesn’t respond quickly or even respond at all. Avoid bombarding them with follow-up emails to ask whether they received your email.
Clear Subject Line
Don’t forget to include a subject in your email if you want a response. Professors receive loads of emails daily and subject lines help them identify urgent emails so they can quickly respond.
It makes it easy for them to understand the content of your email without spending too much time reading the full body of your email, which saves them a lot of time.
Example:
Happy Holidays from {{Full name}}
End Formally
Thank the professor for their time and consideration as you close the email. If you didn’t specify it in the email’s introduction, provide your full name, class, and section information.
Example:
Thank you
Sincerely
{{Your full name}}
{{Class and Section}}
How To Find Your Professor’s Email
So how do you find the professor’s email address if this is the first time, you’re reaching out to them?
School Website
Check your faculty page on the school website. These pages usually include information about professors including their official contact information.
Course Overview (LMS)
If your school uses some form of learning management system (LMS) you can check the course overview page for the professor’s assigned course.
You’ll find the professor’s official contact details on the course overview pages.
Course Syllabus
You can also check out the professor’s syllabus for their contact information. You’ll usually find the professor’s contact information as well as their attendance policies on the course syllabus.
Other Students
You’re most likely not the only student who had to email the professor at some point. So, you can ask your classmates for the professor’s email.
Even if none of them has it, you can be sure that someone will provide some advice on where they may have seen it along the line.
Sample Email To Professor During Holiday
Template 1: Wishing Professor Happy Holidays
Email Subject
Happy Holidays from {{Full name}}
Body
Dear Professor {{Last name}},
As we near the end of the year, I wanted to take a moment to wish you a happy and restful holiday season. Your guidance and mentorship have been instrumental in my academic journey, and I am grateful to have you as my professor. Thank you for your dedication and hard work.
Enjoy the holidays and see you next semester!
Sincerely
{{Your full name}}
{{Class and Section Number}}
Template 2: Wishing Professor Happy Holidays
Email Subject
Thank You for Inspiring Me
Body
Dear Professor {{Last name}},
As we approach the end of the {{Year/Semester}}, I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude for your inspirational teaching. Your dedication and passion for the subject matter have been truly inspiring, and I have learned so much from you this semester. I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing holiday season.
Happy Holidays and thank you again!
Sincerely
{{Your full name}}
{{Class and Section Number}}
Template 3: Inquiring About Course Materials During Holiday
Email Subject
Inquiry about Course Materials
Body
Dear Professor {{Last name}},
I hope you are doing well and enjoying your holiday season. I would like to inquire about the course materials for next semester. I will be taking your class and was wondering if there are any textbooks or readings that I should purchase or familiarize myself with before the semester begins.
Thank you for your time, and I hope you have a wonderful holiday break!
Sincerely
{{Your full name}}
{{Class and Section Number}}
