You just finished work on an assigned project and need to submit it to your professor for grading. You need to draft a simple email but this is your first time and you’re not sure the best way to go about it.
This is where we come in as this article will provide some tips to help you put together the email. Additionally, we’ve also created some templates that you can modify for the purpose.
Tips For Emailing Professors
Let’s look at a few things to keep in mind whenever you’re writing an email to your professor.
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 private email or if you simply send it to their private emails.
Using your school email also ensures that the professor will get the mail as your private 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 private 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.
Correct Grammar
No one enjoys reading horrible grammar. Professors expect students at that 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
Professors teach multiple classes and may not be able to remember every one of their students. Don’t take it personally.
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
Tell them exactly what you need or the exact information you’re sending. If you’re simply submitting a project, it’s advisable to let them know which project you’re submitting.
Don’t give them extra work by neglecting to include the project title. Loads of other students and classes could be sending their projects as well.
It’s advisable to let them know exactly which class you’re in.
Don’t Forget Attachment
Don’t forget to attach any relevant documents. Confirm this before you click “send” on the email. Can’t remember the number of times I’ve sent an email simply to receive a response that I neglected to attach the necessary documents.
Wait Patiently
Avoid bombarding them with reminders or you can get blocked. If they haven’t responded to your email, don’t worry.
Professors have busy schedules and they may not respond to your email especially when there’s no real need to.
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:
Project Submission – {{Project 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 Emails To Submit Project To Professor
Template 1: Submitting Completed Project – No Confirmation Requested
Email Subject
Submission of {{Project Name}}
Body
Dear Professor {{Last name}},
I hope this finds you well. I would like to submit my {{Project Name}} project for {{Class}} class. As per the guidelines, I’ve attached a PDF copy which is titled appropriately.
If you have any difficulty opening or reviewing it, please let me know.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
{{Your full name}}
{{Position and Department}}
Template 2: Submitting Completed Project – Need Confirmation
Email Subject
Submission of {{Project Name}}
Body
Dear Professor {{Last name}},
I hope this finds you well. This is {{Fullname}} from your {{Class name}} class that meets on {{Meeting days}}. Please find a {{File format}} copy of my {{Project Name}} project attached for your reference.
I’ve attached a {{Second File format}} in case you have any difficulty accessing it. I would be grateful if you could confirm receipt and let me know if any further actions are required from my side.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
{{Your full name}}
{{Position and Department}}
Template 3: Submitting Uncompleted Project
Email Subject
Incomplete Project Submission – {{Project Name}}
Body
Dear Professor {{Last name}},
I hope this finds you well. I would like to submit my {{Project Name}} project for {{Class}} class. However, I was unable to complete the project due to {{Reasons why it’s incomplete}}.
That said, I’ve enjoyed working on this project and would appreciate it if I’m given the opportunity to fully complete it. I’ve already completed the {{Progress you’ve made}} which leaves only {{What you need to complete}} to complete the project.
I understand that this may be impossible since the deadline is already up, but I would appreciate your consideration.
Thank you for your support
Sincerely,
{{Your full name}}
{{Position and Department}}
