Sample Email To Professor Asking For Notes

You missed class due to some unforeseen circumstances and need to ask your professor for the notes for the class you missed.

We’ve all been there and while most of us got the notes from our peers, maybe you’re in an online class where you’ve had little interactions with them or it’s a new class.

Whatever your reasons, we’re here for you. We’ve put together some templates to help you get started on the email. Simply modify them as needed and forward them to your professor.

We’ll also include some tips to help you avoid any issues or simply increase the chances of receiving a positive response from your professor.

Tips For Emailing Professors

Professors are humans like everyone else. There’s no need to stress yourself when reaching out to them. Simply make sure your tone is polite and you’ve got a good start.

Use Proper Title

Don’t forget to use the professor’s appropriate title. If they aren’t yet professors, simply use Dr. when addressing them. On the other hand, you should use professor if that’s their official title.

Professors put in a lot of work to get their titles. Addressing them by their official titles is a show of respect and appreciation.

Examples:
Dear Professor {{Last name}}
Dear Dr. {{Last name}}

Use School Email

Most tertiary institutions provide their students and faculty with school emails to use for communication. This makes for easy communication and moderation of interaction between faculty and students.

Additionally, using school-issued emails ensures that recipients will always receive these emails since they’re whitelisted. External emails may end up blocked by spam filters.

Depending on the professor, emails from your personal email address may end up getting ignored. So, it’s always advisable to use the school-issued email when communicating with any member of your faculty.

Formal Tone

Refrain from using informal language when communicating with your professor. The use of emojis and other slang which are considered informal in your communication could simply annoy them.

Keep in mind the professor isn’t your peer. They’re authority figures in the school and should be treated as such to avoid any problems.

Unless you’re explicitly informed by the professor to communicate with them in such a manner, you should refrain from the use of any informal language.

Additionally, you should also keep in mind that the school has access to these emails and any signs of over-friendliness between students and faculty could raise flags.

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 any errors in your writing.

Keep in mind that these tools aren’t perfect, so it’s advisable to read through them to identify emails yourself or have a third party go through before you send them.

Be Polite

Avoid making demands as that will lead to a negative response. Don’t presume that you’ll be receiving special accommodations.

Keep in mind the professor is in a position of authority. Even if you dislike the professor, you should refrain from any negativity in your email.

After all, being polite doesn’t cost anything, especially when rudeness could lead to consequences.

Identify Yourself

It’s important to identify yourself when communicating with professors because they have busy schedules and don’t want to spend time trying to figure out who you are.

One way to do this is to include your name, class, and section in the introduction or email signature.

Clear And Brief

Don’t write them an entire essay, it isn’t an assignment. Keep your message as short as you possibly can, while maintaining all necessary formality.

Professors receive emails from different sources daily and wouldn’t have the time to read through your long email. So, keeping your email short and to the point, while maintaining a polite tone is advisable.

Explain Your Situation

If you need something from them, try and explain politely without sounding entitled. Trust me, they wouldn’t mind the demands of any entitled student.

In cases where you’ve already discussed with the professor, you can simply remind them of the discussion in a few words. Don’t relate the entire event in your email.

Don’t Forget Attachment

If you need to attach any document or information to the email, you should ensure that it’s properly attached. It’s pretty easy to forget an attachment when sending emails so you should double-check that. This is especially necessary in cases where the email is time sensitive.

Wait Patiently

It’s important to be mindful of the frequency and timing of reminders when communicating with professors. Sending too many reminders may not be effective and can make the situation worse.

Instead, you can wait for a response or visit the professor’s office if your request is urgent. Remember that professors may have other priorities, so it’s important to consider the urgency of your request before sending reminders.

It’s okay to send one or two reminders, but be mindful of how often and when you do it.

Act Early

Don’t wait till after weeks after the class to contact the professor for the notes. You should reach out to them as soon as possible to avoid giving them extra work to do.

They may have archived the notes and moved on to newer lessons. Depending on how they organize their documents, you may be giving them a lot of work to do without knowing.

Clear Subject Line

Don’t forget to include a subject in your email if you want a response. Professors receive loads of emails daily. 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:
Request for Class Notes – {{Course name}}

End Formally

End the email by expressing gratitude for their time and consideration. Include your full name, class, and section details if you haven’t already mentioned them in the opening of the email.

Example:
Thank you
Sincerely
{{Your full name}}
{{Class and Section}}

How To Find Your Professor’s Email

If this is the first time, you’re emailing this professor and you don’t have their email address, you can find it by following any of these approaches.

School Website

You can locate your professor’s official email address on your school’s website. Most colleges feature faculty pages where you may learn more about specific professors, including their contact information.

You can also look at the course overview page on your learning management system for the professor’s contact details.

Course Syllabus

The course syllabus is another area where you can find the professor’s professional email address. The course syllabus often includes their contact information as well as attendance policies.

Other Students

Most likely, you weren’t the only student who occasionally had to email the professor. You can get the professor’s email by asking your friends. You’ll probably get some advice on how to look for the email if none of them have it.