Long Before They Meet You, They Meet Your Email
Your email is often the first thing a professor or recruiter reads from you. A clear subject line, a quick point, and a read-aloud check do most of the work.
Daniel V Pack
10/20/20263 min read
Before a professor, a recruiter, or a manager meets you, they meet your email. It reads like someone who thinks clearly and respects their time, or it doesn’t. The good news is that a good email is learnable.
Nobody taught you this. You learned to text your friends, and you picked up academic writing in class. The short, clear, professional email sits in the gap between the two. It feels obvious to everyone, so it gets taught to no one.
For an international student, it’s worth more than it looks. Email is often the first interaction you have with someone, and it’s the one where your accent and your nerves aren’t in the picture.
If an email is vague or rambling and you’re not getting to the point, the person reading it might think you have a hard time summarizing your thoughts, or that you’re not very organized in the way you write. Things like that can give them a bad first impression of you.
The parts
Start with a real subject line. Put the purpose of the email in it, in five to eight words. If you’re asking for something, say that too. Think “Question about Friday’s deadline” or “Request for 15 minutes next week.” A vague subject line is the easiest way to get skipped.
Open a little formal. “Dear Professor Lopez.” “Hi Mr. Chen.” It’s easier to warm up later than to walk back something too casual. Put what you need up top and the details underneath, because most people skim. Close by thanking them and saying what happens next. Sign off with your name, your program or class year, your school, and a way to reach you.
Send it from an address that looks like your name. firstname.lastname@gmail.com is fine. The account you made in tenth grade is not.
Keep the feelings out of it. No screaming in all caps, no emojis. Even and respectful, full sentences, the way you’d talk if the person were sitting across from you. One idea per paragraph, so nobody has to hunt for what you want. Use active voice. “I’ll send the report Friday” beats “the report will be sent.” And own it with “I.” “I misread the deadline” lands better than “nobody told me,” even when both are true.
The email you keep not sending
Take the question to a professor. Most students try to work it out alone. They don’t want to look behind, or they worry the question will show a gap in their English. Professors don’t expect you to already know. You’re in college to learn, and they appreciate a student who shows interest. It’s the same habit as going to office hours.
Don’t pester them with small questions. For a bigger one, or a theory you want to understand better, write the email.
Say it out loud
Before you send, read the email out loud. I started doing this back in my creative writing program. When you edit your own writing over and over, your head fills in what’s missing, like pauses, punctuation, and even whole words. You read right past it. Out loud, those mistakes come out.
I’ve shared it with the people in my English conversation groups, and it works especially well for second-language writers. You’ve heard far more English than you’ve spoken or written, so when something is off, you hear it. You may not know why. You know it sounds wrong. Change it until it sounds like how you’d say it to this person.
Where people slip
When I managed a restaurant, a server would come up to me and say, “I’ve got a problem with table 11.”
“Okay, what’s going on?”
Then I’d get all of the background, starting from the minute the table sat down.
“They came in. They sat down. I introduced myself and welcomed them to the restaurant. I told them the specials. I took their drink orders. I brought back their drinks. This person got a margarita, this person got a mai tai, blah blah blah. Then I took their food order, and this person got…”
They would keep going and going. Finally I’d have to stop them. “Okay, why do you need me? What’s the issue? I need some context, but I don’t need all of it.”
Same with an email. Say why you’re writing first. Give just enough background that they understand why they’re reading it, and stop.
The other slip is simpler. It’s not reviewing the email before you send it. A typo in the exact sentence where you’re asking for a favor undercuts the favor.
Keep it to one screen. If you’re scrolling, cut.
When you don’t hear back, wait three to five business days. Then send one short, polite follow-up that points back to your first message. Once. People are busy, and one calm nudge is plenty.
Read next: Go to Your Career Center Before You Need It · Group Project Survival for International Students
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