As college students we typically see email as a form of communication between ourselves and professors and TAs, but how often do we use email to communicate with others outside of our academic circle? Email is the primary method of communication within academic and professional settings across the world, making it the perfect tool to network with the right people from anywhere at any time.
Cold emailing is one of the easiest ways to reach out to people and make inquiries that you perhaps would not have done otherwise, given you have the person’s email address. Oftentimes, you can find the email address of the person you wish to contact through a company or university website, or through LinkedIn. Through cold emailing you communicate with professionals and ask them for internships that provide you with the type of opportunities YOU are looking for, rather than ones that are generally available to you.
A prime example of the power of cold emailing is that of billionaire tech mogul Mark Cuban. Cuban receives roughly 1,000 emails a day – the result of handing out his email address to the public. Of those thousands of emails, many of which are looking for investments from Cuban for their startups, a few are lucky enough to convince him to do just that. All it took for these lucky entrepreneurs was a solid, well thought out email.
My personal experience with cold emailing led to a research internship that has guided me on my academic journey. Whether you are looking for an internship, research position, job, or just doing some good old networking, sending someone an email is one of the most efficient ways of doing so.
Now it wouldn’t make much sense for me to hand you an email template and say, “here ya go!”. Instead, I am going to provide you with a handful of tips to get started because the power of email truly depends on being yourself. At the end of the day, no matter how cliche it sounds, that’s what is going to separate your email from everyone else.
That being said, here are five tips for drafting a strong email:
1. First Impressions Matter
The first impression the recipient has of you and your email is the subject line. It could be argued that the subject line is just as important as the content of your email. Be sure to put some thought into the subject line. It should be direct and specific. Make sure the subject line is not generalized such as “internship opportunity.” It should be crafted towards the specific position that you are reaching out for.
2. Address the Recipient Formally and Respectfully
Do not start your email with hi, hey, or any other greeting that you might commonly use. You have not yet developed any relationship with the person you are emailing, so it is very important to be respectful and formal. Instead, start with “Dear” or “Greetings”, followed by the appropriate title of professor, doctor, Mr/Mrs., or Ms. and the individual’s last name. After writing your email, be sure to end it with sincerely, best regards, or another formal salutation and your name. Be sure to not end the email with just your name. You should maintain a formal tone throughout your email.
3. Be Concise
You want to provide some background information about yourself and whatever it is that you hope to get out of sending this email, BUT you also want to get to the point. Most of the time, the people you are emailing for academic or career-oriented opportunities are all busy people. Be sure to make good use of their time and yours.
4. Keep It Simple
Your email does not have to be long and elaborate, as mentioned before. You want to keep it short while covering all the basic information about yourself. You want to be able to clearly and concisely communicate your interests and why you believe they should take the time to invest in you. In being concise, be sure to introduce yourself, specify your interests and reason for writing, connect your interests with the work of the recipient and/or company, and if needed, attach a copy of your resume.
5. Rejection is OK
Unfortunately, no matter how earnest and passionate you are, you might still be told no. In fact, some people might not even open your email, and that is okay. Remember to put yourself out there and try – that is the very first step. Again, if I may add a cliche quote, “You will hear a hundred no’s before you hear a yes.”
