Advice for Prospective Research Students

I am always interested in talking to students that are interested in my work. However, it is very obvious to us faculty members when a student mass emails multiple people with the same email without being familiar with people's work. Nowadays with generative AI, creating these emails and even including a summary of someone's work is fairly easy. Sometimes emails will contain words like "respected" or "esteemed" when referring to someone's home institution or work, without actually including any indication that one is familiar with either. This type of emails is counter-productive and it is extremely unlikely anyone will respond to them.

If you are a student genuinely interested in pursuing research, this is what I think is the best approach. I would look at the website of the department and the faculty member whose work I'm interested in. I would then email them a tailored-email explaining why I'm interested in their work, being part of their lab, and ask if they are taking students. Sometimes people aren't looking for students. If they are looking for students, then I would officially apply (admissions are handled by a committee, so a formal application is required) and after applying I would let them know that I have applied and if they could take a look and see if I would be a good fit.

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